new to salwater, and frogfish

I have some questions about keeping the frogfish. My lfs has one that is maybe 1in long, and the other that is about 2 in long. Here are the questions:

1. Can I keep one of these guys in the fluval destop nano tank? The tank is only 2gal. I'd only keep the fish in here for about a year, then upgrade.


2. Do I need to use RO water for these guys, or can tap water that is treated with dechlorinating drops work?

3. I was going to put some live rock in the tank. Do i have to use RO water for the live rock, and does live rock need special lighting?

4. I plan on upgrading to the coralilfe 29gal cube later on and would like to use corals. Do I need an RO unit to keep corals?

5. Where is a good site to buy frogfish?

Thanks so much for your help!

 

1. No
2. RO/DI is best, tap just puts lots of nutrients in the water, not to mention frogfish are messy eaters.
3. No and no
4. No but it works really well, biocubes really aren't that good. Get a standard
tank and get better equipment.
5. Live Aquaria Divers Den, What-you-see-is-what-you-get. Get the email alert so you know if any frogfish will be for sale. Bluezooaquatics has a similar thing
HTH ;D and Welcome to the site, if you have any questions just ask!

 

30gal

I have a 30gal tank I'm not using at the moment. What equipment would I need to start a coral tank with frogfish? Thanks so much.

 

Welcome to 3reef.

If you start a thread titled Frog Fish, hopefully member Incognito will chime it.
They are very cool but should not be kept in a pico, water quality will be a nightmare as well as chemistry.

Live rock does not need special lighting, lighting type will however affect your coralline algae grow and type.

Go to the New to the Hobby forum here on 3reef, there are a few good stickies with very good information to get you started.

RO/DI water will be ideal for a corals, not a must for Frog Fish.

I would definitely wait until you get the larger tank up and completely cycled

 

if you are new to saltwater, an angler is not one that I would start out with. These guys are very tough to keep. Definately would not put one in less than 30g tank as some of them can get to be quite big depending on the type, but more importantly they are WASTE MAKERS big time!

The biggest problems with anglers is they do not ship well. If you look at live aquiria and blue zoo they do not honor the warrenty with these guys. Even once they arrive and get acclimated, there is still a big possibility of them not making it. In the begining you will have to feed them live food. I have acclimated 3 anglers to frozen after a month or so, however I have one now that I can not get to touch frozen.

I am not saying you can not do it being new in saltwater, but I would suggest setting up the reef tank and then consider going to an angler. When you do get your angler though, realize that it will be the only fish that you will be able to keep. It will eat anything it can get its mouth around, including things that are too big for it. My LFS had 2 anglers the same size in the same tank. I told them this was probably not a great idea but they still kept it there.........well one angler ate the other and then he died from bloat.

To set up a 30g, you need approximately 1lb of sand per gallon, same for live rock. This not set in stone, but a good start. In my predator tanks, I keep more live rock then the recommended 1lb per gallon. I would recommend a sump if any way possible. Will need a heater and depending on the corals you keep, lighting.

 

"Mr. Incognito" here...Incognito is my wife.

First of all, as many have mentioned, anglers are best kept in species tanks. As for how large a tank, it depends on the species of angler. For instance, you could keep Antennarius maculatus (wartskinned angler) in a 30 gal as an adult, but not A. commersoni, which reaches an adult size of 10".

The tiny specimens aren't a good idea unless you're very familiar with feeding preds that small, as you're fighting the availability of proper live food size as well as getting the fish to eat for you. I wouldn't get a fish < 3" unless it's a full-grown Antennatus tuberosa (a dwarf species), which could be kept in a 10 gal for life, but is fairly cryptic.

Additionally, you should only feed an angler about twice a week, and be careful to keep the food items on the small size even tho they can swallow very large prey. The reason for this is that the metabolism of an angler is so slow, large items begin to decay in their GI tract before they are digested, which will kill the fish (as mentioned). BTW, never, EVER feed goldfish or rosy reds to a SW predator...they will strip your fish of Vitamin B1 (thiamin), which will result in central nervous system disorders, cessation of feeding (anorexia), clamped fins, and death.

You'll also have to consider that anglers are often prone to die due to a little understood malady known as Sudden Angler Death (SAD), where a seemingly healthy fish will be fine for a few months, they race around the tank, bloat, float, and die. So don't get an angler if you have no loss tolerance.

I think everyone just wants you to go into this with both eyes open...HTH

 

well thank you Mr Incognito!!!!! Good info!

 

Incognito

Thanks for your help! The angler would be the only fish I'd keep in the tank. I really like predator fish. Is there any way to prevent the SAD thing you mentioned? I understand they can be tricky but I'm willing to try. Can I feed these fish live feeder guppies? Also can a jbj cube tank work
For an angler? I've seen a 29 gal

 

Incognito

Thanks for your help! The angler would be the only fish I'd keep in the tank. I don't plan on buying the dwarf species. I like the warty skin anglers. I really like predator fish. Is there any way to prevent the SAD thing you mentioned? I understand they can be tricky but I'm willing to try. Can I feed these fish live feeder guppies? I have a 30 gal tank but it's not set up for a sump. It's just a standard tank. What type of filter could I use? What was the longest anyone has kept a frogfish?

 

SAD isn't well-understood yet...some fish get it, some don't.

You could keep a warty in a 30 gal, but you'll want to be sure it's properly ID'd as juvie warties, painteds, and giants look very similar at that stage.

You can start the fish on live guppies, altho ghost shrimp are a better food. I honestly wouldn't think of getting a pred and always feeding it live foods tho. Go the extra mile and wean your fish so it will have a good, varied diet.

A healthy angler will live for quite a few years with proper care.