# Bristlenosed Catfish Question



## mysnakesau (Oct 19, 2011)

I just bought a couple of fishies to go in my water feature which will also be my snakes water. But I didn't think, when I bought a lovely male, bristlenosed catfish - would he harm my snakes? I have seen what they do to other fish with they spike them, I never thought that he could also have a similar effect if my snakes happen to brush past him. BLuey? You're the fish expert, what do you think? Leave him out, or will he be ok?


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## Gibblore (Oct 19, 2011)

I have not kept this species with snakes, But as you say they have very nasty spikes they can flar on the side of the head, I would be concern if the snake thought it would be good idea to eat it. I would try the sucking catfish a more slender species that can handle cooler temps and no spikes!


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## zzzboa (Oct 19, 2011)

Sorry mate i wouldnt keep it with your snake as like Gibblore said the spikes are nasty,go for somthing like a red spotted plecostomus or simaliar they look stunning and would be much more suited to your snake and also dont mind the cooler temps.I have seen bristlenosed catfish become very territorial and cause a lot of harm to other fish .They can grow up to over a foot long and are pretty hardy fish,very common,easy to care for as they eat algae,small plants and small crustaceans,hope all goes well for you.


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## Scleropages (Oct 19, 2011)

I keep them with my filesnake , they will be fine Kath ,What type of snake are you keeping with the water feature? I Wouldn't keep Ancistrus with GTSs but even keelbacks could eat an adult bristlenose and not die.

Next people will be trimming the claws of rats so their snakes don't get hurt. 

What Ancistrus grow to over 30cm? 20cm would be the biggest I have ever seen , if you can find me a 30cm Ancistrus NOT plecostomus I would give you $500 for it.
also what is a red spot plecostoms? gibbiceps?


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## killimike (Oct 19, 2011)

zzzboa, I'm not sure what kind of BN you are thinking of that gets 30cm long, or do you mean the pleco you suggested? It would have to be a giant water feature to cater to a pleco (whatever a red spotted one is?), and the pleco would be just as hard and spiny as the BN, only it would eventually get too big to be eaten.

Sclero, cool that you keep these guys with your file snake! EDIT: Beat me to it re crazy pleco talk 

OP, sounds like you are putting a range of species into your water feature, I'm sure you have the filtration and temp bases covered, but it never hurts to check!


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## Bel03 (Oct 19, 2011)

We breed all kinds of bristlenose, we have THOUSANDS, & they have only ever been aggressive with each other, not other fish. They do eat any dead guppies that come along but i havent experienced them attacking other fish. I wouldnt know if the spikes would hurt your snake if it did try to eat it, ive had no experience with that, but they do say that other fish cant eat b/n due to their spikes & this isnt true, my oscar eats them at every chance she gets!


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## Scleropages (Oct 19, 2011)

I feed bristlenose to my stingrays 

The file can't be bothered with them... nails any fish over 10cm though....


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## Bel03 (Oct 19, 2011)

Scleropages said:


> I feed bristlenose to my stingrays




Sting rays are next on our list too! Super cool!


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## Scleropages (Oct 19, 2011)

Bel711 said:


> Sting rays are next on our list too! Super cool!



Get em before they go on the next Noxious list update!!


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## Bel03 (Oct 19, 2011)

Scleropages said:


> Get em before they go on the next Noxious list update!!



Yes indeed! That list is actually growing quite quickly ive noticed!


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## mysnakesau (Oct 19, 2011)

Scleropages said:


> I keep them with my filesnake , they will be fine Kath ,What type of snake are you keeping with the water feature? I Wouldn't keep Ancistrus with GTSs but even keelbacks could eat an adult bristlenose and not die.
> 
> Next people will be trimming the claws of rats so their snakes don't get hurt.
> 
> ...



I am putting my diamond/coastal intergrades in with them. My diamonds have never bothered the fish in their water, so I thought the intergrades would be the same. I was more worried about the snakes brushing past the fish than them trying to eat him.

Thank you, all, for your input  . I only have 5 goldfish and a fighter, and wanted a bottom dweller to help with the housework. I have experimented with this combination before and worked quite well, except in the cooler months Mr Fighter had to come in out of the cold. Those bristlenoses have always seemed bullet proof to me, which is why I picked him over the sucking catfish. Those suckers like to attach to the side of my other fish whereas the BN leave them alone. It is outside, but will get full sun all day except later afternoons, and yes filtration is one thing I never skimp on. I have ordered a solar-powered fountain pump as well. I personally like those Aqua One 103F filters. I have a 104 in my diamond's water barrel, laying on its back with fountain thingies attached to it. But another thought that comes to mind is my husband must be getting sick of my power usage (he hasn't said so, I just wonder what he thinks sometimes). I wonder if I can get a solar panel to run one of these filters? Any thoughts there?

They had a gold pleco at the shop but he wasn't for sale, and I wouldn't risk him outside anyway. I am starting to want another fish tank....can't tell my hubby just yet...haha...I'd really love a barra and some salmon-tailed catfish. I've had them before and are so fun to watch. They're like sharks.


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## Scleropages (Oct 19, 2011)

The Ancistrus wont survive in water under 18c Kath , as they are cold blooded like reptiles and need heat to digest food.
the spines on Ancistrus arnt sharp enough to damage a snake , and will be too small for the snake to bother trying to eat anyway.


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## mysnakesau (Oct 19, 2011)

Is that the scientific name for the Bristlenose? I will keep an eye on the temps. I would like to experiment with solar power on this water feature. Be nice to think that I could have a heated, outdoor water pond, with that filter I mentioned, too, all running on no power usage.


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## Scleropages (Oct 19, 2011)

mysnakesau said:


> Is that the scientific name for the Bristlenose?



Yup . sorry , there are a few SP available in Australia. , orange spot/peppermint/normal's-longfin-albino-marbled etc etc


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## Bel03 (Oct 19, 2011)

Scleropages said:


> Yup . sorry , there are a few SP available in Australia. , orange spot/peppermint/normal's-longfin-albino-marbled etc etc



We have them all. We just got our first lot of long fin peppermints........very excited!


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## Scleropages (Oct 19, 2011)

Bel711 said:


> We have them all. We just got our first lot of long fin peppermints........very excited!



Oh??? wanna swap for something else?


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## Bel03 (Oct 19, 2011)

Scleropages said:


> Oh??? wanna swap for something else?




Possibly......they only hatched yesterday, so still attached to the egg, but yes, im super excited! Its my partner that does the whole fish thing, i get bored with them, but when our albino long fin 'hooked up' & dragged the peppermint in the log.......i got very excited!


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## Scleropages (Oct 19, 2011)

Bel711 said:


> Possibly......they only hatched yesterday, so still attached to the egg, but yes, im super excited! Its my partner that does the whole fish thing, i get bored with them, but when our albino long fin 'hooked up' & dragged the peppermint in the log.......i got very excited!



oh , hybrids


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## Bel03 (Oct 19, 2011)

Scleropages said:


> oh , hybrids



Yes, sorry! I know its as 'favorable' in fish as is with reps! We didnt even think they would cross breed, we have had different species together for years without it happening before, as my partner isnt a hybrid fan either, however i find this pairing to be quite special, peppermints are my fav atm, & with long fins i think they will be even more pretty, imo.


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## Pinoy (Oct 19, 2011)

Personally, I wouldn't risk it. I'd be more concerned about the fish going down the wrong way and getting stuck. 
Have you seen pics of dead crocs with synodontis stuck in their throat? 
Different fish, I know but still would be in the back if my mind. 




Scleropages said:


> The Ancistrus wont survive in water under 18c Kath , as they are cold blooded like reptiles and need heat to digest food.



I used to keep a four footer in my garage with no heater and a sponge filter. This tank was full of BNs and they bred like crazy. The average water temp of that tank was 15-16 degrees during the day. 


Would love to see some pics of the longfin peppies as they grow, does sound very interesting.


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## Bel03 (Oct 19, 2011)

Pinoy said:


> I used to keep a four footer in my garage with no heater and a sponge filter. This tank was full of BNs and they bred like crazy. The average water temp of that tank was 15-16 degrees during the day.
> 
> 
> Would love to see some pics of the longfin peppies as they grow, does sound very interesting.



Yeah as well as tanks, we also have ponds full of bristlenose, water temps are an average 15-20degrees & everything in them breeds as rapidly as the 'tank' fish!

As for the peps, as i said, my partner isnt keen on hybrids, but i 2 think these fish will be very interesting, & we have already had alot of interest. Im interested in seeing what percent, if any, will be albino.......& albino peps......that really is something im interested in seeing the 'end result' of!


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## getarealdog (Oct 19, 2011)

Good to see some people on here with knowledge on fish. Have a mate who breeds those 1's mentioned except the "hybrid" also has that "queen arabiss"? you guys know which one i mean. Cheers.


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## mysnakesau (Oct 19, 2011)

The peppermint bristlenose are gorgeous, and speaking of synodontis, they're the spotty ones with long whiskers? I have kept them before and love them to death. Gorgeous.


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## Bluetongue1 (Oct 19, 2011)

I agree with Scleropages andBel711. I have had them in a community tank for over 10 years and they arenever a problem. Nor can I see a pythontrying to catch fish in water, even if it could see them. Just make sure you add a piece of wood for itto hide in and gnaw on – needed to keep them healthy. Aquarium shops sell suitable wood foraquariums - drift wood, Mopani wood,Bogwood and Mangrove roots. If you keep them outside over the warmer months youwill never see them because they will hide away from the bright light.

There are basically two commonlyavailable species here - Common Bristlenosed (_Ancistrus __cirrhosus_) and the Peppermint Bristlenosed (_Ancistrus dolichopterus_). Ashas been mentioned there are numerous morphs of each available. The CommonBristlenose is tolerant of much lower temperatures than the fish books andinternet indicate. It will survivetemperatures down to 10[SUP]o[/SUP]C but definite slows down on the algaeconsumption as temperatures drop. 

There are some alternative youmay wish to consider. Native Gobiesinclude algae in their diets. TheSiamese Algae Eater _Crossocheilussiamensis__ is probably thebest alternative fish option available. There are a number of native shrimp that are efficient algae eaters, inparticular __Caridinalongisrostris __and Australatya striolata. Quite a few of the Caridina species,both native and exotic, are effective in removing filamenious aglalgrowth. There is also a range of nativefish - _Fly-speckedHardyhead (_Craterocephalus tercusmuscarum_),Gilbert's and Lorentz's Grunters (QLDnatives but difficult to get a hold of) and Butler's Grunter from the NT whicheats exclusively filamentous algae.

You are also likely to have anissue with algal growth in the form of green water (pea soup) due to the intenselight and the minerals in wastes from feeding. You can put in a chemical filter to remove nitrates and phosphates or a UVCsterilizer to kill anything living suspended in the water or both. That can getrather complicated and expensive. Thereare some simpler, cheaper yet effective alternatives. Zeolite, even just thrown into the bottom ofthe pond, will help to remove excess minerals. Use of rapidly growing plants,such as Ribbon Weed (Vallisneria – there are several native forms) and /orAzolla (a native floating fern) will remove the nitrates (and ammonia) andphosphates. Then when needed thin outthe plants – both make great compost or worm food. So long as you are removing biomass from thepond you are ridding it of the input chemicals.

Frequent substantial waterchanges can minimize the problems associated with mineral build up inwater. However, when applied to pondswith a substantial volume of water, the water usage can be quite substantial. So if you set it up as part of your gardenwatering scheme it can be a nonissue. If not, then you need to utilize someother technique for removing minerals from your pond water. 

The other issue you will have iswater temperature, as mentioned. Exposure to sunlight will help to increase it and depth of water willhelp to stabilize it. Increase in surface area will result in increased evaporationand evaporative cooling. This effect isincreased by air movement across the surface of the pond as it remove the humidair allowing more evaporative cooling – the difference between being wet andout of the wind vs being wet and in the wind. A fountain will further increase the available surface area forevaporation. 

Blue

PS. Sorry about being a lttle late and opening Pandora’sBox on this one, but I have been there…


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## mysnakesau (Oct 20, 2011)

Thank you Blue. One can always rely on you to give awesome responses . I forgot about the algae eaters. They aren't an easy fish to find up here, and shops aren't willing to order extra for anyone but thank you for that thought. I will keep a look out for them.

You said you just throw the zeolite in the bottom of the pond. Do you ever pull in out to wash or replace? I'm presuming you'd put it in a piece of stocking rather than scattered?

I have some live plants that I got out of our local river. Have no idea if its native or not, but they should do the same thing I guess. When I go out Kayaking on Sunday, I'll bring back a piece of driftwood. Bugger buying it from the pet stores when I can go and rake stuff up out of our river. Our river is brackish-freshwater in our area.

It is just a large black tub I have put in for my snake's water, and added fishies to eat mozzie wrigglers. So water changes is something that I will do frequently. I have one of them gravel cleaners. I was hoping to get another half wine barrel like I have in my diamond aviary but they didn't have any. So the black tub had to do.


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## Bel03 (Oct 20, 2011)

I agree Kathy, Mike always offers such helpful information where he can! He is my 'idol'!  I just wanted to add though, wood is actually eaten by L222's, bristlenose will use wood for hiding but they are algae eaters, we also feed ours algae wafers, but only occasionally as they can get stomach bloat easily. They also eat squash & zuccinni though. (we just weigh it down with a fork.)


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## gillsy (Oct 20, 2011)

zzzboa said:


> Sorry mate i wouldnt keep it with your snake as like Gibblore said the spikes are nasty,go for somthing like a red spotted plecostomus or simaliar they look stunning and would be much more suited to your snake and also dont mind the cooler temps.I have seen bristlenosed catfish become very territorial and cause a lot of harm to other fish .They can grow up to over a foot long and are pretty hardy fish,very common,easy to care for as they eat algae,small plants and small crustaceans,hope all goes well for you.



You must have mutant bristlenose as they only grown to about 15cm absolute max



Scleropages said:


> I feed bristlenose to my stingrays
> 
> The file can't be bothered with them... nails any fish over 10cm though....



Then why wouldn't you give me a female then!


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## Bel03 (Oct 20, 2011)

I agree Gillsy, our biggest breeders are now a few yrs old & they are max 12-15cms. 

& LOL, but maybe Scleropages didnt want his rays to starve! If you were closer, we have a spare......few hundred females! :lol:


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## gillsy (Oct 20, 2011)

Bel711 said:


> I agree Gillsy, our biggest breeders are now a few yrs old & they are max 12-15cms.
> 
> & LOL, but maybe Scleropages didnt want his rays to starve! If you were closer, we have a spare......few hundred females! :lol:



HAHA There was no way the rays would starve, I was feeding them yabbies!


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## Bel03 (Oct 20, 2011)

gillsy said:


> HAHA There was no way the rays would starve, I was feeding them yabbies!



Yeah, i was kidding! Im sure one lousy b/n wouldnt have made any difference!  Yabbies are my oscars fav, she loves them!


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## starr9 (Oct 20, 2011)

We have some huge gold fish and some brisl nose's and I found one the other day attached to the big gold fish "having a feed". It left a big hole in the side of the gold fish and we did what we could to help the gold fish and its fine now. Freaked me out as I though we were going to loose old "Goldy" 4 a bit there but she/he is fine now! I didnt know they would latch on to a fish so much bigger than them that was still alive and well!!!


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## Sinners121 (Oct 20, 2011)

they eat the slime coating on them. well atleast they did on my discus


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## jordan-gibson (Oct 20, 2011)

starr9 said:


> We have some huge gold fish and some brisl nose's and I found one the other day attached to the big gold fish "having a feed". It left a big hole in the side of the gold fish and we did what we could to help the gold fish and its fine now. Freaked me out as I though we were going to loose old "Goldy" 4 a bit there but she/he is fine now! I didnt know they would latch on to a fish so much bigger than them that was still alive and well!!!



do you feed your BN any alge pellets or other foods? i have heard that if you dont feed them and just let them eat what alge they can find they can get hungry and start looking elsewhere for food, like the side of a fish, anyone else confirm this for me?


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## gillsy (Oct 20, 2011)

I've never had it happen, unless the fish is dead or not far from it. The BN must not being getting enough food to be looking at actively hunting a fish.


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## Bel03 (Oct 20, 2011)

starr9 said:


> We have some huge gold fish and some brisl nose's and I found one the other day attached to the big gold fish "having a feed". It left a big hole in the side of the gold fish and we did what we could to help the gold fish and its fine now. Freaked me out as I though we were going to loose old "Goldy" 4 a bit there but she/he is fine now! I didnt know they would latch on to a fish so much bigger than them that was still alive and well!!!



As the others have said, they must be hungry. We have them living in all of our tanks & ponds, with hundreds of other species of fish, including a pond full of massive goldfish, & as Gillsy said, unless something is already dead, they have never touched anything else. Ive only ever seen them using their 'horns' when 2 males are fighting over one bredding log (although there are plenty more to chose from!) Do u put vegies in for them? Zuccinni & squash are the 2 favs with ours. & as i mentioned earlier, algae pellets are ok as an occasional option, too much though will cause bloat, & they will die.


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## gillsy (Oct 20, 2011)

Bel711 said:


> As the others have said, they must be hungry. We have them living in all of our tanks & ponds, with hundreds of other species of fish, including a pond full of massive goldfish, & as Gillsy said, unless something is already dead, they have never touched anything else. Ive only ever seen them using their 'horns' when 2 males are fighting over one bredding log (although there are plenty more to chose from!) Do u put vegies in for them? Zuccinni & squash are the 2 favs with ours. & as i mentioned earlier, algae pellets are ok as an occasional option, too much though will cause bloat, & they will die.



I prefer using blanched pumpkin, the rainbows, firemouths and lions have a good go at it to. It never makes the water cloudy and after a day or so there is nothing left of it. I find zucchini gets too mushy if you don't remove it, after a night. I keep going to try squash but never get around to it. I also put 1/4 of a block of bloodworms in the log of the adult male BN so the other fish don't get it. And every now and then I scatter bloodworms in after the lights have gone out and the fish are alseep, (normally an hour or so after lights out) so the varioius other sized BN in there get a good feed as well. 

I originally put 25 1cm long BN in there, and have about a dozen left (damn turtle!) and the size difference in the group that hang up one of the tank and the group that hangs up the other end is amazing, they just must be getting slightly more food.


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## Bel03 (Oct 20, 2011)

You are right about the zucc going mushy if not eaten in a day or so, but we dont have that problem with thousands of them! :lol: You just learn what amount they can get through, & put pieces in that are that size. They love squash though too. We have mostly american sicklets, we havent really got into africans too much yet. Firemouths are cool, we just sold ours though, they werent doing much breeding & we needed the tank for our first batch of ebjd's! Exciting!


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## Bluetongue1 (Oct 21, 2011)

Thankyou _*Kath*_ and _*Bel*_. 

Forgive me for correcting you _*Bel*_ but it is you that deserves the “hero” tag, not me. I know you appreciate your privacy, so suffice to say that if our situations were reversed, I would be proud to have achieved half of what you have as a devoted partner and a loving mother. You have had to deal with some incredibly difficult circumstances and continue to do so. As a result, you are someone I look up to and feel privileged to have had some small measure of interaction with. Me sharing my knowledge does not come within a bull’s roar of your ability to get on with life and be a mother and a wife. I know who the real hero is. 

OK _*Kath*_, now I know what the ultimate aim is, I can advise accordingly. Goldfish are nice to look at and highly visible. If it is the visual appeal, then one to three small fish is all you need. I like the fantails because they are slower through the water and visually appealing. If you don’t really care whether you see the fish or not, then native fish will do an excellent job. See if you can borrow a seine net or similar and do a bit of fishing while you are out kayaking. There is bound to be a range of Gobies, Gudgeons, Rainbows or maybe Fly-specked Hardyhead (Craterocephalus stercumuscarum),Pacific Blue-eye (Pseudomugil signifier) or Agassiz’s Glassfish (Ambassis agassizii) in the river. There is also likely to be those nasty little Gambusia. So learn to identify them if you go collecting your own fish. Aquarium shops can provide quite a range of natives – just let them know what you want them for and the dimensions of your black tub. The prices are quite reasonable for the most part. If you just want el cheapo, not nasty, not very visible mozzie wriggler eaters – WhiteCloud Mountain Minnows are excellent. They originate from White Cloud Mountain in China and are very cold tolerant. The beauty of them versus Gambusia is that they won’t attack tadpoles. Goldfish, by the way, love tadpoles. If they can fit it in their mouth, they will eat it. Once the tadpoles get too big, the goldfish leave them alone. Not so Gambusia. They will take bites out of the tail of a tadpole 10 or 20 times their size. They will keep this up until the tadpole has virtually no tail left and can no longer move. Then they will start on the body. Lovely little fish – NOT! 

I only feed my couple of goldfish once a week, if I remember. A lot of people tend to over feed them. I have some fine leaved plants they can nibble on if hungry. I will admit to having lost a few but the two that I have left, one is around 10 and the otherat least 3 years old from purchase.

Irrespective of which fish species you use, water quality will be improved dramatically by using some aquatic plants. Bunnings actually sell a few decent native aquatic plants. In particular Nardoo (Marsilea drummondii) and Water Milfoil (Myriophyllum propinquum). They also have a few native sedges and rushes. I actually grew bulrushes in my “gold fish bowl”, a ceramic bowl about a metre in diameter and half that in height with a flowering water lily in themiddle. It was only a few months back that I removed the bulrushes to cut down on the required maintenance around the place.

A good rule of thumb for determining how many fish to have in your “pond” is... 25 cm[SUP]2[/SUP]of surface area is required for every 8 cm of fish. With a few mozzie eaters and some plants to boot, you will not need an algae eater or algal treatment. I can send you a brochure on Zeolite if you PM me a PO box. I also have a 1 kg bag of the stuff sitting in front of me with a price tag of $3 on it. So I don’t think it is all that expensive for what you get.

Mike


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## mysnakesau (Oct 21, 2011)

Thank you very much Mike  With the information you have provided I think I am almost on the right track. I think I might get a fish tank for Mr Bristle and Mr Fighter and bring them inside. I am sure I will have casualties amongst these goldies, and I didn't even think about frogs when I popped the goldfish, but I will replace them with some that you have mentioned. How fun  Catching my own. I love pacific blue eyes, the others I will look up the names for what they look like. I use to keep bumblebee gobies  Cute little guys.

I have some weed from the river? Will they be as good as the ones you mentioned? One of them is quite a thick mass, so perfect for tadpoles to hide in amongst. It has a variegated, ruffled leaves. Another is one that has root system in the gravel but on a long stem and the leaves float on the water, and a water lily.

I have to get ready for work now but I will get photos of them to show you, and will PM you right now for the zeolite info.

Thanks again!


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## Bel03 (Oct 21, 2011)

oh shucks! Thanks Mike, i really dont know how to respond to that......but you kind sir have a heart of gold!


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## gillsy (Oct 21, 2011)

I'll probably get in trouble for this but an excellent site for CHEAP!! Native fish and plants is AQUAGREEN. Fish i've seen in pet shops for $20+ can be as low as $5. he breeds alot of them in above ground swimming pools up in darwin, some are wild caught on license tho.


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## starr9 (Oct 21, 2011)

Yer we put extra food in for them like everyone has said but we did get them off a guy, and the reasion he gave them 2 us was because they were eating his other fish so I think he wasnt feeding them them enough now you have all said that! They dont do it as much anymore. could be because we are feeding them more than they use to get at the other place. Ill keep an eye on it and if i see them doing it again i will up there food!! Thank you for your help Gillsy and bel!!!!


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## mysnakesau (Oct 21, 2011)

I actually thought bristlenoses were only algae eaters as babies. Once they got some size to them I thought they changed to a carnivorous. That's what I heard, anyway. What is your opinion? Previous experience showed me otherwise, although they didn't hesitate to eat a sick or dying fish, but always remained attached to the glass or filter as larger specimens.


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## Bluetongue1 (Oct 21, 2011)

It is not at all unusual in nature for herbivores to take advantage of an occasional meat meal when available - everything from algae eaters to kangaroos. You would be suprised...

*Starr9*, do you know the scientific name of the Bristlenose you have? Does it have wood to chew on, because they need that to aid their digestion. I do not know why. 

I feed my fish (mixed community with bristlenosed) every second day or so i.e. three or four times a week. I use the spirulina algae discs +flakes + crumbles. Very occasional couple of slices of blanched zucchini. Ocassional live food like mozzie wrigglers, daphnia or midge larvae. I haven’t had any real problems. I have the good old garden variety _Ancistrus cirrhosus._

*Kath*_, _they remain algae eater all their lives. As I pointed out, the occasional protein rich meal is not scoffed at. Most catfish are very good at cleaning up any organic left overs on the bottom of the tank in addition to their staple of algae.

*Gillsy*_, _I love that site. Apart from the fish, the range of Australian aquatic plants they carry is absolutely awesome. I have not seen another supplier come within cooee. If you are into native fish you really do need to spend some time browsing what they have to offer. Thumbs up forgiving Aquagreen the plug they deserve. Well done!


Blue


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## mysnakesau (Oct 23, 2011)

Got my solar powered fountain . It looks very cute and surprisingly, works well. Of course it isn't big, but it is just the right size for this tub. But when its time for the snakes to go in, I will have to anchor it to the brick, and do something with the cord so it isn't easy pulled about.

Blue I am taking on your advice about getting some natives for the tub. I have just laybied myself a fishtank into which the goldies can go, when I get it home, and I will get some little pacific blue eyes for the outside water tub. The smaller ones are less likely to foul up the water as much as the goldfish will, too.


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## gillsy (Oct 23, 2011)

mysnakesau said:


> Got my solar powered fountain . It looks very cute and surprisingly, works well. Of course it isn't big, but it is just the right size for this tub. But when its time for the snakes to go in, I will have to anchor it to the brick, and do something with the cord so it isn't easy pulled about.
> 
> Blue I am taking on your advice about getting some natives for the tub. I have just laybied myself a fishtank into which the goldies can go, when I get it home, and I will get some little pacific blue eyes for the outside water tub. The smaller ones are less likely to foul up the water as much as the goldfish will, too.



Kath you should be able to find BE around where you are in the brackish water, you will just need to convert them to fresh.. I"m doing a couple myself at the moment. If you get local ones they'll also be use the your local temps.

Gudgeons from local freshwater creeks will be good for the mozzies to.


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## mysnakesau (Oct 23, 2011)

Sounds like fun Gillsy. I'll need a largish, fine net to catch them. I am hopeless at fishing with a line and hook, let alone netting them.


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## gillsy (Oct 23, 2011)

You can use traps, but they only go into traps on a certain tide... which I'm not sure what it is down here... I'll find out from an ANGFA member.


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