Elephant nose

[flyte00]

Hi all. I know there is information available on the internet but I would like to hear about personal experiences with this interesting fish. Nothing much is known about breeding but maybe someone here has some information or experience?
I'd like to get a small group of elephant nose (maybe 6?) and see what happens. I'm thinking of housing them in a large heated/filtered trough where they would have the privacy they seem to need. Maybe 50 gallons? Perhaps this could encourage breeding. I have several types of live food to keep their bellies full.
What types of caves/hiding places do your elephant nose seem to prefer? Are their homes well planted? what type of filtration do you have for them? Any information would be really helpful.

Thanks!

Sarah

 

[bluefinned]

I have 3 elephant noses in my 90 gallon and they are really cool fish. They are territorial and each picked a hiding place and now guard it from one another. However, it depends on the mood - sometimes they "visit" each other and rub against one another in one's cave. My black ghost knife occasionally chases everybody out of their caves, but they go back there after a couple of seconds.

I only have a light on one side of my tank as they are nocturnal and feel more comfortable in the dark. When I have the light on, they are all on the other side of the tank. Feeding is a lot of fun to watch! I throw frozen blood worms and they go out with their snouts probing around. Their mouth is actually on top of the snout and is not very big, so sometimes they struggle with larger pieces of worms.

The most fascinating thing is they are an electric fish! By emitting pulses of electricity into the water, they find food, other fish and objects. Their electric organ is the pair of white bands that runs between top and bottom fins. And you can listen to them!! Next week, I'm getting a device called "piezoelectric earphone" that will allow me to hear them communicate!

Good luck!

 

[plah831]

They're VERY cool fish. I can't wait till I get enough space for a big tank for one or two. They do get big, like 8-9 inches, so I don't think 50 gallons would be big enough for them. When stocking, one must consider their maximum adult size and avoid "grow-out tank" situations, as this can lead to stunting (a painful lifelong condition which will shorten the fish's life). Also, in a tank that small, I would avoid having more than one electric fish because their signals tend to get crossed.

On a side note, they're some of the most intelligent fishes, along with other electric fishes. The complex sensory information that they have to generate and analyze means that they need large and complicated brains. They have even been reported to play in captivity, with anything new placed in their environment. Like I said, very cool fish, but I think they deserve a large tank.

Anyone is welcome to correct me if I'm mistaken