Snakeheads and Bichirs

[Phantom Thief]

Well, i've got a new 30g tank , to house my bleheri. D'you reckon i could put a few senegalese bichirs with it?

P.T.

 

[CFC]

Maybe, maybe not. The trouble with predatory fish is that you can never really tell their temperments till its too late, a combination that works for one person sometimes doesnt work for someone else and the results are usually dead fish.

 

[Phantom Thief]

If it doesn't work out, who would most likely be the victim, the bichir or the snakehead? And if i don't choose a bichir, any other fish could go with it you reckon?

Thanks CFC

P.T.

 

[CFC]

Snakeheads are generally far more aggressive than bichirs and have teeth set into the front of the mouth which can do a lot of damage, on the other hand bichirs have armour like scales which are tough to damage and have very powerful jaws for crushing prey so could inflict a lot of damage on a soft bodied snakhead. It really is a matter of trial and error though if i had to put my money on one side i would say the snakehead would be the survivor assuming that all the fish are similar sized.

 

[Phantom Thief]

Snakeheads can do a lot of damage alright. My 2 inch bleheri bit a hole through one of the guppies i fed it. Not a pretty sight . Well, i spent ages looking for this bleheri, i'm not going to risk killing it and having to look for another one. Maybe if the lfs still has some bleheri i should get a pair or trio of them?

P.T.

 

[CFC]

The only safe way to get a pair is to buy 5 or 6 of them and let a pair form naturally, then return the spares back to the shop (or sell them) before the pair kill them all. The other way to do it which is less successful is to keep a confirmed sexed male/female with a clear divider seperating them, this allows them to get used to each other without the aggression normally seen. But this doesnt always work, i lost a male gachua the first time i tried this method as the female didnt take to him once the divider was removed.