new african acting strange

[ladydragon99]

i bought a 7 inch african spotted lungfish from aquascape two days ago, when i first put him in the aquarium with a 7 inch arowana he first thrashed around a bit now here on day two he does nothing but hide behind a rock, is this normal lungfish behavior?

 

[Madding]

Yes, lungfish don't really do much except sit there. I don't see mine for days sometimes.

Also African lungfish do not work with most tankmates, you are putting your little arowana at great risk. A nice silvery thing swimming around overhead is almost guaranteed to get mauled by your African lungfish sooner or later.

Sounds like you did not research the fish much before buying it. You may want a South American lungfish instead.

 

[ladydragon99]

im planning on seperating them soon, its not a life combo for sure. i hear they love feeders but im thinking about hikari sinking pellets and krill would be a good try?

 

[Wiggles92]

Yes, lungfish don't really do much except sit there. I don't see mine for days sometimes.

Also African lungfish do not work with most tankmates, you are putting your little arowana at great risk. A nice silvery thing swimming around overhead is almost guaranteed to get mauled by your African lungfish sooner or later.

Sounds like you did not research the fish much before buying it. You may want a South American lungfish instead.

x2.

im planning on seperating them soon, its not a life combo for sure. i hear they love feeders but im thinking about hikari sinking pellets and krill would be a good try?

They will eat pretty much anything (to an extent), but feeders should not be fed as their main food, if at all. The Hikari sinking pellets will be greatly enjoyed by your lungfish as will whole frozen krill that has been thawed; it probably will ignore freeze-dried krill. Other foods that it will eat include fish fillets, shrimp, Hikari Massivore, shrimp pellets, earthworms, and algae wafers; I recommend feeding algae wafers on a somewhat frequent basis in order to prevent head erosion (basically HITH).

 

[ladydragon99]

thanks guys, im going to get a cam tom to take some pics. when i got this guy his tail looked as if its been severed in the past, they should have long tails that turn into a point towards the end right? this ones tail is almost straight cut at the end turning into a point half an inch down an lighter in color than the rest of the body, but looks as if its doing well... what do you guys think?

how long should these two last together, the aro is slightly larger and very aggressive, think i should worry now or in the longrun?

 

[Wiggles92]

thanks guys, im going to get a cam tom to take some pics. when i got this guy his tail looked as if its been severed in the past, they should have long tails that turn into a point towards the end right? this ones tail is almost straight cut at the end turning into a point half an inch down an lighter in color than the rest of the body, but looks as if its doing well... what do you guys think?

how long should these two last together, the aro is slightly larger and very aggressive, think i should worry now or in the longrun?

Most African lungfishes are wild-caught and are held with other lungfish when they are captured; they often take bites out of each other, so this could explain what sounds like an old injury.

I would separate them now rather than later just to be safe; the lungfish could decide to hurt/maim/kill/eat the arowana any time now. There's a picture of one around here that killed and ate a slightly larger gar, so don't consider the arowana to be safe because it is around the same size.

 

[ladydragon99]

wow seriously? this lungfish seems so innocent, maybe hes just getting used to the aquarium before he attacks? ive seen hundreds of pics online, even here with people keeping lungfish with other fish i had no idea he was this much to worry about already. ill have to go out and get him a new tank this week, i know people say they dont require much space so what should i purchase for him? should i lower the water level or keep the tank full like it is currently? ive been reading some mixed views on these fish through out the web i would just like some honest answers.. thanks for any and all help!

this guy could really kill my aro already???

aquascapes says i have the Protopterus annectens species.

 

[Madding]

It's really hit or miss... usually hit... not many people get lucky with african lungs.

I have seen some really big, healthy and happy ones in small tanks. Not saying to stick it in a 20 gallon but lungfish don't require space so just use common sense when getting it a new tank. Doesn't need to be huge as long as you keep it clean. They don't move much so it should be fine in pretty much anything except a cruelly small tank.

 

[Wiggles92]

wow seriously? this lungfish seems so innocent, maybe hes just getting used to the aquarium before he attacks? ive seen hundreds of pics online, even here with people keeping lungfish with other fish i had no idea he was this much to worry about already. ill have to go out and get him a new tank this week, i know people say they dont require much space so what should i purchase for him? should i lower the water level or keep the tank full like it is currently? ive been reading some mixed views on these fish through out the web i would just like some honest answers.. thanks for any and all help!

this guy could really kill my aro already???

aquascapes says i have the Protopterus annectens species.

African lungfish tend to snap and go nuts when kept with other fishes 99% of the time. While there are pictures and videos out there of people keeping them with other fishes, these combinations ultimately fail in the long run; the only person I know of that has had a decent level of success is Earl (King-eL), and his lungfish community has even been hit or miss at times.

Here's that picture that I was talking about:

View attachment 725889

It's really hit or miss... usually hit... not many people get lucky with african lungs.

I have seen some really big, healthy and happy ones in small tanks. Not saying to stick it in a 20 gallon but lungfish don't require space so just use common sense when getting it a new tank. Doesn't need to be huge as long as you keep it clean. They don't move much so it should be fine in pretty much anything except a cruelly small tank.

x2. At that size, it would be fine in a 20 gallon long.

 

[ladydragon99]

WOW! Im seperating them this week, my lungfish still isnt eating.. i tried today, ill try earthworms tonight maybe. his color is good but hes not moving hardly any even which i move him to see if hes alive but if i move him out in the open he crawls and thrashes back behind his rock.. i posted a topic about some changes i made to the aquarium and all my worries in one topic in the main ancient fish forum. thanks for the help guys!