I caught a juvenile Rock Bass (4 inches long) and I wanted to know if anyone has any tips on keeping them. I released him though, I don't want to put a fish blindly into my tank. What's the best thing to feed them (other than minnows, worms, and mealworms) and what sort of setup (ex: lots of driftwood, lots of hiding places) should I have in my tank? I know that they grow big.
Keeping Rock Bass?
- Thread starter just3542
- Start date
I had one once. I got it trained on corn, which is better than going and buying feeders all the time.
My experience is that rock bass are much more difficult to train to pellets than Lepomis sunfish, but it can be done. They do like driftwood and other hiding spots- they will be stressed out and pale in a bare open tank. They can eat fairly large fish, but with fish too big to eat they are pretty laid back. They are not as territorial as most sunfish are. A 29/30 gallon tank is OK for a single fish for life, but bigger is better.
What will you be keeping him with?
What will you be keeping him with?
RiverMonsterFisher;5107732; said:
Corn isn't a very good food for a fish that needs protein...fishes digestive systems aren't designed to process such foods, and probably wouldn't get much (if any) nutritional benefit from it.
Noto;5108021; said:
Thanks for all the info. I will most likely be keeping him in a 55 gallon with a Green Sunfish. Is this a good idea? I'm just worried that the tank might be too small for the two of them and things will get aggressive.
Shouldn't be that hard. I got one trained on pellets very fast. I released him at 3 inches when he outgrew my 10 gallon (he was alone in there) Nice as long as nothing fits in his mouth
This made my day!I've had my rock bass for 5 years or so now (look at avatar). I caught it as a little two inch juvenile and kept him in a 29g with some other natives including a longear sunfish. For food he initially ate things like blood worms, beef heart and bits of worms and things. I eventually got him taking pellets but he would only take softer pellets at first, like HBH Super Soft. Eventually I got him to take regular cichlid pellets.
He has had a number of tank mates over the years ranging from native sunfish to convicts and severums and has never been particularly aggressive but can hold his own. Currently he lives in a 75g with other sunnies including a green and they all get along fine. He does fine at room temp and enjoys having cover such as driftwood. He is about 8" in length.
He is one of my favorite fish, tons of personality, hardy and pretty to look at. They're worth giving a try, good luck if you get one.
He has had a number of tank mates over the years ranging from native sunfish to convicts and severums and has never been particularly aggressive but can hold his own. Currently he lives in a 75g with other sunnies including a green and they all get along fine. He does fine at room temp and enjoys having cover such as driftwood. He is about 8" in length.
He is one of my favorite fish, tons of personality, hardy and pretty to look at. They're worth giving a try, good luck if you get one.