Motoro Ray Questions

[Delhezi222]

Hey guys.
I recently became interested in FW rays, and have a few questions.
First, how long would two motoros last in a 4x2x2 tank? The reason I ask is that after tossing around some ideas, I decided to build an 8x4x2 tank this summer, so I was wondering if I could keep them in there until then.
Also, how would flourite work as a substrate?
Finally, how well would they be kept with some polys and maybe a dat or two?
Thanks!

Edit: Also, how about this substrate:
http://www.aloha-aquariums.com/servlet/the-3800/Clifford-Special-Red-25Lb/Detail
I thought it looked a little rough.
BTW, I will be getting an out-of-tank heater, so no worries as to that.

 

[FishDog]

If the motoros are around 6 inches then you shouldn't have a problem. Just make sure you have an over sized filter that is already established. I don't like mixing poly's with rays but that is only because I had a bad experience. They both eat off the bottom and compete for food. I keep dats with my rays.

 

[Delhezi222]

If the motoros are around 6 inches then you shouldn't have a problem. Just make sure you have an over sized filter that is already established. I don't like mixing poly's with rays but that is only because I had a bad experience. They both eat off the bottom and compete for food. I keep dats with my rays.

Thanks. I wasn't planning on having many polys, just a few.
How long could retics last in a 4x2x2?

 

[stingray94]

Thanks. I wasn't planning on having many polys, just a few.
How long could retics last in a 4x2x2?

I would only keep polys with rays if the polys were larger. I think it would kind of be hit or miss though. A motoro may try and eat them and with a retic there might be to much competition for food. 2 motoros in that tank with a lot of water changes and excellent filtration I think would be fine until summer. Retics grow really slow so you could probably have 2 of them in that tank for 2-3 years, however I have no experience with retics so you will have to ask somebody that does.

 

[Delhezi222]

I would only keep polys with rays if the polys were larger. I think it would kind of be hit or miss though. A motoro may try and eat them and with a retic there might be to much competition for food. 2 motoros in that tank with a lot of water changes and excellent filtration I think would be fine until summer. Retics grow really slow so you could probably have 2 of them in that tank for 2-3 years, however I have no experience with retics so you will have to ask somebody that does.

Okay. Thanks for the help with the motoros. For filtration, I will be using a large rubbermaid sump and one ac110, maybe two. Would that suffice?
Also, anyone have any info about the retics? How proficiently do retics breed? Anyone have any success with breeding them?

 

[abortedsoul]

How long could retics last in a 4x2x2?

I suppose retics could last quite a while. I have a retic that is about 4" in a water system that is only slightly more than 140 gallons. 4x2 is a nice footprint to start. I believe that retics reach sexual maturity after a couple of years, so you'd probably have a few moons.

If anyone else can chime in, I'm also rather interested. What is a good tank size for a pair of adult retics (+1 silver arawana) ?

 

[Delhezi222]

I suppose retics could last quite a while. I have a retic that is about 4" in a water system that is only slightly more than 140 gallons. 4x2 is a nice footprint to start. I believe that retics reach sexual maturity after a couple of years, so you'd probably have a few moons.

If anyone else can chime in, I'm also rather interested. What is a good tank size for a pair of adult retics (+1 silver arawana) ?

Thanks for the help.
Can anyone answer the other questions above?

 

[stingray94]

Okay. Thanks for the help with the motoros. For filtration, I will be using a large rubbermaid sump and one ac110, maybe two. Would that suffice?
Also, anyone have any info about the retics? How proficiently do retics breed? Anyone have any success with breeding them?

Your best bet would be to talk to miles, he has a lot of experience raising juevinile retics and he is planning on breeding smaller rays to make healthy-smaller rays more readily available. He's definitely the guy that you want to be talking to. Retics grow to a disk size of about 14" and become sexually mature at around 6". I have heard of one case where somebody breed retics in a 90 gallon. Retics have much longer tails then every other ray so they still need a wide tank, despite their much smaller disk size in comparision to say a motoro. The sticky at the top reccommends a tank with a 6'x30" footprint. Retics grow so slow that you could probably keep one in a tank with a 4'x2' footprint for a long time. Juevinile retics can be very picky eaters and you have to start by feeding them blackworms. They are not as easy to breed as motoros, but they are not as impossible as tigers and flowers. With time and effort, I'm sure you would have a good shot at breeding them.

Oh and about the filtration, a sump would be great, a wetdry with a biotower would be much better though. A wetdry setup for bio and 2 AC110s for mechanical should be perfect.

 

[abortedsoul]

Your best bet would be to talk to miles.

I hate to say it (sorry Miles!), but this has always worked for me in the past. Miles seems to really know his sh*t.

 

[Delhezi222]

Your best bet would be to talk to miles, he has a lot of experience raising juevinile retics and he is planning on breeding smaller rays to make healthy-smaller rays more readily available. He's definitely the guy that you want to be talking to. Retics grow to a disk size of about 14" and become sexually mature at around 6". I have heard of one case where somebody breed retics in a 90 gallon. Retics have much longer tails then every other ray so they still need a wide tank, despite their much smaller disk size in comparision to say a motoro. The sticky at the top reccommends a tank with a 6'x30" footprint. Retics grow so slow that you could probably keep one in a tank with a 4'x2' footprint for a long time. Juevinile retics can be very picky eaters and you have to start by feeding them blackworms. They are not as easy to breed as motoros, but they are not as impossible as tigers and flowers. With time and effort, I'm sure you would have a good shot at breeding them.

Oh and about the filtration, a sump would be great, a wetdry with a biotower would be much better though. A wetdry setup for bio and 2 AC110s for mechanical should be perfect.

Thanks for all the info. I don't know much about wetdrys, do you know of any places with detailed instructions on how to make one? I will be sure to contact miles, his stickies have already helped me a lot.