gulf pipefish care

[hotrodolds]

Syngnathus scovelli

Has anyone kept one of these guys? Do you think it would do ok in a peaceful reef tank?

 

[cox519]

there abot like taking care of a seahorse to me but they can get to the food easier never bothered any of my corals but my smaller fish would even pester the pipefish

 

[namxas]

gulf pipes would actually do better in a seagrass/lagoon-type setup. the only pipes i'd recommend for reefs are flagfins and dragon-faced. gulf pipes do better at tropical SH temps (68*F to 74*F) as "most" reef temps are warm enuff to cause bacterial problems.

that being said, gulf pipes typically eat well and take to frozen mysis fairly readily.

 

[jd474]

we have been keeping gulfs for a couple years, even raising them from larval stages that come in with ghost shrimp shipments (< 1/2" in size). they eat artemia very well at small sizes, and live brine/mysis and frozen mysis when older. we have kept them in systems at 75 and at 80 and do slightly better at cooler temps. seem pretty hardy overall

 

[Diane_B]

I kept gulf pipes mostly in macro dominated tanks, with some lower light corals. I think they would fare about as well in reef set-ups as the dragonfaced pipes. They tend to slink around the rockwork so stinging animals might eventually be a problem. Although, I never tried it so I can't say for certain.

 

[ctenophors rule]

could a group of gulf pipes be kept in a seagrass tank with seahorses? sorry to hijack the thread, just thought it was a question to a like to make a new thread for.

 

[jaidexl]

could a group of gulf pipes be kept in a seagrass tank with seahorses? sorry to hijack the thread, just thought it was a question to a like to make a new thread for.

Yes, they should seek each other out and lock tails in a symbiotic sort of hitchhiking routine.

 

[namxas]

the problem you may end up with in mixing pipes and SH is that there are no breeders of CB pipes in the US to date (unless you happen to know a hobbyist who is breeding them). if you have CB SH (strongly recommended), i'd advise against mixing WC syngnathids with them.

if both are WC, make sure you do a lengthy QT with prophylactic treatments for parasites, keep the temp in the low 70's, and stock your med chest before you see any signs of problems.