what are some oddball's for community tank?

is 55 gallons enough for an elephant nose? I really want one, but don't think I could accomodate one in a 55, except by itself?
 
yeah..... you're right... but I though I once saw one that got, like, 9-10" long, but I can't remember where.....

Hm, I can't recall one, but I may be wrong. I'm pretty sure P senegalus and P palmas are the smallest at 12".


is 55 gallons enough for an elephant nose? I really want one, but don't think I could accomodate one in a 55, except by itself?

Yes, but they get big, so you wouldn't be able to keep much with them. You'd need lots of hiding places, quiet, non-aggressive tankmates, and make sure that there aren't any other electrical fish in the tank.
 
jodimartin2003 said:
Can you point me to some literature that says they will eat small fish. I'm not doubting it's true, I would just like to see something that says it.

Not offhand, except from personal experience with dozens of A. pectinifrons.
 
FreddytheFish said:
Hm, I can't recall one, but I may be wrong. I'm pretty sure P senegalus and P palmas are the smallest at 12".

Actually, P. retropinnis ssp. rarely exceed 11" (unfortunately, P. p. polli and P. p. palmas are often mislabelled as P. retropinnis).
 
plah831 said:
is 55 gallons enough for an elephant nose? I really want one, but don't think I could accomodate one in a 55, except by itself?

I have mine in 55gal. Yes they need to be with mellow tankmates but sometimes mine gets mad and will attack some of my bigger fish... Mine is around 8-9in and I have had him for about a year... If you do get one you may want to just put the fish on hold and go see it daily to make sure it is eating. All Elephantnose are wild caught. They cannot be captive bred as far as I have read and after there plane ride from Africa they dont like to eat. They either need to be kept as a single or as a large group and you cannot put a ghost knife in the tank cause they WILL fight. trust me. lol
 
and you cannot put a ghost knife in the tank cause they WILL fight. trust me. lol

To elaborate, both fish have electrical organs to navigate and find their way around. When to electrical fish are put together in the confines of an aquarium, the electrical organs go haywire. You can't put two fish with electrical organs in the same tank.
 
FreddytheFish said:
To elaborate, both fish have electrical organs to navigate and find their way around. When to electrical fish are put together in the confines of an aquarium, the electrical organs go haywire. You can't put two fish with electrical organs in the same tank.


I agree mostly, but you can have 6+ Elephant nose in the same tank as long as you provide enough space for them. They actually do better when they are in groups. There electrical organs dont go haywire... Those organs not only find them food and find there way, but they communicate like dolphins with those electrical impulses. I read an artical where they put some type of amplifier in the tank with a speaker and they had a link to hear what was happening in the tank. Heres the link. http://www.scitoys.com/scitoys/scitoys/biology/electric_fish/electric_fish.html
There are alot of misleading articles on this fish so beware of what you read... I got most of my info from watching this fish in my own tank and then deciding which info to believe.
 
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You are correct. However, for elephant noses, you must either have just one or a large group. 2 or 3 will not work. And if you put two different species with electrical organs together, they don't do well. (Although "go haywire" probably wasn't the best way to describe it, but...)


:cool:
 
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