We put away 1.5' mullet yesterday - 4 apurensis
- Thread starter thebiggerthebetter
- Start date
Jello is still getting used to the new feed fish and hesitates to swallow large mackerel to her own detriment:
Big Jello took a 6" mullet today, not in a hurry. Refused mackerel head. I hope she is merely not hungry or it's seasonal. Thug stole the mackerel head from twizzers.
Here is Jello-Jr. snatching a mullet:
Here is Jello-Jr. snatching a mullet:
Holy smokes...that is the most mealy-mouthed half-hearted feeding response I have ever witnessed with an apurensis. Do you really think it's the new feed fish species? My experience with this fish is limited to only two specimens, many years apart, but...I've never seen that kind of lackadaisical behaviour regardless of what was offered; nor have I ever witnessed any kind of seasonal difference in temperament or feeding aggressiveness even with roughly a decade spent with my first one.
Maybe it is due to more-or-less constant stress caused by the Thug in the same tank? When the Jelly was in the 4500gallon tank, even with many fish much larger than it was, it still had some "personal space" it was able to maintain, but here the Thug is passing by and likely touching the Jelly every second or two. Just seems stressful; that fish stresses me out just watching it cruising around.
your post is a delight on several levelsYes, I probably have to tentatively agree that apurensis have more or less same appetite year round, if one corrects one's expectations for the usual water temp effect - the warmer the water, the higher the metabolism, the sooner the hunger returns.
Yes, I too am worried a bit at the lack of normal beastly appetite from Jello. It could be the food size. Maybe she doesn't want to bother with 1.5ft mackerel having been used to 6"-8" herring for many years. Jello did take two finger mullet and a mackerel tail in her more or less normal gulping fashion lately but Thug goes bonkers when he smells food and doesn't find it, he then bumps into Jello and tries to get at the food through her mouth or gills, so yes, there is a stress factor for sure. For Jello's sake I may have to move Thug, or actually it is 100x easier to move Jello as she is so chill vs Thug who fights like he is being deep fried.
I doubt the newness of the offered fish.
I did see and report that Jello seems to not be as happy in that 240 gal, perhaps because she is longer than the tank width, or could be because of Thug, or both. But Thug dials down his antics and activity 100x when no feed smell in water.
Thiaminase has been on my mind a lot too, so everything I give her I make sure it is fortified with B1 and Vitachem.
Once in a while Jello does bite Thug, usually inconsequentially but sometimes leaving a good mark, but not persistently or viciously, no intent to injure or kill whatsoever. Thug never answers. Only bites her mouth and gills when she's got food in her mouth and he doesn't.
The way the paroons have been in the 4500 gal, I cannot place her back there in good faith that it could be alright.
I realized almost as soon as I hit Submit that I was seeing video of the Thug at his most active and that most of the time he was more laidback and mellow...but then again I didn't realize how aggressively he attacks Jello when food is in a mouth and the mouth isn't his...
Yes, I probably have to tentatively agree that apurensis have more or less same appetite year round, if one corrects one's expectations for the usual water temp effect - the warmer the water, the higher the metabolism, the sooner the hunger returns.
Yes, I too am worried a bit at the lack of normal beastly appetite from Jello. It could be the food size. Maybe she doesn't want to bother with 1.5ft mackerel having been used to 6"-8" herring for many years. Jello did take two finger mullet and a mackerel tail in her more or less normal gulping fashion lately but Thug goes bonkers when he smells food and doesn't find it, he then bumps into Jello and tries to get at the food through her mouth or gills, so yes, there is a stress factor for sure. For Jello's sake I may have to move Thug, or actually it is 100x easier to move Jello as she is so chill vs Thug who fights like he is being deep fried.
I doubt the newness of the offered fish.
I did see and report that Jello seems to not be as happy in that 240 gal, perhaps because she is longer than the tank width, or could be because of Thug, or both. But Thug dials down his antics and activity 100x when no feed smell in water.
Thiaminase has been on my mind a lot too, so everything I give her I make sure it is fortified with B1 and Vitachem.
Once in a while Jello does bite Thug, usually inconsequentially but sometimes leaving a good mark, but not persistently or viciously, no intent to injure or kill whatsoever. Thug never answers. Only bites her mouth and gills when she's got food in her mouth and he doesn't.
The way the paroons have been in the 4500 gal, I cannot place her back there in good faith that it could be alright.
Perhaps cutting the food into smaller chunks that are more easily and quickly swallowed would help? I cut my DIY gel foods into chunks roughly 1x1x2 inches and these disappear, completely swallowed, instantly. The occasional larger item, like a 4-inch sunfish or perch, obviously takes a bit longer, so if there were another hungry mouth present I could see problems being much more likely.
I realize that with an operation like yours you don't have time to molly-coddle each individual fish at feeding time, but...would it perhaps be possible to create a flow-through tank divider of eggcrate or mesh or something similar, and just drop it in at feeding time to separate the two before introducing food? Go about the rest of your routine, and remove the divider when finished?
If nothing else, it might give you a chance to see if Thug is affecting the Jello's feeding response. Perhaps she avoids the larger food items because they always result in an attack from Thug during her efforts to swallow them?
He is not named Thug for gentle nature
Yes, surely it would help if I was able to give Thug big fish and Jello small fish. It's not always easy
I love you for your use of idioms, figures of speech, allegories, hyperboles, imaginative, rich, descriptive and juicy language molly coddle, and it's an actual word in the dictionary, haha... live and learn ESL - English as a second language.
As you well know for most fish changing anything in a tank prior to feeding dampens or eliminates appetite. It'd be much easier to separate the two into two separate 240s.
Unfortunately, I often find myself taking unneeded risks and throwing fish together and seeing what happens. I am reminded of this by my prettiest half rather regularly after another failure ensues. I wish I was as wise as her in retrospect, as we say in Odessa
Yes, surely it would help if I was able to give Thug big fish and Jello small fish. It's not always easy
I love you for your use of idioms, figures of speech, allegories, hyperboles, imaginative, rich, descriptive and juicy language
molly coddle, and it's an actual word in the dictionary, haha... live and learn ESL - English as a second language.As you well know for most fish changing anything in a tank prior to feeding dampens or eliminates appetite. It'd be much easier to separate the two into two separate 240s.
Unfortunately, I often find myself taking unneeded risks and throwing fish together and seeing what happens. I am reminded of this by my prettiest half rather regularly after another failure ensues. I wish I was as wise as her in retrospect, as we say in Odessa
Lol...thanks for the kind words! Quite a change from what I am typically accustomed to.
You (a gentleman I have met only indirectly on the internet): "...imaginative, rich, descriptive and juicy language..."
...contrasting to...
My wife of roughly four decades (who, much to my astonishment, considers herself to be the long-suffering half of this relationship): "What are you blathering about now?"
Incidentally, English is officially my second language as well; I spoke only Ukrainian at home until I first enrolled in school. My kindergarten teacher apparently visited my parents' home shortly after the school year began and essentially told my parents "You're in Canada now...speak English!" They, naturally, responded with their typical overreaction and switched entirely to English, causing me to largely forget my original language over the years.
I'm just hoping that my recent retirement doesn't produce the same effect a second time. I am quite fluent in profanity after a few decades on remote construction sites; it would be a shame to lose that as well...
You (a gentleman I have met only indirectly on the internet): "...imaginative, rich, descriptive and juicy language
..."...contrasting to...
My wife of roughly four decades (who, much to my astonishment, considers herself to be the long-suffering half of this relationship): "What are you blathering about now?"
Incidentally, English is officially my second language as well; I spoke only Ukrainian at home until I first enrolled in school. My kindergarten teacher apparently visited my parents' home shortly after the school year began and essentially told my parents "You're in Canada now...speak English!" They, naturally, responded with their typical overreaction and switched entirely to English, causing me to largely forget my original language over the years.
I'm just hoping that my recent retirement doesn't produce the same effect a second time. I am quite fluent in profanity after a few decades on remote construction sites; it would be a shame to lose that as well...
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