I take it from your replies that they grow big and i dont have the space for one as yet so change of tact for you. What are perch like to keep and what is the best ways to get them to colour up, dark substrate or light or are there other factors involved with their colour
Largemouth worth keeping?
- Thread starter jonahonah
- Start date
Pfisherman;579132; said:
Largemouths and smallmouths aren't the only "basses" out there.
LMB are great fish to keep, especially if you can get them on pellets. They do grow fast and they grow big. Mine was at most an inch in July but it's now 5". You will ultimatly need a multi-hundred gallon tank for one, at least 6' long. IMO a great alternative would be a green sunfish. They look similer and act pretty much the same. They stay much smaller and will normally take pellets.
Oddball;578314; said:
That brute could eat my watch dog! I have a Jack Russell, which are like the dog version of the figure 8 puffer. Little and agressive and love to pick on bigger fish.
Definatly get the LMB, they are really cool.
Mine likes tv, he sits still and whaches it for some time. Its funny. Get one. I have one but I need a new tank His in a 10 right now and as soon as my pond is up his going into a 60 and hopefull in a month ill get a 30" wide tank for him. 
oh and aslong as the tank is 30+ inch you will be fine.
oh and aslong as the tank is 30+ inch you will be fine.I have a Large Mouth Bass that I caught in a nearby river, in August. He was about six inches, now he's more than double that in length. This is him about two months ago, with a goldfish in his mouth.
I suspect that he's about a pound now. I've been keeping him in a 29 gallon, but he's outgrown it. I just ordered a 125 gallon for his new home, but I suspect he'll eventually outgrow that.
Just to keep the water clear requires almost daily water changes (2-5 gallons). He'll eat a dozen large feeder goldfish in several days. I used to have about 15 assorted green sunfish and pumpkinseed. The largest two are all that are left. The last one he ate was so big that the tail hung out his mouth for two full days while he digested the head. I wish I had taken a picture of that.
He was skittish at first, but now he's real sociable. He'll come up to the front and look at me for as long as I sit there, and if I walk in the room with a white bag from the local fish store, he knows he's about to be fed, and starts dancing back and forth. Feeding is hilarious, if he's gone a few days without any. He attacked a gold fish so fast that he created a wave and the goldfish ended up on the floor.
He likes to chase the larger green sunfish around, but he leaves the catfish alone. He's eaten every crawdad I put in there, too.
Like someone else said, if you like native fishes that feed agresssively and are very active, I'd start out with a green sunfish. They'll eat flake food, as well as just about anything alive that they can fit in their mouth (and they will try to eat things that are too big, which is hilarious). They also eat each other, so I only keep similarly sized ones now (although I catch smaller ones to feed the Bass). They don't get huge, so you can keep them in relatively smaller aquariums. In nature, it's not uncommon to find them stunted in small ponds with limited food supplies, so I suspect they won't outgrow too fast as long as they aren't overfed. Like others have noted, I would not use an undergravel filter, because they like to dig.
I suspect that he's about a pound now. I've been keeping him in a 29 gallon, but he's outgrown it. I just ordered a 125 gallon for his new home, but I suspect he'll eventually outgrow that.
Just to keep the water clear requires almost daily water changes (2-5 gallons). He'll eat a dozen large feeder goldfish in several days. I used to have about 15 assorted green sunfish and pumpkinseed. The largest two are all that are left. The last one he ate was so big that the tail hung out his mouth for two full days while he digested the head. I wish I had taken a picture of that.
He was skittish at first, but now he's real sociable. He'll come up to the front and look at me for as long as I sit there, and if I walk in the room with a white bag from the local fish store, he knows he's about to be fed, and starts dancing back and forth. Feeding is hilarious, if he's gone a few days without any. He attacked a gold fish so fast that he created a wave and the goldfish ended up on the floor.
He likes to chase the larger green sunfish around, but he leaves the catfish alone. He's eaten every crawdad I put in there, too.
Like someone else said, if you like native fishes that feed agresssively and are very active, I'd start out with a green sunfish. They'll eat flake food, as well as just about anything alive that they can fit in their mouth (and they will try to eat things that are too big, which is hilarious). They also eat each other, so I only keep similarly sized ones now (although I catch smaller ones to feed the Bass). They don't get huge, so you can keep them in relatively smaller aquariums. In nature, it's not uncommon to find them stunted in small ponds with limited food supplies, so I suspect they won't outgrow too fast as long as they aren't overfed. Like others have noted, I would not use an undergravel filter, because they like to dig.
My LMB won't take fish anymore, I had convict fry in there he could have taken with ease but didn't. The convict was in there for about a month before someone (largemouth, pumpkinseed, green, bullhead) finally ate him but I'm almost positive it was the bullhead. I have also put fatheads in there and he pays them no regard. Mine loves pellets though. I measured him today and he's 5.5" TL. Last time I measured him was November 6th, he was 4" then.
Iv had a LM for a couple months and hes awsome. They really b/c tame and will greet you the moment u walk by the tank. They eat like no other though. but ya they are TRUE ]V[onsters
Dude LMB are the BEST!! Believe it or not my smallies are actually more aggressive then the large mouth. Both are rad though.
Mine will as well jump out of the water to get a hanging goldfish. Although no where near 10" I'd say my high jump is at oh 2". But I'll be working on that.
Best fish I've ever kept. (2 year fish keeping history and lots of different kinds)
One of my favorite things is when one of them will have a fish in there mouth tail first and they open there mouth just a little and the fish swims out and another will snatch it up.
I actually had one bass STEAL a fish out of another basses mouth. THAT WAS SWEET!!
Mine will as well jump out of the water to get a hanging goldfish. Although no where near 10" I'd say my high jump is at oh 2". But I'll be working on that.
Best fish I've ever kept. (2 year fish keeping history and lots of different kinds)
One of my favorite things is when one of them will have a fish in there mouth tail first and they open there mouth just a little and the fish swims out and another will snatch it up.
I actually had one bass STEAL a fish out of another basses mouth. THAT WAS SWEET!!
