Stocking Ideas!

[thekoimaiden]

A lot of those are darters (percidae) and minnows (cyprinidae --> like barbs, danio, and goldfish). Topminnow is another name for killifish (fundulidae). There are also some sunfish (centrarchidae) in there, too. The darters are the things that are going to stay smallest; they're also some of the prettiest. If you want more info on the individual fish you should just search their scientific name. There is a lot of info out there on them. There is also a wonderful forum devoted to keeping North American natives. NANFA Forum

[MaisyDawgThirteen]

I know a man who has sunfish. He had 8 of them, but one killed all of the others. O.o

[Olympia]

Are the darters all "coldwater" or could they live in tropical tanks? o-O

[thekoimaiden]

Originally Posted by MaisyDawgThirteen

I know a man who has sunfish. He had 8 of them, but one killed all of the others. O.o

A lot of the Lepomis sunfish are rather aggressive. They are the US equivalent of cichlids. They also get really large and need large tanks. They aren't called panfish for nothing! They do get frying pan-sized. But there are some species of sunfish that stay small-ish.

Originally Posted by Olympia

Are the darters all "coldwater" or could they live in tropical tanks? o-O

They are true coldwater fish and need temps ranging from 50F to 60F. I've been out collecting darters and MAN is that water cold. I always came back with completely numb fingers. I gashed my hand open once and didn't even notice it. But those are just Virginia darters. There might be one or two species that can survive around 75F.

[MaisyDawgThirteen]

Originally Posted by thekoimaiden

A lot of the Lepomis sunfish are rather aggressive. They are the US equivalent of cichlids. They also get really large and need large tanks. They aren't called panfish for nothing! They do get frying pan-sized. But there are some species of sunfish that stay small-ish.

I think he had an 80 Gallon. Not sure, though.

[Olympia]

You'd need a cooler to keep the water that cold!
Maybe some florida species. :D

[kfryman]

Okay I just became a member on that site, it looks cool!, I will be studying it. What happens if it is hot and the water starts getting warm though?

[Olympia]

http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/Aquarium-chillers/
http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_viewit...illerstore.com
-___- don't want to scare you. I have neverrr seen chillers in pet stores. I hope that isn't the cheapest kind. From what I'm reading it's not as easy as dropping in an ice cube..

[kfryman]

On that forum Koimaiden gave me they put a fan over the top of the water and frozen water bottles. Much cheaper lol.

After looking at that I want to experiment with Kitty Litter for planting instead of dirt. Has so much clay so plants will grow crazy! You have to get litter that only has baked clay though. Maybe I will try it in my % gallon as I am thinking of redoing it sometime.

[Olympia]

Yea, that's true, you'd have to watch it a lot more though I'm guessing. Those darters are pretty cool though :D
There's litter that's just baked clay? o-o
everything these days seems so fancy and scented. xD