Who currently has pipefish or Seahorses?
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I have been curious to this as well, as I have always loved both of these. I have been thinking with one of my tanks I may introduce a couple of pipefish and maybe something else that is very peaceful and timid. Possibly my 30 cube as my clowns have really set up shop in my 90gal display.
Chris (@ Einstein Aquatics) always seems to have a couple of pipefish in stock. He had a few banded pipes in a while back and another species when I was there a week or so ago.
Chris (@ Einstein Aquatics) always seems to have a couple of pipefish in stock. He had a few banded pipes in a while back and another species when I was there a week or so ago.
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I loved the ones I saw in your tank Ralph... but its almost like they need a species tank to keep them going. My wife wanted one after seeing them after seeing them in your tank but I explained they couldn't subsist with my pod eating army of wrasses. :sad:
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I have 3 reidi in a 30 cube with a yasha goby, some sexy shrimp, and a tiny pair of clowns. I think the clowns will go elsewhere eventually. Believe it or not, the seahorses are more aggressive eaters than the clown are. Once the food hits the water, get out of their way! I have a male Bangaii with a mouthful of fry in the main display. If I can collect them when he releases them, they might go in with the seahorses too.
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I have a an african blue lined pipefish. I've had him for about a year or so. Just moved him and his buddies into my 55. I have a foxface, a flame angel, a potters angel, a twinspot gobie, a green clown gobie and the pipefish. I'm keeping this tank as a softie tank. I also had dwarf seahorses at one time, but they were WAY too labor intensive. I had to hatch baby brine shrimp every day.
Jmaneypanda- Are you worried about the reidi eating the sexy shrimp one day? I know full grown erectus love them...
Jmaneypanda- Are you worried about the reidi eating the sexy shrimp one day? I know full grown erectus love them...
I had a Alligator Pipefish that was doing great feeding on newly hatched Brine Shrimp and pods until it meet an untimley death in the overflow. The drain pipe was knocked loose and the pipefish got in to the overflow. Bummer.
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I knew it was a possibility, and the sexy went in 3 weeks before the horses to get established. I actually thought that it HAD happened, but I spotted the sexy's a week ago, happy and breeding. I got my horses from oceanrider, and I dont think they even know what live food is. I put some amphipods from the main tank in their tank, and they sat there and watched them move around- no interest. But once those stinky mysis hit the water, its a frenzy.
Charlie- I have zoas and ricordia right now. I also used it for a SPS frag growout, but there is just one frag in there now.
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Mysterybox-It's easy to sex those bluestripes. Unfortunately I found out a little late and accidently got two males. One didn't last long. But if you look on top of the snout, the males will have some tiny little lumps/ridges. The females are supposed to be smooth across the top. For what it's worth, I started mine in the tank with my dwarf seahorses, so it was gettin a ton of baby brine. Now he's excluively on pods. I had him in a 40 breeder with no fuge and he's still nice and plump. I'd recomend about the same conditions as a Mandarin. Mine hides a good bit during the day. I don't see him very often anymore. He seemed to like less flow, but he can handle a decent amount. If I can be of any help, let me know. Mine was mislabled a Jann's as well. It was a pretty shady pet store that no longer exists as far as I know. Best of luck to ya.
Jmaneyapanda-I don't know if you wanna risk putting it in with your horsies, but I had some sexy shrimp that loved hosting in my frogspawn. It may give them a better chance of survival if the horsies get hungry enough. If I'm not mistaken, they're a type of anemone shrimp. Could be wrong though. Hope they work out together. Keep us posted.
Jmaneyapanda-I don't know if you wanna risk putting it in with your horsies, but I had some sexy shrimp that loved hosting in my frogspawn. It may give them a better chance of survival if the horsies get hungry enough. If I'm not mistaken, they're a type of anemone shrimp. Could be wrong though. Hope they work out together. Keep us posted.
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Yes, they are an anenome shrimp. However, I would not want to put the seahorses in with a frogspawn, or other nematocyst laden coral.
Itr was alwasy my intention to have this tank focus around the seahorses, so if they get a meal, so be it.
Well, I currently have:
A 90gal Tank w/ 30gal sump and a 13gal refugium
7 Seahorses
1 Pyjama Cardinal
1 mandarin Goby
1 Red Firefish (Firefin?)
1 Pink spot Goby.
Corals:
4 Colonies of Mushrooms
1 Colony of Ricordia
4 Gorgonians (the big thick brown/purple kind)
1 Forest of Anthelia
I keep a LOT of Macroalgae growing in my tank, which I have to prune regularly so it doesnt get too overwhelming. Mostly it is the long feathery kind, but I also had an unwanted outbreak of the "clover" type. I find that not only does it provide a great natural "seagrass/seabed" type environment for the horses, but also gives a lot more places for the pods to breed and hide, since I have a lot of critters in the tank feeding off them. But it must be working, cuz my horses stay fed and the mandarin (going on 3 years with him now) is still big and fat. Y'all should definately avoid the stinging corals like frogspawn, etc in the seahorses tank, as they are very susceptible to stings.
Over the past few years I've had up to 12 horses, and unfortunately most of my original stock from Ocean Rider is coming up on Old Age and starting to die off, so I'm VERY glad to have found the woman from Knoxville.
I will say on the shrimp tip that I miss my cleaner shrimp.... it was a blast watching him clean the seahorses, and I will be getting another shortly. But any little shrimp put into the tank are immediately scarfed up by the sea pigs... they LOVE little shrimps, be it the frozen mysis or the live mysis or live ghosts I splurge on occasionally.
I have 5 more horses coming in next weekend. I found a breeder in knoxville that has purebred erectus, and she is coming down to Macna, and bringing the ponies with her (ergo: No shipping charges
). I'd be happy to play middleman and make an introduction if anyone is interested in picking up some H. Erectus. I have spoken with folks that have gotten seahorses from her and all reports are great. Being that Ocean Rider has jacked up their prices to a simply ridiculous level, I would never order another horse from them.. (when I got mine they were around $60 each... now they're around $200 each..... ridiculous). I have gotten a few from Draco Marine, but 3 out of the 4 died shortly after I got them, and now they are out of business. I really didn't want to risk getting them from a big chain store, or from a place where I couldnt directly trace their origins, so like I said, I'm very glad to have found this breeder, and looking forward to more.
As usual, If anyone wants to talk seahorses or see my tank, pm. I don't check the forums everyday anymore, but I'll get back to you shortly, and I will be checking over the next few days to see if anyone wants an introduction to my new supplier.
A 90gal Tank w/ 30gal sump and a 13gal refugium
7 Seahorses
1 Pyjama Cardinal
1 mandarin Goby
1 Red Firefish (Firefin?)
1 Pink spot Goby.
Corals:
4 Colonies of Mushrooms
1 Colony of Ricordia
4 Gorgonians (the big thick brown/purple kind)
1 Forest of Anthelia
I keep a LOT of Macroalgae growing in my tank, which I have to prune regularly so it doesnt get too overwhelming. Mostly it is the long feathery kind, but I also had an unwanted outbreak of the "clover" type. I find that not only does it provide a great natural "seagrass/seabed" type environment for the horses, but also gives a lot more places for the pods to breed and hide, since I have a lot of critters in the tank feeding off them. But it must be working, cuz my horses stay fed and the mandarin (going on 3 years with him now) is still big and fat. Y'all should definately avoid the stinging corals like frogspawn, etc in the seahorses tank, as they are very susceptible to stings.
Over the past few years I've had up to 12 horses, and unfortunately most of my original stock from Ocean Rider is coming up on Old Age and starting to die off, so I'm VERY glad to have found the woman from Knoxville.
I will say on the shrimp tip that I miss my cleaner shrimp.... it was a blast watching him clean the seahorses, and I will be getting another shortly. But any little shrimp put into the tank are immediately scarfed up by the sea pigs... they LOVE little shrimps, be it the frozen mysis or the live mysis or live ghosts I splurge on occasionally.
I have 5 more horses coming in next weekend. I found a breeder in knoxville that has purebred erectus, and she is coming down to Macna, and bringing the ponies with her (ergo: No shipping charges
). I'd be happy to play middleman and make an introduction if anyone is interested in picking up some H. Erectus. I have spoken with folks that have gotten seahorses from her and all reports are great. Being that Ocean Rider has jacked up their prices to a simply ridiculous level, I would never order another horse from them.. (when I got mine they were around $60 each... now they're around $200 each..... ridiculous). I have gotten a few from Draco Marine, but 3 out of the 4 died shortly after I got them, and now they are out of business. I really didn't want to risk getting them from a big chain store, or from a place where I couldnt directly trace their origins, so like I said, I'm very glad to have found this breeder, and looking forward to more.As usual, If anyone wants to talk seahorses or see my tank, pm. I don't check the forums everyday anymore, but I'll get back to you shortly, and I will be checking over the next few days to see if anyone wants an introduction to my new supplier.
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Would love to see pics!
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Lenny;212883 wrote:
I have 5 more horses coming in next weekend. I found a breeder in knoxville that has purebred erectus, and she is coming down to Macna, and bringing the ponies with her (ergo: No shipping charges
.
She had posted here a couple times about these horses too.
I will have to disagree about one thing here. Captive bred seahorse prices have gone up everywhere, not just at Oceanrider. ORA ones cost the same. I'm afraid buying based on cost will lead people to buy wild seahorses, which is a bad practice with this genera. If you want captive seahorses, expect to pay a lot. Its not every day we get deals come along like the one from the person from Knoxville.
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And she has erectus, right? I am pretty sure they need cooler waters (like low 70s or something). I am not sure they are gonna be happy with corals, or vice versa. But I am just spitballing.
All I keep are erectus. They love the corals I have. I try to keep my temp in the low to mid seventies, but in the summer sometimes it's around 80 and they still do okay, but low to mid 70's is preferred.
And as far as the cost, well, to each his own. But neither my budget or my sense of ethics can justify paying more than double what they were only two years ago. I understand there are many reasons for such increases, but to charge between $150 and 200 per horse, when other reputable sources are carrying captive bred as well for under $100 still, well.. like I said, lol.. to each his own. Personally my current budget cannot afford the ocean rider prices, so I've had to turn elsewhere.
And as far as the cost, well, to each his own. But neither my budget or my sense of ethics can justify paying more than double what they were only two years ago. I understand there are many reasons for such increases, but to charge between $150 and 200 per horse, when other reputable sources are carrying captive bred as well for under $100 still, well.. like I said, lol.. to each his own. Personally my current budget cannot afford the ocean rider prices, so I've had to turn elsewhere.
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I am not deriding personal economics! If I implied so, I apologize!!! I am simply saying that buyer seahorses based on prices will certainly lead to problem. The cheapest seahorses are wild caught, and they have a very poor survival record, in addition to the ethical choices you discussed. So using this as a primary criterion is rather uneducated, in my opinion.
What other reptutable sources have seahorses for $75 per seahorse? I had so much trouble finding them when I was looking. There were places aon ebay, and some others, but I do not consider them reputable, unless you know something I dont. FWIW, Oceanrider does have a pair of erectus, with some other incidentals for like 270 or 280 or something. I even got a free t-shirt when I ordered from them.
Above all, I simply saying that this is not a cheap avenue to do properly. You can get cheap seahorses, and house them improperly, but then you are doomed for failure. If you research the species, buy healthy, quality captive bred animals, then the odds of success have increased magnificently. I am sure you would agree, right Lenny? I have seen your interest and committment to the care of these animals, and feel you are of the same mindset.
First of all I know that these boards can get out of control and people read a lot of things into that that just arent there, so please don't read anything into this. This is my own personal opinion.
It is the responsiblity of the individual buyer to their research and find a source for stocking their herd that is bred in captivity, and not just collected from the wild. Obviously any commercial endeavor has to do some farming of the wild stock, but they should be responsible and ethical in their practices and be of the mindset of "collect the fry for breeding and return the caught ones, and some of the fry they raise to the wild". It is up to the buyer to find out about the practices of any source they are going to buy their seahorses from. Personally, I think that pricing and personal budget plays just as much of an important part of the decision making process as the quality of the seahorses and the ethics and methods involved by the source in their raising.
I am not saying to go buy the cheapest seahorses that you can, however they might have been bred or captured, but for the people to whom budget IS a concern, there ARE other options then paying the overinflated prices from certain established commercial dealers that still allow you to be a conscientious seahorse keeper, and obtain livestock that was raised and/or farmed in an ethical, environmentally conscious way. These sources are not always easy to find, and it certainly is easier to find less reputable sources, but they are out there and if you do your research you can find them.
I have done my research. I am being a conscientious seahorse keeper. I have a desire to keep my tank in the best interests of my livestock, and not just my own personal viewing wants. I have found multiple sources for livestock that I feel confident would be an appropriate, ethical, and financially feasible way to contine the growth and well-being of my own herd. And I urge everyone out there to do exactly the same.
It is the responsiblity of the individual buyer to their research and find a source for stocking their herd that is bred in captivity, and not just collected from the wild. Obviously any commercial endeavor has to do some farming of the wild stock, but they should be responsible and ethical in their practices and be of the mindset of "collect the fry for breeding and return the caught ones, and some of the fry they raise to the wild". It is up to the buyer to find out about the practices of any source they are going to buy their seahorses from. Personally, I think that pricing and personal budget plays just as much of an important part of the decision making process as the quality of the seahorses and the ethics and methods involved by the source in their raising.
I am not saying to go buy the cheapest seahorses that you can, however they might have been bred or captured, but for the people to whom budget IS a concern, there ARE other options then paying the overinflated prices from certain established commercial dealers that still allow you to be a conscientious seahorse keeper, and obtain livestock that was raised and/or farmed in an ethical, environmentally conscious way. These sources are not always easy to find, and it certainly is easier to find less reputable sources, but they are out there and if you do your research you can find them.
I have done my research. I am being a conscientious seahorse keeper. I have a desire to keep my tank in the best interests of my livestock, and not just my own personal viewing wants. I have found multiple sources for livestock that I feel confident would be an appropriate, ethical, and financially feasible way to contine the growth and well-being of my own herd. And I urge everyone out there to do exactly the same.
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Mysterybox- I ran accross these online. Only $24.99 Thought you might be interested.
