staxx, come on now i don't want to start anything now but seriously there are always 2 kinds of people on these forums people like you who post on this top pic too belittle people and change people's words and people like nmonnks that want to help and find solutions to peoples problem's. did i ever say that i thought that nmonks does not know what he is talking about NO! I did not i simply said what i felt would be best and am open to constructive criticism which u gave and thank you for that but please don't change my wording i thank and admire nmonks for his vast knowledge on the subject!
Urgent Help Please Mudskipper
- Thread starter josh63762
- Start date
N0body Of The Goat
Oddball and African riverine fish keeper
Josh, have you bought a tub of marine salt yet? I speak from bitter experience that is is very important as to what sort of salt you are adding...
I was using coarse sea salt with my group of Persian Killifish (Aphanius mento "Zengen"), dosed to 3g/l, but I then did a ~75% water removal before realising we had run out of sea salt and only had reduced sodium salt in the house in the evening. The poor fish were in 15l of water and I decided to gamble on adding the reduced sodium salt to the new water (as I had already used it with a ~20% water change in the past with no noticeable issues), with intentions of buying coase sea salt the following day to do another big water change. I added the new water, the fish were fine for the rest of the evening, but I woke to half the group dead and the other half on death's door. By the time I arrived home after work some five hours later with the new tub of seas salt, the whole group was dead
The salt will need to be completely dissolved in some water before adding to the tank and my hunch (and I must stress it is only a hunch), is that you will need to gradually add this salty water using an airline drip method or a half cup every 10-15 minutes. I'm hoping Neale might pop his head back in here ove rth ewekend and clarify how you should go about getting these mudskippers upto the correctly salinity.
I was using coarse sea salt with my group of Persian Killifish (Aphanius mento "Zengen"), dosed to 3g/l, but I then did a ~75% water removal before realising we had run out of sea salt and only had reduced sodium salt in the house in the evening. The poor fish were in 15l of water and I decided to gamble on adding the reduced sodium salt to the new water (as I had already used it with a ~20% water change in the past with no noticeable issues), with intentions of buying coase sea salt the following day to do another big water change. I added the new water, the fish were fine for the rest of the evening, but I woke to half the group dead and the other half on death's door. By the time I arrived home after work some five hours later with the new tub of seas salt, the whole group was dead
The salt will need to be completely dissolved in some water before adding to the tank and my hunch (and I must stress it is only a hunch), is that you will need to gradually add this salty water using an airline drip method or a half cup every 10-15 minutes. I'm hoping Neale might pop his head back in here ove rth ewekend and clarify how you should go about getting these mudskippers upto the correctly salinity.
thanks so much for the reply i too wait for nmonks advice on the issue. very useful info thanks at the moment i have simply removed about 80% of the water and replaced it with freshwater (just for now seems they like it better and they seemed to have regained there colour in half. an hour yay
yay
nmonks
A stroke of the brush does not guarantee art from
No! This isn't logical at all. It's kind of like saying that someone who's malnourished doesn't need to be given a better diet because offering better food would be a shock! Your mudskippers MUST get into brackish water as soon as is practical. Maybe not today, but you absolutely must source some marine aquarium salt mix that'll get to your home within the next few days. Try shopping online if your local retailers are too expensive, but to be honest, a tub of "generic" marine aquarium salt from a big box pet shop isn't going to cost that much, and it'll last for months.
Because mudskippers spend 90% of the time out of the water, you don't need to slowly adjust the salinity. In fact they're adapted to be able to jump from freshwater into marine and back again! It's all the same to them. What they can't do is live in freshwater indefinitely. It's been tried again and again, by scientists as well as hobbyists, and it just doesn't work. Periodically they need to bathe in brackish or salt water for a while, presumably to top up or reset the salt levels in their body somehow.
You don't need a high salinity for success, but you do need some. SG 1.005 is adequate and economical for the hardy species commonly traded. A 10-gallon (~37-litre) box of Instant Ocean salt costs around $11 and should make around 5 times as much SG 1.005 brackish water as full strength seawater, i.e., about 185 litres. You have a 60-litre tank which, let's say, is only one-third filled with water, so contains about 20 litres of water. By my reckoning, you're going to be able to do at least 9 complete water changes from than $11 box of salt. In practise you would only change about half that water each week or two, and you could buy a generic brand of salt for a bit less. So really, we're talking a couple of bucks a month. It eludes me why we're having this discussion, when the inevitable cost of medication -- and the fact the fish will die anyway -- throws out the window any savings you're going to make by not using marine aquarium salt mix.
Cheers, Neale
Because mudskippers spend 90% of the time out of the water, you don't need to slowly adjust the salinity. In fact they're adapted to be able to jump from freshwater into marine and back again! It's all the same to them. What they can't do is live in freshwater indefinitely. It's been tried again and again, by scientists as well as hobbyists, and it just doesn't work. Periodically they need to bathe in brackish or salt water for a while, presumably to top up or reset the salt levels in their body somehow.
You don't need a high salinity for success, but you do need some. SG 1.005 is adequate and economical for the hardy species commonly traded. A 10-gallon (~37-litre) box of Instant Ocean salt costs around $11 and should make around 5 times as much SG 1.005 brackish water as full strength seawater, i.e., about 185 litres. You have a 60-litre tank which, let's say, is only one-third filled with water, so contains about 20 litres of water. By my reckoning, you're going to be able to do at least 9 complete water changes from than $11 box of salt. In practise you would only change about half that water each week or two, and you could buy a generic brand of salt for a bit less. So really, we're talking a couple of bucks a month. It eludes me why we're having this discussion, when the inevitable cost of medication -- and the fact the fish will die anyway -- throws out the window any savings you're going to make by not using marine aquarium salt mix.
Cheers, Neale
Hay nmonks thanks for the reply and I'm working today but think I will send someone to get some aquarium salt for me. Unfortunately I have looked all over for a salinity tester and I only found 2 at one shop that cost $350 and $400. So will be in touch once I have it thanks.
nmonks
A stroke of the brush does not guarantee art from
I have no idea why a "salinity measurer" is costing you hundreds of dollars. A floating glass hydrometer on eBay costs the princely sum of $2.90, including free shipping.
Going pale is not a good thing with mudskippers. Sure they're active on land, that's not the problem. In fact they could be active because they're looking for somewhere with salty water where they can bathe! Or, if they're two males, they're getting ready to kill each other. Look out for vigorous displays (especially with the dorsal fins) and jumps.
"Coarse salt" is cooking salt. It will be iodised and unsuitable for aquaria. You are looking for marine aquarium salt mix. Specifically ask for something you'd use in a marine aquarium. Don't faff about saying you have a mudskipper or a brackish water aquarium -- many retailers won't understand and instead reach out for the first box of aquarium salt or tonic salt they can find. It's marine aquarium salt you want. Reef Crystals, Instant Ocean, Petco Premium Marine Salt Mix… whatever!
To be honest, I'm getting a bit bored with this thread. You seem dead set on keeping these fish badly, and if that's what you want to do, then there's nothing I can do to stop you killing these fish -- and you will. Please, understand you need to invest a little time and money here, firstly understanding their needs, and secondly buying a hydrometer and a box of marine aquarium salt. Neither needs to be bought right this very second, so if you can get them online and have them delivered in the next couple days, that's fine.
Cheers, Neale
Going pale is not a good thing with mudskippers. Sure they're active on land, that's not the problem. In fact they could be active because they're looking for somewhere with salty water where they can bathe! Or, if they're two males, they're getting ready to kill each other. Look out for vigorous displays (especially with the dorsal fins) and jumps.
"Coarse salt" is cooking salt. It will be iodised and unsuitable for aquaria. You are looking for marine aquarium salt mix. Specifically ask for something you'd use in a marine aquarium. Don't faff about saying you have a mudskipper or a brackish water aquarium -- many retailers won't understand and instead reach out for the first box of aquarium salt or tonic salt they can find. It's marine aquarium salt you want. Reef Crystals, Instant Ocean, Petco Premium Marine Salt Mix… whatever!
To be honest, I'm getting a bit bored with this thread. You seem dead set on keeping these fish badly, and if that's what you want to do, then there's nothing I can do to stop you killing these fish -- and you will. Please, understand you need to invest a little time and money here, firstly understanding their needs, and secondly buying a hydrometer and a box of marine aquarium salt. Neither needs to be bought right this very second, so if you can get them online and have them delivered in the next couple days, that's fine.
Cheers, Neale
nmonks
A stroke of the brush does not guarantee art from
What's iron got to do with it? In any event, if it isn't iodised, that's only one thing less to worry about. Marine aquarium salt IS NOT sodium chloride; it contains lots of other chemicals, including -- crucially -- ones that buffer the pH and raise the carbonate hardness. It doesn't matter if this salt is sold in a pet shop that sells live fish or live dinosaurs -- what matters is CAN THIS SALT BE USED IN A REEF TANK. If the answer is no, it's the wrong stuff. Adequate, possibly, for the very short term (a few days or couple of weeks) but not a solution.
I simply don't believe that. Hydrometers are routinely used for all sorts of things, including home brewing. So long as it runs between 1.000 and 1.030 at 25 C/77 F it's adequate for marine and brackish water fishkeeping. There are plenty of marine aquarists in South Africa and quite a few marine-specific stores, including online vendors. Get in touch with one/some of them until you can source your marine aquarium salt mix. The hydrometer is something you can wait on, if needs be, provided you measure out the weight of salt per litre of water carefully as discussed earlier.
Cheers, Neale
Thanks for the reply just got home with the salt threw a few crickets in there tank and they went crazy is does seem that one seems to be dominant will keep an eye on that think I have bought some time with this salt will keep looking will see if a shop I know of has one thing now that I have the salt can you please tell me about feeding which food is best how much and how often thanks I know I'm pestering you its just I am so interested in the topic thanks
nmonks
A stroke of the brush does not guarantee art from
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