mudskippers

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kelly82

AC Members
Jun 1, 2007
1,108
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Lincolnshire, UK
ive seen some mudskippers in pets at home, and i cant help but be drawn in by them, they are so adorable, im just wondering if anyone can give me a quick low down on how easy they are to care for etc, dietary requirements, how many in certain size tanks, i have 30 gallon long and 20 gallon long tanks, do they need company or are they better suited to just the 1 in there? sorry for the long list, im just weighing up the idea of getting any at the moment, it would be my first brackish set-up, and id have to run it past hubby too ;)

i would probably go with a sand/gravel substrate, with drift wood as places for them to crawl out onto rather than the 'beach' type of thing ive seen made out of building up the substrate in places, i figure it would be easier to keep filtered and clean that way. so maybe an inch layer of substrate, with a few pieces of wood around, a filter submersed in around 5-6inches water, a heater, and a good tight fitting lid to keep the humidity up. i wouldnt have any other types of fish etc in there, it would be a skipper only tank. any help and ideas appreciated.
 

snowland

AC Members
Jul 1, 2008
11
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Hey Kelly

Congrats, mudskippers are the best but mine died last night :*( i am utterly devastated.

We kept him in a turtle tank with gravel stacked up in one bottom corner to allow various depths. A few terracotta pots were his fave to hide in. I decided on the turtle tank because we could keep a few other brackish fish (gobies and skats) in there and there was no drama.

This is making me sad to type! Good luck
 

JK47

VERITAS A?QUITAS
Sep 1, 2008
410
0
0
Vancouver, WA
Real Name
Justin
ive seen some mudskippers in pets at home, and i cant help but be drawn in by them, they are so adorable, im just wondering if anyone can give me a quick low down on how easy they are to care for etc, dietary requirements, how many in certain size tanks, i have 30 gallon long and 20 gallon long tanks, do they need company or are they better suited to just the 1 in there? sorry for the long list, im just weighing up the idea of getting any at the moment, it would be my first brackish set-up, and id have to run it past hubby too ;)

i would probably go with a sand/gravel substrate, with drift wood as places for them to crawl out onto rather than the 'beach' type of thing ive seen made out of building up the substrate in places, i figure it would be easier to keep filtered and clean that way. so maybe an inch layer of substrate, with a few pieces of wood around, a filter submersed in around 5-6inches water, a heater, and a good tight fitting lid to keep the humidity up. i wouldnt have any other types of fish etc in there, it would be a skipper only tank. any help and ideas appreciated.
I love skips! if you decide to get one, make sure your ready before hand for the specific species. I will advise all day long to keep a species only tank... It's hard to devote an entire tank to a single fish, but these guys are unique and worth it if African, if Indian, you have some more options,

Go with 1 african in the 30. If indian, you can fit more than one in each. Meaty/moving diet. Mine love blood/black worms, crickets, small bugs. Make the air the same temp as the water and give them a cheap turtle dock to hang out on. The turtle dock will give you more room for water volume which is important.
 

kelly82

AC Members
Jun 1, 2007
1,108
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Lincolnshire, UK
yep, i saw some platform things, for little turtles to crawl up on, and they stick with suction cups to the sides of the tank, thats what i was planning on. and then some driftwood also big enough to come up out of the water. how often and how many crickets do they eat? i can get hold of live blood worm very easily, so that wouldnt be a problem, the dinky little skippers ive seen (i dont know what sort they are) look too small to eat anything like crickets though! i dont mind having a set-up for just 1 if they require that, or a couple if possible, i just want whatever i get to be happy,if i do decide to get some.
 

wataugachicken

The Dancing Banana
Jul 14, 2005
5,451
1
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Charlotte, NC
Hey Kelly

Congrats, mudskippers are the best but mine died last night :*( i am utterly devastated.

We kept him in a turtle tank with gravel stacked up in one bottom corner to allow various depths. A few terracotta pots were his fave to hide in. I decided on the turtle tank because we could keep a few other brackish fish (gobies and skats) in there and there was no drama.

This is making me sad to type! Good luck
what makes a turtle tank different from a fish tank?
 

MonoSebaelover

Anableps
Apr 20, 2001
1,410
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Phoenix, AZ
www.shiredalefarm.com
Also do a search in the brackish forums, mudskippers have been brought up a lot in this forum and there is tons of info already here on them :)!

The Turtle Tank on one of the short sides of the tank, the glass is cut 1/2 way down the wall, there is a gap for a filter then there is a plastic sheet the covers the top 1/2 of the tank. Is great for creatures that need part land part water. Cuts your water volume in half though, so in a 40G breeder, you only have about 20g water.
 

JK47

VERITAS A?QUITAS
Sep 1, 2008
410
0
0
Vancouver, WA
Real Name
Justin
yep, i saw some platform things, for little turtles to crawl up on, and they stick with suction cups to the sides of the tank, thats what i was planning on. and then some driftwood also big enough to come up out of the water. how often and how many crickets do they eat? i can get hold of live blood worm very easily, so that wouldnt be a problem, the dinky little skippers ive seen (i dont know what sort they are) look too small to eat anything like crickets though! i dont mind having a set-up for just 1 if they require that, or a couple if possible, i just want whatever i get to be happy,if i do decide to get some.
Couple things:

1) They love crickets and will eat as manu as you feed. I feed each one 2 every three days or so and vary the diet with blood worms and carnivore pellets in between. Even though they look small, thir mouth is as large as large as the size of it's head, literally. Just ask for small or medium crickets, everyone carries them.

2) A 40 is small so watch what you choose to stock, African, absolutly not, Indian should be OK for more than one. If it is a "true" turtle tank with the cut out on the side for the filter, your going to need to seal it somehow. They can and WILL escape! Half inch crack or less is all they need to get out....

3) I would go with fake wood if possible. Large pieces of wood, I have heard can lower PH and these guys prefer a higher PH than most freshwater. I can't speak to this from experience but hate to play with PH fluctuations.

4) Filtration has to be MORE than addequate for your tank size. These guys make a TON of waste. Large canister or wet/dry is the way to go if you don't mind the cost.

Sorry for being long winded, just trying to help you avoid a couple mistakes I made.
 

kelly82

AC Members
Jun 1, 2007
1,108
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0
Lincolnshire, UK
its a normal fishtank il be using not a turtle tank, and il check out what type the skippers are that they have in today. i wont be getting any for quite some time yet, if i do get any at all. i would be using a fluval 4+ filter laid on its side in the tank i think, if that would work. im wanting the smallest species of skipper, as i can only really go with a tank with a footprint of 24 x18 inches. not sure if this would be a viable option though. il just keep doing my research on them and maybe one day il have the money for a bigger tank and i can do it all properly once i know exactly what im doing. thanks for everyones replies though x
 

kelly82

AC Members
Jun 1, 2007
1,108
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0
Lincolnshire, UK
well, i went to take a look at the mudskippers, they had 1 in, it was around 3-4 inches long, and was £14.99. however it wasnt labelled up as anything more than a mudskipper and they didnt know-how helpful!
 

JK47

VERITAS A?QUITAS
Sep 1, 2008
410
0
0
Vancouver, WA
Real Name
Justin
well, i went to take a look at the mudskippers, they had 1 in, it was around 3-4 inches long, and was £14.99. however it wasnt labelled up as anything more than a mudskipper and they didnt know-how helpful!
Here is a pic of one of my African (Barbarus) did you notice blue in the fins along the top of the body? If so, along with the size you mention (unless adult Indian) it is more than likely an African and too large for the size tank you have.

Franks Aquarium: http://www.franksaquarium.com/brackish.htm sells the smaller Indian you would want for your size tank. You could get a couple in that size if setup right.

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