Arofanatics Fish Talk Forums - View Single Post

18-10-2004, 08:20 PM

Habitat

Bichirs are nocturnal by nature, they are secretive in their habits, always hiding and they would prefer subdued lighting.
So it will be a good idea to have hiding places for them in your tanks, driftwoods or rocks will do the trick. Fine sand (gravel) are recommended altho bare tanks will just as fine for them, not to forget it's easier to maintain a gravel-less tank.

Chemical/Physical

Bichirs are hardy fishes which can withstand a wide range of water conditions altho the recommended pH for them is between 7-6.5 pH.
Ideal temperature is between 23-29 degrees C.
Weekly water change of 30% is highly recommended for the best benefit of the bichirs.

Tank set-up

Undergravel filteration is not recommended for bichirs as they are higly capable of digging up the gravel & causing havoc to the UGF.

Live plants are also not recommended altho some hobbyist has successfully kept bichirs in a tank wif plants.

A practical tank size for bichirs will be 4 times the length of your bichirs & try not to overcrowd the tank wif other bottom-dwellers or much smaller tankmates.
Although bichirs are territorial fishes, they can get along rather well wif many other fishes.
What I'll suggest is not to keep tankmates which are considered bite-size to your bichirs, unless you wan them to be your bichirs' meal.

Sexing

Male bichirs have slightly larger anal fins and females have longer & slimmer ones.They can also be differentiate by the size of theri heads, males are believed to have smaller heads den the female specimens.

Breeding

Males bichirs will initiate the spawning wif the female laying a few hundred eggs near his cupped anal fin.
In tropical waters, the young will hatch in abt 4 days.A few species have been bred in captivity with young raised to maturity.

Food

Based on my experience wif bichirs so far, I have notices dat they eat almost anything.
My bichirs feed mainly on live feeders which i feel is the best in beefing them up, altho i feed them MP & pellets as well.

Disease

Altho bichirs are considered hardy fishes, they do succumb to diseases too.
One most commonly seen disease shd be the 'bichir worm' (dunno the actual name) fine hairlike growth are seen all over their bodies in severe cases. Water change & adding salt & Melafix seems to work for me, altho there are other methods which have been discussed but I've not tried them myself.

18-10-2004, 08:20 PM	#2
yvonne Guest Posts: n/a	bichirs:environmental conditions Habitat Bichirs are nocturnal by nature, they are secretive in their habits, always hiding and they would prefer subdued lighting. So it will be a good idea to have hiding places for them in your tanks, driftwoods or rocks will do the trick. Fine sand (gravel) are recommended altho bare tanks will just as fine for them, not to forget it's easier to maintain a gravel-less tank. Chemical/Physical Bichirs are hardy fishes which can withstand a wide range of water conditions altho the recommended pH for them is between 7-6.5 pH. Ideal temperature is between 23-29 degrees C. Weekly water change of 30% is highly recommended for the best benefit of the bichirs. Tank set-up Undergravel filteration is not recommended for bichirs as they are higly capable of digging up the gravel & causing havoc to the UGF. Live plants are also not recommended altho some hobbyist has successfully kept bichirs in a tank wif plants. A practical tank size for bichirs will be 4 times the length of your bichirs & try not to overcrowd the tank wif other bottom-dwellers or much smaller tankmates. Although bichirs are territorial fishes, they can get along rather well wif many other fishes. What I'll suggest is not to keep tankmates which are considered bite-size to your bichirs, unless you wan them to be your bichirs' meal. Sexing Male bichirs have slightly larger anal fins and females have longer & slimmer ones.They can also be differentiate by the size of theri heads, males are believed to have smaller heads den the female specimens. Breeding Males bichirs will initiate the spawning wif the female laying a few hundred eggs near his cupped anal fin. In tropical waters, the young will hatch in abt 4 days.A few species have been bred in captivity with young raised to maturity. Food Based on my experience wif bichirs so far, I have notices dat they eat almost anything. My bichirs feed mainly on live feeders which i feel is the best in beefing them up, altho i feed them MP & pellets as well. Disease Altho bichirs are considered hardy fishes, they do succumb to diseases too. One most commonly seen disease shd be the 'bichir worm' (dunno the actual name) fine hairlike growth are seen all over their bodies in severe cases. Water change & adding salt & Melafix seems to work for me, altho there are other methods which have been discussed but I've not tried them myself.