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I was thinking about putting a decent sized school into my 55 gallon that I will be getting in a few months. What is everyone's experiences with this fish? Are they relatively peaceful? Easy to take care of? Active? Basically anything you can tell me would be super appreciated! Thanks!

I believe they are fairly active and are top dwellers. The biggest thing with them is to make sure the tank is well covered, they are great flyers. Some have been known to make it 4-5 feet from the tank!

I just got myself 7 Marbled Hatchetfish. They are currently in quarantine/ grow- out in my 10g, they are super tiny.
If you get ones that are particularly tiny, like mine are maybe 3/4 inch long from nose to end of tail tips now, I would consider keeping a close eye on them with bigger fish. I know that when I look at them I keep thinking from underneath they look like a bug on the waters surface, too tasty looking for my trust!
I have big angels and other 3 inch+ fish who Ive no doubt would consider a taste of hatchet fish.
Once my Hatchets grow more, I will add them to the 90g when they are safe. I love these little fish they are great. Mine are active at times, espescially feeding time, and are very peaceful. I only got mine maybe thursday or so, and they seem timid towards me, but are growing bolder by the day! I truly like them. They are a great fish.
I just wish the FS had had more than 7 of these little guys. They are easy to take care of, just acclimate them nicely, and keep them in clean water and good food, and they will reward you immediately! Great fish!


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A great looking surface only fish. They love red worms and frozen/freeze dried shrimp. I kept a school of 6 in a 55 gal with some juvenile severums. The hatchets liked to hang in a loose group around the current from the filter. Does anyone out there have a mature school? The profile here states 1.4 inches, but my fish encyclopedia puts their max size at 3 inches.

i've never seen a 3-inch marble or silver hatchet - even the giant hatchets i've seen are only pushing 2.5 inches... i keep marbles in a 6 footer, 20 of them now, and they are absolute faves - but yes, watch out for small ones, as other fish will definitely think they are bugs and eat them!

Jase,
How big are your marbles?
Mine are about 1/2 long, maybe 3/4 inch.
I hope they will grow!
I hope they dont stay this small
I would like to put them in my 90g eventually!


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I've seen some hatchetfishes that look a little over three inches long in commercial aquariums. I think they must have been wild caught, which may have factored into their size.

my hatchet fish flew out of the water so keep the lid on at all times

other then that they are a good easy fish to keep

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''All the clown fish and yellow tangs in the world cant save you now!''

I have 4 Marble Hatchetfish in my 55 gallon tank with Ottos, Red eye tetra, Black neon tetra, Pristella tetra, and Harlequin rasbora, Shrimp and Frogs. I've kept the tiny Silver Hatchets before and they never left the surface of my tank. I only had two though (all the lfs had) and they were just about an inch after over a year when I lost them in my heater mishap. You could hardly see the little guys.
Now I have the 4 Marbles, almost 2" and growing fast. I have lots of plants and floating plants (Hornwort and Anacharis) that tend to darken the lower parts of my tank and the Hatchets are all over the tank, not just on the surface. Also most of my other fish are small and near the same size as the Hatchets. I thought I'd have another surface dweller but with the plants and smaller fish they just school about the tank without a care in the world. I am feeding flakes, bloodworms and baby shrimp.

blondie attached this image:

So, if they are so small, do you think they would be okay with larger fish like angels, or do you think they will become just a really expensive snack? I was planning on keeping the hatchets with angels, dojo loaches, zebra loaches, and possibly rams, but not if the hatchets are just going to get eaten.
Thanks for all your replies!!

Angelfish will not eat hatchets. Firstly, hatchetfish are too fast. Secondly, they grow a little larger than the tetras angelfish will sometimes feed on, meaning the hatchets are more than a mouthful. Also, they would be impossible for an angelfish to swallow, due to their odd shape. Hatchetfish and angels will get along just fine.

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Thanks sirbooks, I didn't think they could eat the hatchets, but I wanted to double check. You never know how it's gonna go in the fishworld

Angels, in my experience, won't go after a fish unless it's as small as a Neon or a Glowlight -- but at that point, they definitely will.

As for your Hatchets, for heaven's sake make sure you keep the tank covered and keep a sharp eye on them whenever you have it uncovered -- these are the world's only true "flying" fish (as opposed to gliding ones). Those huge chests of theirs are crammed with powerful muscles that they use to flap their little pectoral fins at very high speed, generating enough aerodynamic lift to hugely prolong any leap they make out of the water to several feet in length -- and so they love to leap. (They do this both to catch flying bugs and to escape enemies.)

Just make sure you keep your lid on tight. I have a school of 6 in a 150 gal. and I have had a least 3 to jump out of the tank.

Last edited by Cichlid Keeper at 25-Oct-2004 23:02