The Frogfish Files

[smoney]

Texsun- sorry to here about the passing of the previous angler, the temperatures in these past few weeks has got way to high and many people are loosing their fish to the heat.

That little angler is cute, do you think I could get two anglers that are that small in a nano cube? I dont think they would bother eachother?

 

[Texsun]

Thanks, smoney. Yeah, I was gone that weekend and really couldn't do anything about it.

I replied to your other post on the SoCal board. As I mentioned, I'd say go with one for now.

 

[uberfugu]

Cute little fellow Texsun. How's the Histiophryne doing?

 

[Texsun]

Uber, it's doing well. Eating off a stick. Still in a holding tank until I can figure out a nice setup to do it justice.

Obviously, a cryptic species but has yours become more active over time? And how did you pair yours up? I'm assuming just luck of the draw.

 

[uberfugu]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7817828#post7817828 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Texsun

Obviously, a cryptic species but has yours become more active over time? And how did you pair yours up? I'm assuming just luck of the draw.

I sent a few to Dr. Pietsch for dissection/examination. He confirmed Histiophryne cryptacanthus. I've been collecting this species for a few years, both the geometric and the more scabarous form. Normally try to keep them 3 to 4 to a tank; let them pair up on their own.

They are not active at all. They tend to hide under liverock. Not great candidates for a show tank like an A. maculatus or A. striatus.

I find them highly susceptable to protozoan/dinoflagelate infestations (cryptocaryon, amyloodinium).

Really interesting frogfishes.

 

[Kinetic]

uberfugu, when you say you "collect" them, you mean you go diving for them, or you look for them at LFS's / wholesalers etc?

 

[Texsun]

Interesting that they can be kept in groups. Might have to track down a couple of more and let nature take its course.

 

[uberfugu]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7820206#post7820206 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Kinetic
uberfugu, when you say you "collect" them, you mean you go diving for them, or you look for them at LFS's / wholesalers etc?

Nah, I went diving in Okinawa a few years ago, trying to find A. maculatus, didn't see any.

I get frogfishes the hard way ... I buy them. I've been in the industry for a while and have made some contacts.

I have LFSs, wholesalers, and online/mail-order vendors looking for me. Thing is, if they order them for you, you're kinda obligated to buy them whether you want them or not; it sucks when customers order oddballs then decide not to take them. It's not fair to saddle your store with a slow-to-sell fish. But that means you end up with some non-descript (I refuse to call them ugly ) frogfishes.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7820210#post7820210 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Texsun
Interesting that they can be kept in groups. Might have to track down a couple of more and let nature take its course.

So the thing to remember is that they can turn canniballistic at any time.

My male Lophiocharon had his mate's tail in his mouth, jaws clamped tight. This was after a spawn. Dr. Pietsch documents A. striatus eating or harrassing it's mate resulting in the death. Mr. Ugly had his Dorehensis female mortally wound her mate, after enduring him for several spawns. They are somewhat unpredictable.

I keep tanks of multiple froggies but don't generally recommend it. Certainly not for new frogfish keepers. For those with more experience, I just recommend keeping an eye on the tank ... always.

And Tex ...

A tank with a few Histiophryne anglers is a wonderful thing!

 

[Texsun]

Meet Moe, Larry and Curly; a trio of tuberosus I picked up today for only $12 each.

Not the best pic as they were squirming, anxious to get to their new home...

 

[Mr. Ugly]

Very nice! How did they look when you picked them up? Able to steady themselves in the tank? Slow regular breathing?

Every one that I've seen listing or breathing slightly fast, never made it past 2 weeks.

 

[Texsun]

Thanks, Ugly. They looked fine at the LFS stacked one on top of another. Now that they're in the tank, they've spread out and appear to be ok.

A couple more pics of the collection...

 

[Mr. Ugly]

Nice!

 

[Fade]

Here is mine he lives in my 75 fuge.

 

[uberfugu]

great pics guys!

A while ago, I posted that my Lophiocharon was carrying eggs.
They matured but I just let them be, the predators in the system did them in.
I could kick myself but I honestly didn't have the time to deal with roti cultures et al.
I figured that if they did it once... they'll do it again .

I also had a Histiophryne egg release but the egg cluster was unattended;
in the wild, the male carries the clutch in his curled caudal fin.
Those eggs were infertile and never developed.

Now I have a Histiophryne male carrying eggs. I'll do my best to get him into a tank to himself to see if I can raise the young.
Of course, as Murphy's law might have it, we're moving in a month so it'll be a pain.

 

[Reefcherie]

That's awesome uberfugu! Best of luck!

fade32 - those are the longest "toes" I've seen on an angler!

Texsun - congrats on the new "kids!" I hope you get a mated pair out of the group and that everyone gets along w/o eating anyone else!

 

[Texsun]

Uber, very cool! Another Histiophryne turned up locally, but the looks like he's keeping him/her this time unless I can convince him otherwise...

Reefcherie, thanks. It's hard to keep track of the tubes despite only being in a 12g with some rubble rock. They are so darn small and blend in + I haven't kept up on my calc algae cleaning lately.

 

[uberfugu]

Well, my last tuberosus from the last batch died. The first three during an atrocious heatwave that the SF/Oakland Bay Area suffered. I thought that the last one would pull through but, as the case in all of the Antennatus I have acquired, it died prematurely.

I am going to have to reassess whether they are a creature that should be removed from its home in the sea, being so difficult to keep alive in captivity.

On a more positive note, I just saw a beautiful, 10" commerson that is pink with orange highlights. Wish I had room for him. My little pink commerson is only 4" and would certainly become a snack. No pics of the big guy but here's one of the little one:

 

[Texsun]

I feel your pain. I lost 2 out of the 3 tuberosus over the weekend. One still going strong so I'll keep my fingers crossed. Saw another one at an LFS this afternoon and was very tempted but decided not to given recent events and given your decision it's sounds like a wise decision.

 

[uberfugu]

Well, day 12 on the Histiophryne eggs. The male has abandoned the mass.

I'm not sure if the eggs were properly fertilized; some are falling apart. I'm not finding any information about timeframe from laying to hatching. My Lophiocharon took about three weeks. Genera Antennarius is much shorter.

I'm about to place the male back into general population.

Male:

Holding the egg mass:

Now the egg mass is without parental care:

 

[NanoLurker]

i'm still doing a little research but now that i know where the frogfish lovers hang out, i thought i'd ask for your input/suggestions. i'll be picking up Scott Michael's Reef Fishes Vol 1 from my club tomorrow night and will try and track down Frogfishes of the World, it looks like it's available to check out at UCLA, USC, and UCI.

i'm going to approach this as i would a new seahorse so let me know if i'm way off base when it comes to frogfish. i normally QT 8 weeks in hypo (1.011 measured with refractometer). during that time i deworm with both fenbendazole and praziquantel. do you guys normally prophalytically deworm?

i've battled uronema, systemic bacterial infections, external gas bubble disease, colonial ciliate infestations, gastrorichs, etc. so my medicine chest is quite extensive. i currently have a number of meds on hand: florfenicol, bactrim, gentamicin, neomycin, nitrofurazone, metronidazole, furan2, furanase, tmp sulfa, triple sulfa, methylene blue, formalin, wound control....i think i better stop there....would you believe me if i said i had more? anyhow, are there any specific bacterial infections that frogfish are known for, i.e. a particular strain of vibrio, etc. or is this a new, uncharted area for this fish? i have been known to take fish to the vet to have culture and sensitivity tests performed on bacterial infections so i would definately share any information with you if that came up. i'm also a big fan of having necroscopies performed in the hope of furthering our knowledge. are there any meds to definately stay away from? i'm interested in the smaller species, i haven't read anything that would lead me to believe that the smaller species have the bacteria on their esca (?) responsible for bioluminescence.

i prefer to feed live food and receive live feeder shrimp from george on a routine basis. i sometimes order aquacultured mysid from reed mariculture. i'll occasionally feed FW ghostshrimp. i recently took in a 1.5 year old CB seahorse who's tankmates all had fatty liver disease so i'm pretty concerned about what i feed my fish and try to give them as much variety as possible. any other suggestions on food?

is there a species you would recommend as a "beginner" frogfish? as i mentioned, i'm interested in the smaller species, probably don't want to go more than 8". i know with seahorses, temperature is important - are frogfish species categorized in a similiar manner, i.e. tropical, subtropical or temperate.

i'm rambling so let me know what you think, i prefer to know as much as possible before purchasing so if i'm completely off on anything let me know.

thanks!