Infant Fire Eel

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Kennethlee

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Apr 15, 2012
21
0
1
Texas
So i've had this fire eel for about 4 or 5 months now, He's really gotten active and likes to swim and play. He's grown to about 8 Inches, thats good i got him around 4.
however, sometimes in my tank he disappears and i always think he's buried but i never notice him, and he's not the burrowing type...
However a few moments ago I caught him in the act! i know where he goes to hide, he climbs into the filter box. i saw him slithering up in there and popping out a couple seconds later. He seems amused and my filter is totally covered. i assume the possibility of him escaping is still there though. thats what has me on edge. I have a Ropefish too and he hasn't figured a way to get out. but The fire eel is much more flexible.. not too mention smaller..

It's all fun and games until someone climbs out of the tank...
 
I almost had a peacock die in the filter. Luckily I noticed he was missing in time. He still loves to try to get in there. I can't think of the technical term but my solution was to raise the filter segment nearest to the outflow up a ways. Problem solved. He still tries to get in there but he can't.
 
the filter isn't so much the danger.. 'nore jumping out... it's the impeller mechanisim thats potentially deadly. one of my M dayi lost a respectable chunk of his tail doing that. I simply lower my water levels so he couldn't get into it for a few weeks... now he doesn't even try.
 
My fire eel went down the overflow into the filter sock then got out of the sock and landed in the sump. All this to later get stuck under some rocks and die. So so sad. I'll get another one sooner or later still an awesome character in the tank
 
make sure he has plenty of other spots to hide, and yeah big rocks aren't ideal.. unless they are stacked solidly before you add gravel to the tank ( like most SW reefs are designed so they won't topple or have minimal.. PVC looks so fake.. but imo is a great hide spot option, or driftwood which can be pricey.
 
I have it well kept with lots of hiding spots. Everybody likes their home in there. however i may need more ornaments, i purchased a second ABK today. I know they like pipes. any suggestions? whats IMO?
I'll post a video later today after feeding time.
 
imo- in my oppinion. ABKs usually do fine wth the clear pipes but for my larger eels i go to the local hardware store and buy the white PVC tubes in the plumbing department. pretty cheap that way. my guys love the elbows. they also come in a variety of diameters.
 
I gave my fire eel a huge bit of driftwood to hid in, it looks much better than the pvc I used to have in my tank. Only filters I use are canisters so no chance of escaping with the top all covered.
 
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