Quickly Id This Please.....

[Ludwig Venter]

I have a discussion (topic) on a particular Stonefish (freshwater or brackish) which I need an ID on to continue my discussion.... Anyone know what this is?? (& off course a little more about it??)

 

[nmonks]

That picture is taken from the Australian Museum site and is the fish known in the hobby as the bullrout, Notesthes robusta.

http/www.austmus.gov.au/fishes/fishfacts/fish/nrobusta.htm

It's an okay aquarium fish, but big, nocturnal, predatory, and not especially active. It probably does require brackish water to do well under aquarium conditions, though wild are common enough in coastal streams a few miles from the sea.

There are several other "stonefish-like" fish in the hobby, and if anything these are notably more common. These include Neovespicula depressifrons, Allenbatrachus grunniens, Opsanus spp, and the strictly freshwater species Thalassophryne amazonica. Of all the traded species, Neovespicula depressifrons is -- in my opinion uniquely -- a good aquarium fish, being lively, small, adaptable to a range of foodstuffs, and generally peaceful towards tankmates too large to be eaten. All the other species are best avoided by all but the most expert fishkeepers able to dedicate an entire aquarium to a single species (and often a single species).

Cheers, Neale