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ok i have an empty 20g right now and i want to make it brackish but i only want to use fish that will one day become saltwater so later i can move them all into my 150 saltwater tank...

now here is what im thinking
monos, scats and maybe one or two green spoted puffers
now i have read up on the three fish above and i know for sure that they can convert

can black sailfin mollies convert to salt water?

now here is my question... all of them are babys right now at the lfs.. how many could i fit in a 20g

i want to keep adding salt monthly till its more brackish then it is.. and then i will move all the fish to a 50g where there i will add salt monthly again till they are completly saltwater when i will move them to my 150

will this work

Last edited by Weslet at 27-May-2005 09:43

anyone?

i am bringing them home from work today
the sizes of them right now are

scats 1.5"
monos 1.25"
green spotted puffer 1"

im thinking

2 gsp 2"
3 scats 4.5"
3 monos 3.75"

thats 10.25" total.. so following the inch per gallon rule im good... that also gives them room to grow.. when their size doubles i will move them to the 50 and then once it doubles again they will be moved into the 150 with all the other salt fish

(i am aware that i can buy these already adapted to salt.. but i want them young and i just wanna try something different)

I just thought I'd let you know someone was reading !!!

I don't know the answer but I love the puffers :-) & would love to do something similar myself one day...I'll keep reading any answers that are posted.

Hope you do get an answer...

Even now, they are too large for a 20 gallon (the inch per gallon rule, which is a dumb rule and is used only for estimating biological filtration). Seriously, what were you thinking? If they are to reach full length, which they won't if they spend even a minimal amount of time in such a small tank, they will need well beyond a 50 gallon tank---probably 100+, to themselves (scats don't like full salt, and, IME, neither do GSPs, though others would disagree with this claim). Don't purchase ANY of them. Instead, buy two figure 8 puffers.



Last edited by Cup_of_Lifenoodles at 27-May-2005 10:39

umm.. first off if you do research on the net every single website says full grown gsp and scats need full salt water to live

second they wont reach full grown size as i said... once they reach double what they are now the will be moved to a 50 gallon.. actually its a 55 but yea

then once they reach double that they will be added to my 150 salt to where they can grow their full size

meaning the will all be under three inches when moved to the 50


and if you didnt know i was moving them then why did you suggest two figure eights? at full grown size they would need atleast 45g

As I stated, despite the information given by several websites, IME, they are purely brackish water fish. Having conferred with my wholesaler/collector over it, it has been stated that full grown GSPs are NEVER found in full marine conditions, rather, they frequent the muddy banks of estuarine streams. Also, most websites actually list GSPs as brackish, not SW fish. Better double check that. Scatophagus argus, as an adult, is not commonly encountered in SW, either. They are he epitome of "mangrove swamp" dwellers in that they spend their entire lives amongst their roots. While it is true that adults migrate downstream as they mature, they still stay within the confines of the estuarine mangrove "groves" (pun intended, sort of). Also, IME (yes, I have raised both species, and have experimented with them at work) both fish develop a dirty brown wash and faded colors whence moved into full saltwater.
The fish will not reach the sizes you have mentioned in the said tanks. Their growing will be stunted, even for a short period of time. It is akin to putting a 3 inch oscar in a ten gallon tank and stating that you will move it once it reaches 6 inches in length---which it will never will, due to the size of the tank.
Figure 8s hardly grow past 3 inches in length. Even the most experienced puffer fanatics (specifically pufferpunk, IIRC) keep them in 29 gallons of water. I have kept mine in a twenty tall for as long as I can remember.


Last edited by Cup_of_Lifenoodles at 27-May-2005 21:05

Although GSPs & scats can be kept in BW for life, the reason they are bumped into SW is that it is bettter to filter with a skimmer & they seem to like the conditions. My 6" GSPs have been in SW for around 2-3 years now & you should see how happy they are(huge too)! I do agree that even as juvies, I suggest 10g/GSP. I don't ever suggest keeping shy, skittish monos in with aggressive fish like puffers or scats. Also, scats are fishy garbage cans, growing quickly to the size of a dinner plate & producing as much waste as an oscar. Monos grow to 1" & are scooling fish. For a school of them, you'd need at least a 300+gal tank.

Yes, I have seen your fish, and I must say, I have NEVER seen a ceylon grow that big . Ever.

However, scats, like monos, usually only travel to full saltwater to breed. If one is to keep them in these conditions for too long, they will not remain in the best of shape (at a LFS I visit regularly, they have a several large scats in SW/BW tanks, respectively; the ones in the BW have a deep olive green sheen to them while the specimen in SW has faded, dull coloration). I have even heard of scats dying as a result of being eggbound, stimulated by high salinity water. Not to forget that there are at least two distinct completely landlocked locations in which scats exist. I can't vouch for GSPs other than that they do fine in BW for the entirety of their lives.



Last edited by Cup_of_Lifenoodles at 28-May-2005 23:58

Last edited by Cup_of_Lifenoodles at 31-May-2005 11:10