I'd like the standard info on these two "gars" plz. thinking of putting 1 or 2 of these in my soon to be 55 gallon tank.
Hujeta "Gars" and Needle Nose "Gars"
- Thread starter LittleBigAl3
- Start date
the needle may be fine
no experience with the hujeta though
the 55 will be long enough,deep enough, but i dont know about wide enough(again just my opinion so dont flame me for it)
no experience with the hujeta though
the 55 will be long enough,deep enough, but i dont know about wide enough(again just my opinion so dont flame me for it)
thanks for the comment. its ok to state your opinion. its just that others go way too far...Lepisosteus platyrhincus;2409055; said:
agreed sometimes some do
hujeta is sometimes called freshwater barracuda
read they will max out at 22.8 cm (dont know if this is true)
i hear that needle fish do best in groups at max out at 15-16" on some reports and 12" on others. not sure wich is true though. try a search on these im sure theyrs plenty of info on them
hujeta is sometimes called freshwater barracuda
read they will max out at 22.8 cm (dont know if this is true)
i hear that needle fish do best in groups at max out at 15-16" on some reports and 12" on others. not sure wich is true though. try a search on these im sure theyrs plenty of info on them
hujetas will get around 14'' in captivity but are reported at around 20'' in the wild
They are said to be difficult to get off of live foods and like being in groups i've never kept this fish persoanlly so i have very little first hand experience with them
Needlenose gars will commonly get around 8''-10'' and can reach around 12'' i've only seen one in person that was 12''
I've read many documents on them stateing that they should be kept in light brackish conditions but i've found they will do fine in totally fresh water but tend to stay healthier when they have some salt in there water ( around 1-2 tsp per 5 gallons works )
As for food they usually are difficult to get off of live food but i have done it there are a few methods to try
1. they often respond to the pressence of there owner like a cichlid they will look to the surface for food Escpecially when kept with fast moveing fish the pose as compition for so i've litterally tossed in goldfish and rosy reds to get the needlefish to grab them right away then i threw in a piece of krill which is simuler in color and shape at first not much happened but eventually one grabbed it then spit it out i kept repeating this and eventually one grabed and swallowed a piece of krill the others watched and eventually they all were doing it
2. i've also tried tossing in food by a source of current like a power head or filter out take the resulting movement of the prepared food usually got there attention and with any luck they would grab and hopefully swallow the food
3. i've also tried tyeing very fine fishing line ( try to get 2 Lb test or around that size) around a food source very lightly so that once grabed by the fish it could be eazilly be pulled from the line then you dangle it in front of the fish your working with ( i've heard of succes with this method from many people keeping all sorts of top water characins that are fussy eaters ) and jig the bait around and again hopefully it will be grabed and eaten it can be difficult to find the balance between tyeing the line to tight and have the fish not be able to pull the food away and to loose so that the food simply falls off the line when jigged but if you can find the balance its a good method to try
Food sources i used were all frozen and were : Krill, Shrimp cut into strips, fish fillets cut into strips, silver sides I had very little luck with any kind of pelle one of my needlefish did eat a few pellets
Tankmates for needlefish should be chosen with care they should be kept with tankmates to big to be eaten and vise versa also they shouldn't be kept with aggressive fish Mine were all killed by a mayan cichlid
They can be kept in groups or by them selfs i would recomend groups bigger then 3 or 1 there will be a peacking order in groups there will be dommonint and submissive needlefish the dommonint ones with often flare there gills at smaller or weaker ones and sometimes bite them which in my experience rarely results in injury
They are said to be difficult to get off of live foods and like being in groups i've never kept this fish persoanlly so i have very little first hand experience with them
Needlenose gars will commonly get around 8''-10'' and can reach around 12'' i've only seen one in person that was 12''
I've read many documents on them stateing that they should be kept in light brackish conditions but i've found they will do fine in totally fresh water but tend to stay healthier when they have some salt in there water ( around 1-2 tsp per 5 gallons works )
As for food they usually are difficult to get off of live food but i have done it there are a few methods to try
1. they often respond to the pressence of there owner like a cichlid they will look to the surface for food Escpecially when kept with fast moveing fish the pose as compition for so i've litterally tossed in goldfish and rosy reds to get the needlefish to grab them right away then i threw in a piece of krill which is simuler in color and shape at first not much happened but eventually one grabbed it then spit it out i kept repeating this and eventually one grabed and swallowed a piece of krill the others watched and eventually they all were doing it
2. i've also tried tossing in food by a source of current like a power head or filter out take the resulting movement of the prepared food usually got there attention and with any luck they would grab and hopefully swallow the food
3. i've also tried tyeing very fine fishing line ( try to get 2 Lb test or around that size) around a food source very lightly so that once grabed by the fish it could be eazilly be pulled from the line then you dangle it in front of the fish your working with ( i've heard of succes with this method from many people keeping all sorts of top water characins that are fussy eaters ) and jig the bait around and again hopefully it will be grabed and eaten it can be difficult to find the balance between tyeing the line to tight and have the fish not be able to pull the food away and to loose so that the food simply falls off the line when jigged but if you can find the balance its a good method to try
Food sources i used were all frozen and were : Krill, Shrimp cut into strips, fish fillets cut into strips, silver sides I had very little luck with any kind of pelle one of my needlefish did eat a few pellets
Tankmates for needlefish should be chosen with care they should be kept with tankmates to big to be eaten and vise versa also they shouldn't be kept with aggressive fish Mine were all killed by a mayan cichlid
They can be kept in groups or by them selfs i would recomend groups bigger then 3 or 1 there will be a peacking order in groups there will be dommonint and submissive needlefish the dommonint ones with often flare there gills at smaller or weaker ones and sometimes bite them which in my experience rarely results in injury
no idea about needle fish.
but i can shed some light on hujetas.
VERY slow growing.
usually non aggressive,but ive heard they can be fin nippers towards silvery fish.
my old hujetas actually ripped apart my aros tail.
but they were fine with anything else,which were ALOT of different fish.
they usually get to 12 inches in captivity although the biggest ive seen or heard of is 14 inches,and that will take a VERY long time.
i trained mine to eat anything from shrimp to pellets.
you just need to be determined enough to get them off live.
hope this helps.
but i can shed some light on hujetas.
VERY slow growing.
usually non aggressive,but ive heard they can be fin nippers towards silvery fish.
my old hujetas actually ripped apart my aros tail.
but they were fine with anything else,which were ALOT of different fish.
they usually get to 12 inches in captivity although the biggest ive seen or heard of is 14 inches,and that will take a VERY long time.
i trained mine to eat anything from shrimp to pellets.
you just need to be determined enough to get them off live.
hope this helps.
I have owned hujeta's for 2-3 years and started with one and recently got 2 more. And I have to say that they really liven up when in a school. I have never seen one over 9''. I have asked on many sites for proof and have never gottten any. They like current and if you can make a water fall they will gather under it most of the time. They are also a top level swimmer and seldomly leave the top few inches of the tank. Except for when they are hunting as a group and then they will dive for feeders. And sometimes they dive so hard that the will stick them selves into the substrate going after food. I have mine with 3 red tailed payara and a bichir, and they get along good.