Bluefin Killifish

[pmk00001]

A couple of my male Bluefin Killifish have really colored up in the last week or so and have started displaying there fins. I can't catch a really good picture but this one gives a little bit of an idea of the intense color of these native fish.


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[Sonny Disposition]

Nice photo. Thanks for posting. Do you have a collecting locale for them, or did you rescue them from a feeder tank?

[pmk00001]

Thanks Bob - These are the only native fish I ever bought, I got them from Dustin and I assume they came from the introduced Carolina population of Bluefins.

I actually seined a bit on the weekend in the Tidal Patuxent, came up with a bunch of Tessellated Darters, Spot Tail Shiners, Banded Killies a few Mummichogs, and a lone Pumpkinseed. I kept a few darters for my community tank and they seem to have settled in nicely.

[Sonny Disposition]

Too cold for me to go seining. I guess you have some of those neoprene waders.

Tesselateds are cool. I'm told the males turn black when they're in spawning mode.

[kerokero]

Oh wow, those are gorgeous! I loved seeing Kris's native fish and have thought about them, but those bluefins are gorgeous! Can I get more info on their needs? It should be a good thing I'm taking interest in something that's not blackwater...

[pmk00001]

Bob - I've had them turn black before, it looks really cool. I don't mess with Neoprane, I just layer up .

Thanks Corey - I've had mine for about three months. They can be a little territorial but a heavily planted tank keeps them in line. Their center of adundance is Florida, I wouldn't let their water run too cold.

They seem to have any special water requirements. I've gotten mine to eat freeze dried bloodworms but I think that's as close as I'm going to get to having them eat prepared food. They love frozen blood worms (what doesn't?). I've got mine in with some Swamp Darters http://www.gwapa.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2787.

I've got a source for them if your interested. They can also be found occassionally in feeder fish tanks at the LFS.[/url]

[kerokero]

I've never been that lucky to find anything other than mosquito fish in feeder fish tanks, lol. I can't do fish tanks right now, but I will definately be looking into them in the future. A heavily planted tank would contract the nearly empty blackwater tank I want to do!

[MaggieBennett]

I have bluefin killies, and have been having good success with them. Mine came out of a ghost shrimp tank, and are probably from Florida.

I keep them in a 55 gallon, which they share with Apistos, blue rams, and some Endlers. They are pretty active and the males display to each other impressively! I started with 3 males and 3 females. I think I've lost a couple of the adults, but have lots of young ones. The tank has a very heavy layer of frogbit, with roots extending all the way into the substrate, and there are plenty of young killies in the roots near the surface. Every time I move plants out of that tank into another baby killies pop up in that tank, too--I guess the eggs are pretty sticky!

Mine eat anything--I feed mainly pellets, but they love frozen bloodworms of course and also enjoy it when I crush and chop up snails for them.

[pmk00001]

Hey Maggie!

Very cool, and welcome to the club. I really like these fish, they are always up to something.

You reminded me that my fiance got a decent picture of one of the males displaying, we still haven't been able to get a shot of the males displaying to each other, someday!

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[kerokero]

Wow Maggie, maybe I should bed some frogbit off you and keep my fingers crossed I need to get settled down so I can set up some tanks If only I didn't think 10g was too small for a group of these guys!