My black ray

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
good looking ray.

i think aquaman has similar tastes to me. i love the large round spots across the disc.

congrats !
 
Thanks guys. He was sold as a bdxleo. He has light eyes and great appetite. I got him in April around 9" or so. Now he is all of 11". He eats pellets, whole smelt with heads, whole shrimp heads with heads, mackerel, whole squid with heads, whole wild caught frozen minnows, whole wild caught gizzard shads, wild northern pike fillets, wild sunfish parts, whole small wild sunfish, whole small wild crappie, whole home bred convicts, whole crawfish, trout cuts/heads, salmon fillets, whole declawed live and crawfish on occasion(farmed and for enrichment "hunting" )

I freeze all wild foods first to kill any parasites that may be on them. Also my sources are from clean lakes if I wouldnt eat it my fish dont get it. I am also working on a gel food made with salmon/trout heads for extra vitamins.

I hand feed him and he comes up on the top to take the food from my hands.

Also my tank is a 180gal blackwater setup. All tge wood I collected myself. I have currently 1700gph going through a 40gal sump filled with bioballs and scrubbies. I just got the glass for my next build for him. I will be building a 72"x40"x30" tank. That will last a while for him and a few females I will be getting him. Then I will have a 8x4x2, hoping to go bigger but that is the min I will have. I have the pond in the garage but I want to build a big plywood tank for it and the other rays I'll have.

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Thanks. As long as you get it from a healthy source and freeze it first you'll be fine. It is healthier for the fish as the wild foods have nutrients from lower levels of the food chain we can't recreate.

Also to keep the rays entertained I gibe them challenges. They love to eat live crawfish. It is a challenge for them to catch and then once they catch it to eat it. There is extra vitamins in the shells and it is a food they will eat in the wild. I'll also hide foods for the ray to find in the sand as well as under the stump so they have to work for it.

No matter what though I daily hand feed and pet him at the surface. Did that with my old female also. I will do that with every ray I ever own. It adds an extra level to keeping these amazing pets to be able to interact with them.

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I have some rays, but I fear being stung. I know it doesn't happen but I would hate to be the one...

I like the idea of hiding food too. It's fun watching them search the tank!


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Thanks

Being stung does happen but I find if you let them come to you and move slow it isnt an issue. Let them feel like they are in control and they won't get spooked.

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