Temp. for Lima Shovelnose

[Taboojen]

I picked up two Lima Shovelnose cats today - About 5"-5.5" each. I was looking around but couldn't find too much info on them, in terms of what kind of temp. or pH they favor.

They will be temporarily housed in 60gal w/ a few 4-5" pbasses, for about 2-3 weeks until I can finish building my stand for their new 210 gal home. The temp is at 84F. Is that going to be too warm for the Limas? I like to keep my tanks warm usually around 82-84.

Also - Do the limas stay the same - in terms of their patterns once they get bigger?

Any info you can give me, or experiences w/ your limas will be greatly appreciated!

 

[messiner]

anywhere around 80 is fine, they keep their basic pattern but might get some spotting as they mature, they will shed their slime coat and eat it

 

[milkman407]

mine goes from 84 on a normal day and on a cold day it is about 60-76 and hes still active as ever.

 

[brettonstein]

the usually do well anywhere from 78-82 they weird kind of act like a living piece of wood but hearty u'll like him

 

[Taboojen]

Cool thanks for the info! I'll put up some pics when i get a chance. They are really active already. They are exploring the tank in tandem... once one strays too far from the other, he'd swim right back.

I've also seen a lot of pictures of shovenose cats online, both lima and TSN that have bent snouts. I guess other than taking care not to spook them, are there any other ways to prevent such an injury?