will my bichirs eat my motoro pup?

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
ethnics

ethnics

Piranha
MFK Member
Aug 18, 2006
2,881
40
81
40
SouthEast SD
i currently have my motoro in a 60gal 4ft tank. i've only had it a few weeks but its eatin like a champ, eats very very well on hikari sinking pellets and occassionally cut up market shrimp. he seems way more active now and the 60gal seems small. i want him in my 150 which would end up his home anyway, but i wanna kno if i should wait a few more months or should he be okay? there's currently 4 bichirs. a 9" endli, a 11" del, 6" ornate, and a 5" senegal. and 4 tinfoil barbs. will they try to chomp on the pup who is about 4" disc now? its almost 8 or 10" long with the tail. will they see it as food or completly leave it alone? will it be safer to just wait a month or 2 or 3? suggestions? thanks
 
rays are delicate, so you may want to eat, but ive never had a problem with my bichirs eating anything they didnt think would fit in their mouths. id say as long as hes 3x the size of your 11"ers mouth you should be ok, sounds to me like he can make it, but again, rays are delicate and costly, if you think its to much of a risk, it just might be.
 
I have an 11" endli now and there is no way he would be able to eat a 4" motoro. I have heard of peoples bichirs biting the rays disk though. I would probably wait a month or two. If he is eating sinking pellets that is awesome. I would pump him up on pellets and market shrimp and move him in a month or so. He will grow fast.
 
he is growing fast. i brought him home about 3 weeks ago n he was less then 3" disc and about 4" tail. now he is well over 4" disc maybe almost 5" disc and over 6-8" of tail. he's growing so quick...
 
Watch the bichers....My endi ended up getting a taste for ray tail and bit a couple of my old rays' tails right to the barb....Bichers are noted to be disc nibblers too. As with every combination, it's up to the individual fish, but I won't be taking that chance ever again.
 
damnit... this defeats the purpose of my ray and bichir tank... i've seen it done often and thought it would out perfectly fine... i can't even see this happening. this kill the entire purpose of me owning the ray, as i have no other tank to keep him in for life. i wanted to grow it in my 150gal then put it in my 400 in a year or 2. when he's over 18" disc to finally live life with my rtc, tsn, silver aros, and gars.
 
I didn't say it was impossible....It's been done by many. I'd at least wait until the ray's tail is thick enough where it won't fit into the bichers' mouths.
 
It is all up to the individual fish. For instance, my 8" Ornate Bichir bit my red tail catfish in the face and killed him. So I put the bichir in a different tank with bigger fish, and he bit the eye off of one of my stingrays, and started chewing on his head, and killed her. I now have a 8" bichir by himself.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
MonsterFishKeepers.com
Top Bottom