Overlooked baitfish

[Deadliestviper7]

A lot of the "baitfishes" are overlooked for aquaria , some are fairly simple to care for such as creekchubs, while others like gizzard and threadfin shad are very delicate.
Moontanman

I'm including freshwater,saltwater and brackish fish in this discussion, which is not meant as a end all thread, and be sure to research the fish before you keep them when possible

I would appreciate any information anyone contributes, as well as any comments, pics etc

 

[BichirKing]

I've kept what I call native guppies or mosquito fish along with the other native and non native fish that I caught in ponds/lakes etc. haven't kept a chub but tried to keep a fresh water flounder but it never ate and I put it back fearing it would die.

 

[Deadliestviper7]

Creek chubs: these fish are hardy and tolerate various captive conditions, and also eat a variety of foods, to the point they may steal food from other fishes mouth!
While I would term these guys mostly peaceful, they sometimes will prey upon smaller fish.
They tend to be better behaved and happier when there are two or more in the tank.
Can eventoully grow over a foot.

A similar species is the lake chub, which can even keep healthy populations of ponds with bass (provided sufficient cover).

 

[Deadliestviper7]

Mullet: mullet are a broad range of fish found in various areas of the world and can swim and live in fresh,salt or brackish water.

Quite a few kinds exist: white, striped/grey,fantail,pinkeye and various others
Wild mullet eat algae that they find in mud or sand (and they'll digest some of that sand and mud too!) as well as grazing algae from mangrove and sea grass leaves, in captivity they can learn to consume various other foods.
They tend to be peaceful.
Mullet can grow somewhat large and are jumpers so keep the lid secure.

 

[BichirKing]

we have a Tui chub that has caused several lakes to try and remove them. they out competed the native fish and crashed the ecology.
https://www.csmonitor.com/Environme...ish-has-wildlife-experts-in-Oregon-scrambling

 

[Deadliestviper7]

Smelts and similar, there are various species of smelt, most looking rather similar.
Some swim from saltwater to breed in freshwater in masses, much like salmon.

Try not to catch spawned out or aging individuals as they may not live as long.

Some smelts (and similar shad shaped fish):
Jack smelt.
Blueback herring.
Rainbow smelt.
Jacksmelt.
Grunion.
Sardines.
Anchovies.
Alewife.
Mooneye.
Goldeye.
Bunker.
Skipjack.
Night smelt.
Topsmelt.

Many fish in this group are rather sensitive to handling.

 

[Itsadeepbluesea]

Creek chubs: these fish are hardy and tolerate various captive conditions, and also eat a variety of foods, to the point they may steal food from other fishes mouth!
While I would term these guys mostly peaceful, they sometimes will prey upon smaller fish.
They tend to be better behaved and happier when there are two or more in the tank.
Can eventoully grow over a foot.

A similar species is the lake chub, which can even keep healthy populations of ponds with bass (provided sufficient cover).

I can attest to the food stealing, I've seen them steal worms out of each others mouth back and forth. Quite funny to see.

 

[Deadliestviper7]

Shiners and dace: there are also a number of shiners (way more then I'll get into in one thread lol), some prefer cooler temps , others tolerating warner temps, they will eat a variety of foods in captivity , small live foods, flakes and small pellets are often accepted.

If you want colorful red lip shiners and rainbow dace are your fish.

If you want larger slightly more robust fish, then go with striped or golden shiners.

 

[Itsadeepbluesea]

The number of "bait" fish that can do well in an aquaria is quite extensive. Many are as easy or easier than the topicals that are kept and can have more interesting behaviors. I would recommend them to anyone. What is best, depends on your setup and what you have locally to collect.

 

[Deadliestviper7]

Suckers and stonerollers: in the wild stonerollers eat algae from the bottom, while most suckers eat insectsand inverts from stream and river bottoms, most prefer a little current.

Most stonerollers get 6-12 inches, while many suckers can get potentially over, 5-10+ pounds, blue suckers can get 20 lbs, and some buffalo fish have gotten over 70 lbs!

Fish included in this group include:
Black redhorse
Striped/longfin redhorse
Pealip redhorse
Central stoneroller
White sucker
Hogsuckers
Carpsuckers
Buffalofishes

An interesting fact is many suckers require 2 males and a female to breed, a male sits on either side of the female and they both sandwich her so the eggs spill out, after which they are fertilized