Could someone give me the breakdown on lung basics? I was cruising through the forum and found myself struck by some of the pics. I especially like the Aussie look. I'm having kind of a hard time getting through some of the terminology though, lots of proper names, and I'm still a newb so I thought I'd ask.
Just learning
- Thread starter Aribenlaw
- Start date
One word of advice, South American lungfish(Lepidosiren paradoxa) are very gentle, and usually can be mixed with other fish. Africans are usually aggressive. Australian(Neoceratodus) are peaceful but are nearly impossible to obtain.
So what are the other defining characteristics of each region? I know Aussies are impossible to get, I researched them a little bit because of course I want one. Anyone have keeping experiences the different varieties?
My south american is in a community setup with oscars, snooks, etc. My african lungs are all in single-fish tanks due to their aggressive natures. My 2ft albino Protopterus aethiopicus killed, crushed, and ate a footlong Mbu puffer. Here's a pic of my albino:
My AUL was part of a pair I bought. But, they became waspish towards each other so, I traded one for tropical gars. My AUL is in a community setup with some of my lower-jaw polys, an african aro, a trio of tropical gars, and a couple of albino irridescent sharks. All get along fine.
I also have a Protopterus annectens that's the most ornery cuss I've ever had for a lungfish. He not only tries to attack me every time I get near his tank but, he also kills minnows he doesn't intend to eat. I have to feed him a minnow at a time or he'll kill the extras once he's full and ignore them when he's hungry later.
I've noticed that the Auls seem quite distinct from other varieties. So different that I'm suprised they are in the same grouping. Is it just the "lung" that keeps these guys associated so closely? Whats the difference between the organ found in these as compared to a labyrinth fish?