My eelpout spawned!!!!!!!!!
- Thread starter in_the_seance
- Start date
Personally I would be get a chiller first before the eelpouts. The ones I had wasn't able to tolerate over 70F
80's? There is no way that an adult eelpout can tolerate that even for a short time....
Very cool. What do they eat? Can you tell us a little bit about their behavior?
I agree on them needing a chiller, though... these are obligate cold water dwellers, and aren't found south of the latitude 40°N. During the warmer months throughout the "southern" part of their range, they retreat the deepest parts of their habitat to stay cool. I would imagine any temperature around 60° or more is critical for them. I've never kept one, but from my basic understanding of their ecology, I'm fairly confident in saying that this species needs exceptionally cold water to thrive...
I agree on them needing a chiller, though... these are obligate cold water dwellers, and aren't found south of the latitude 40°N. During the warmer months throughout the "southern" part of their range, they retreat the deepest parts of their habitat to stay cool. I would imagine any temperature around 60° or more is critical for them. I've never kept one, but from my basic understanding of their ecology, I'm fairly confident in saying that this species needs exceptionally cold water to thrive...
This is true. In Lake Erie, which is pretty much the most southern part of their range in the US, the adults dwell in deep water during the summer, most of the time at least 70-80 feet deep. The fish will come in shallow during the late fall through early spring though, and local anglers have been catching them off piers in 20-40 feet deep water. One odd trait, however, is that after spawning in shallow areas during the winter, the young Burbot will remain in shallow water for at least their first year. And in Erie, that means the young are living in water that reaches 75-80° in protected areas during the hottest parts of summer, and the population in Lake Erie is thriving, too. So perhaps, as MN Rebel as stated, the young fish have a higher heat tolerance that the adults do. Solution to keeping them without chillers, filet them up once they'll just barely fit in a frying pan, they are a species of cod after all LOL.
