My archers apparently don't know how to spit or won't. >.> They'll greedily take anything I throw at the surface but once they see me hold their food above their waters surface or stuck n the glass, they just freak out. So I was wondering, for all the archer keepers, did yours start spitting immediately or did it need some "training"? Thanks!
Non-spitting Archers
- Thread starter Nikkitine
- Start date
It is instinct for them. put something on the glass and step back a few. They will spit eventually. They are very greedy and will hesitate to spit if there is a chance they might not end up with the food. Also mine are still slightly spooked by me after about a year.
Just keep tryin they'll spit .
Just keep tryin they'll spit .
If you have a group its a bit harder to get them to spit, my trio used to only spit if they are really hungry and its out of jumping range. the best way i found to train them is not feed them for a day. get something like crickets i used fd black worms hover them about 3-4" above the tanks so they jump for it then slowly keep raising it higher an higher till just out of jumping range an they will spit good luck!
I've had my 2 buddies for bout 4 months now. I feel like they're exactly the same size as when I first got them even though they eat like monsters! I'll definitely try dangling worms little by little during feeding time and see how that works out. The odd thing is, I see them spit underwater all the time >.> Couple weeks ago I put some guppy feeders in there,and they were spitting at them like crazy from halfway down the tank, knocking them around like volleyballs at the waters edge...if only they did that above the waters surface!
Nikkitine;4681541; said:
what species of archer fish are you keeping? an how big are they now? What else are you feeding them? mine live on new life spectrum, predator sticks, crickets, superworms, freeze dried black worms an the odd frog they steal from my jardini lol
preston5321;4681663; said:
I actually have a really hard time telling exactly which species I have, maybe you can help me out. I'm suspecting that they're Toxotes chatareus, but I could be wrong =/ Just shot a quick vid of them so perhaps you or someone could help me out with IDing them =] My small one is about 2.5", the fatter one is almost 3"
They're current diet is:
Hikari Food Sticks
Crickets
Cichlid Gold pellets
Frozen Bloodworms
Blackworms
Sun-dried Baby Shrimp
Tetramin Granules/Flakes
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Thanks!
Edit: Lol at my big one running into my filter. He's so silly, I love him XD
I agree with preston. When I first got mine, I starved them for about a day or so and then put thawed bloodworms on a bbq stick just out of reach. they spat like no tomorrow in rapid succesion. My archers now lineup when I am about to feed them. Good Luck
Mine dont eat crickets but they eat freeze dried foods but thats about it i tried giving them crickets but nothing happens except for a dead cricket that i through out.