HIBERNATION in captivity

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
F

fwlion

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
May 24, 2005
1,057
8
0
39
NASHVILLE,TN
IS THIS POSSIBLE

I was thinking a good sized tank half full with aquarium MUD or Pond MUD, cut off all filters and pumps SLOWLY raise water temp. and gradually let the water evaporate or over the course of a few days drop the water level

he should INSTINCTIVLY burrow and cocoon right?
 
First of all - raising the water temp will only stress the fish, and make him hungrier. The opposite of what you want. In its native habitat, this happens over weeks, not days.

I have read that in the wild, even, there is still a high percentage of fatality in estivation (The correct term) so, I strongly disagree with attempting this.
 
When I moved house I had to hibernate stan my 12" African lungfish due to lack of space/ floor weight capacity/ landlord issues - I let the water level decrease over a period of one month and switched the filtration off.

I know this may be seen as irresponsible behaviour but I know the temperament of my fish and it was obvious to me that his behaviour was changing in response to environmental conditions. As the water level changed he started burrowing more so I filled the tank with river mud. Eventually he stopped moving altogether he became lethargic and assumed the classic folded up position. Over a period of 4 months he ate nothing and did not move, although he would respond VERY SLOWLY to poking and could raise his head up and down for air. The top of the mud dried although I did top it up with water occasionally to a depth of 6" including mud. there was no obvious coccoon, but there was a hole in the mud which he could lift his head up to breathe.


When the time came that I could set up a new tank for him I poured a bit of water into his tank. It took him about 6 hours to wake up properly, and during this time he could not swim and would have drowned if I had filled the tank up - I managed to arouse him from hibernation by stroking him and pouring fresh water over him washing off the mud - this process took hours and he kept trying to go back to sleep - folding his tail over his head. when he went back into the tank I watched him non stop until I saw him manage to swim for air.

The following day he was 100% back to normal and eating loads, responding with usual excitement to a presence in the room.

I appreciate this is not recommended and not often attempted, but still I think it important to document my experience. Lungfish physiology has evolved over millions of years to respond accordingly to fluctuations in environmental conditions. yes I may have been lucky, but my Lungfish has had no adverse health problems from this 4-5 month hibernation without food/ fresh water, and showed obvious signs that his body "knew" what was going on.

It is now 6 months since the hibernation and he is feeding and growing well.
 
jeffthefish;1616477; said:
Markpajak, that is the coolest thing I have ever read. Did you take any photos during the process?
Click to expand...

+1

That's freaking AWESOME!! It must have been amazing to witness that first hand. Please tell me you have some pics...please, please, PLEASE. :D
 
Fascinating story, thanks for sharing it:)
 
Sorry, I don't have any pictures - but to be honest if there were there would not be much to look at except grey brown mud.

I could just about make out the curled up shape of the lungfish during aestivation, but on film this would look like a splodge, and the breathing hole again was covered with mud and did not look like anything specific - there was no mucus cocoon that I could see.

I also should have recorded temperatures and the exact timeframes.
During most of the time there was no heating except in the room. I would say around 18-20degrees C. and I used a heat mat at the other end of the tank when the weather became cold outside.

I have to say I expected stan to be pretty pissed off with me by the end of it but he was fine. These fish are amazing creatures.

I even took stan to work in a plastic cereal container the other day (I work at a museum) and put him in a bigger tank I'd set up there... again within 5 minutes of realising he was in a nice tank he was happy, responsive and feeding.

I think the only possible side effect is that he lost weight during hibernation but he's more than made up for it since. I am not sure if his growth will be stunted permanently because of this but I'd imagine eventually he'll reach full potential.

He is about 4-5 years old now and only 12", but very chunky!

Again I would not recommend this... but for moving house etc. it comes in really handy!
 
quite probably, I got him from a shop where he was in with cichlids who had nipped his pectorals to shreds and he seemed to shy to attack them.

I was keeping him in a 3ft tank with a shallow water level for a few years then upsized to a full 48" x 18" x 15", at which point the floor started creaking and I got scared the tank was going to go through the ceiling
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
MonsterFishKeepers.com
Top Bottom