i now have 5 Pink Zebra Danios and 5 Leopard Danios but i want to have a Senegalus as it looks so unique... i was just wondering which of the 2 is easier to care for... (breeding is not part of it)... and which of the 2 requires better care including water conditions... in short which of the two would live longer in a more harsh condition than the other...
2007-10-02 04:45:37 · 4 answers · asked by Random Loner 1 in Pets ➔ Fish
Both tend to be hardy, but I'd say the real difference would be in the size of your tank and how much experience you have in keeping fish. If in doubt, I would stay with the danios for the present time.
For an adult bichir, you should have around a 30-55 gallon tank. http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/696.htm
2007-10-02 05:06:16 · answer #1 · answered by copperhead 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
I own a senegalus (or dinosaur eel as the pet store called it). It settled in very quickly and seemed to adapt very well to its new habitat. It shares the fishtank with two gouramis, which are aggressive fish and I was worried how they'd get along.
One of the gouramis is the "boss" of the tank and chases the other around, but the senegalus seems oblivious to the drama. The boss gourami has tried bossing the senegalus around, but it ignores them.
It's done very well, but my gouramis are both about 3 inches long. Senegalus are predatory fish and will eat smaller fish. Since danios are typically an inch long or shorter, they might be in danger of being eaten.
2007-10-02 06:06:45 · answer #2 · answered by Megan 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
What kind of senegalus are you looking for? The most popular type in petstores is the gray bichir.
Gray bichirs are very easy to take care of and are very adaptable. They like to stay at the bottom of the tank and hide during the day, usually coming out mostly at night. Danios are also easy to care for, but tend to easily get stuck in filter systems. They tend to stay towards the top of the tank and do well in small groups.
However while they are both easy to take care of I don't recommend mixing the two. Bichirs are predatory fish, and hunt primarily by smell. They also have gaping mouths, and a danio would be a perfect fit.
Putting the two in the same tank is up to you, though you may be risking your danios' lives. I very much adore my gray bichir. It likes to stalk the bottom of the tank, looking for stray bits of food. When it finds them, it sits still for several seconds before suddenly snapping at it and gulping it up. They are very slow moving, lizard-like fish, but fascinating to watch.
It's recommended that you feed your bichir frozen bloodworms (red mosquito larvae). I use about half a block once a day, and I feed him at night just before I turn the light off (this is because bichirs are nocturnal, and rely on smell instead of their poor eyesight).
Edit: Also I should add that while bichirs can have short bursts of speed, it's unlikely they could ever catch a fish of medium speed. So unless a danio was feeling ill, they might be able to avoid it.
Some photos:
http://www.thetropicaltank.co.uk/Tanks/Tankpics/p_senegalus-juv1.jpg
http://badmanstropicalfish.com/aqualand/misc/senegalus5.jpg
2007-10-05 07:06:54 · answer #3 · answered by Joey Atmosphere 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The real difference that you should consider is the care that you do for your fish. If you change the water eveyweek and you change the filter foam pad, and feed them some nutritous food, this should make a difference.
2007-10-06 01:19:22 · answer #4 · answered by Chris 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋