The Frogfish Files

Thanks for the reply. I kinda got worried after reading about overfeeding and what not.

I have another problem though. Ill be going on a vacation next month, and ill be away for 3 weeks. How can I solve this? Throw in a bunch of fish and hope he doesnt eat them all at once.

Throwing a bunch of fishes into your tank might be a stress on the biological system (if you have a smaller tank). You wouldn't want to come back to a crashed tank.

I'd also worry that the frogfish might overindulge. Although they have the capacity to eat a lot in one sitting, and, in my experience, poop out incompletely digested material... another source for nitrates et al.

Perhaps better would be to feed well right before you leave, and have a neighbor or other trustworthy person do a feeding during the middle of your leave.

Ive noticed that after a big meal, the frogfish tends to stick to one spot for a few days before becoming more active.

I've been known to stay on the couch for days after Thanksgiving.

Has anybody seen the recent BLUE Frogfish that was found?

Lophiocharon come in a variety of cool colors. The blue is stunning. Here are some more

Black one
<a href="http://s13.photobucket.com/user/uberfugu/media/Black_lophio_a06a.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a264/uberfugu/Black_lophio_a06a.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo Black_lophio_a06a.jpg"/></a>

Green one
<a href="http://s13.photobucket.com/user/uberfugu/media/lophiocharon_06g.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a264/uberfugu/lophiocharon_06g.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo lophiocharon_06g.jpg"/></a>

Green and rainbow pair
<a href="http://s13.photobucket.com/user/uberfugu/media/3_lophiocharon.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a264/uberfugu/3_lophiocharon.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 3_lophiocharon.jpg"/></a>

Red and purple
<a href="http://s13.photobucket.com/user/uberfugu/media/orange_lophio.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a264/uberfugu/orange_lophio.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo orange_lophio.jpg"/></a>
 
How does one know if your tank can successfully keep a frogfish?

I have been in the hobby for 5 years and have been looking at what kind of fish I would like for my 25gal reef cube.

Could I have a frogfish?
 
In my experience, there is not too much difference in the care and husbandry of a frogfish and any other reef fish. There are a couple of things that I try and pay attention to:

Frogfish are gluttonous and opportunistic. They will try to eat almost any cohabitant, if not now, at some time in the future. This includes other fishes, many invertebrates, and even conspecifics. So I feel, one per tank with little more than snails as tankmates.

Reef-quality water suits them. 75-78°, 1.025/35ppt, <0.03 PO4, <0.2NO3. And while they want clean water, their metabolites create excess nitrates and phosphates...this is not good for corals. Efficient nutrient removal is called for (good skimmer, bioreactor, regular water changes).

They do not seem to like super turbulent flow levels. Corals like Ecotechs...frogfish less so.

It is helpful if you can get them eating frozen food. It is cheaper and easier than live and you remove the pathogen possibilities of live food.

Buy a species suited to your tank size. 25 gal would suit Antennarius maculatus, A. pictus, A. multiocellatus, A. striatus, A. hispidus, Antennatus nummifer, A. coccineus. There are others that also max out around 4" but they will be hard to find.

Get your Frogfish from a reliable source. 14 day guarantees are nice.

Read the gazillion pages of the frogfish files, google Scott Michaels Anglin Fish and Anthony Calfo's Antennarians - Frogfish.

There is probably more but ...

Oh, and don't feed them goldfish
 
In my experience, there is not too much difference in the care and husbandry of a frogfish and any other reef fish. There are a couple of things that I try and pay attention to:

Frogfish are gluttonous and opportunistic. They will try to eat almost any cohabitant, if not now, at some time in the future. This includes other fishes, many invertebrates, and even conspecifics. So I feel, one per tank with little more than snails as tankmates.

Reef-quality water suits them. 75-78°, 1.025/35ppt, <0.03 PO4, <0.2NO3. And while they want clean water, their metabolites create excess nitrates and phosphates...this is not good for corals. Efficient nutrient removal is called for (good skimmer, bioreactor, regular water changes).

They do not seem to like super turbulent flow levels. Corals like Ecotechs...frogfish less so.

It is helpful if you can get them eating frozen food. It is cheaper and easier than live and you remove the pathogen possibilities of live food.

Buy a species suited to your tank size. 25 gal would suit Antennarius maculatus, A. pictus, A. multiocellatus, A. striatus, A. hispidus, Antennatus nummifer, A. coccineus. There are others that also max out around 4" but they will be hard to find.

Get your Frogfish from a reliable source. 14 day guarantees are nice.

Read the gazillion pages of the frogfish files, google Scott Michaels Anglin Fish and Anthony Calfo's Antennarians - Frogfish.

There is probably more but ...

Oh, and don't feed them goldfish

could you lead me to a website with information? I could not find anything on the two names you listed.

Thanks for the help!
 
thanks for sharing everyone.... i will admit that i have read through all 37 pages of this thread. lol that is a lot of info to absorb though.

i have done a bunch of research and am going to start on construction of my first frogfish tank probably this week. i am kind of leaning towards the warty, painted, or hairy frogfish. i am open to other suggestions for frogfish on the smaller end of the scale though.

i am debating between using an empty 29 cube with a 30g sump

or

getting perhaps a 40 breeder with a 30g sump. if i went with the breeder, i was thinking about possibly putting a divider and making it into 2 frogfish habitats.

thoughts between either the 29g cube or the 40 breeder for a frogfish newby?

mind sharing the setups you all are successfully keeping your frogfish in? pics even? size, sumps, skimmers, powerheads, ect..

thanks!
 
Just found this thread after looking for good information for over a week without any luck, excellent thread and very very useful. I currently run a 55 Gallon with a few Mushrooms, Zoas, and Acans. I have just bought my first Frogfish, could someone please positively I.D him for me please?

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...000.1073741827.609341605813507&type=1&theater

I plan on putting a Dwarf Fuzzy Lion in this tank with him and possibly a Fu Man Chu lion and a Snowflake Eel. Obviously this depends on the exact type I have here and whether it is at all possible. They will be shifted into at least
 
Sorry for the delay, it is partially out here, not been able to get a better one of him properly 'fishing' yet sorry. Hope this helps the I.D. He has also eaten about 5 River Shrimp today so seems to be doing well, wasted no time in hunting them down

 
Thanks, he is my first Frog but seems very active once he knew the Shrimp were in there. Just got to feed him up now and then try my hand at getting him onto frozen foods too
 
Nice fish!

Here are two young A. maculatus. Both are about 2 inches (5 cm).

<a href="http://s13.photobucket.com/user/uberfugu/media/My%20Frogfish/Pair_of_maculatus_zps7b076306.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a264/uberfugu/My%20Frogfish/Pair_of_maculatus_zps7b076306.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo Pair_of_maculatus_zps7b076306.jpg"/></a>
 
Nice fish!

Here are two young A. maculatus. Both are about 2 inches (5 cm).

<a href="http://s13.photobucket.com/user/uberfugu/media/My%20Frogfish/Pair_of_maculatus_zps7b076306.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a264/uberfugu/My%20Frogfish/Pair_of_maculatus_zps7b076306.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo Pair_of_maculatus_zps7b076306.jpg"/></a>

very niiiiiiice! i love that facial expressions.

mine has actually seems kind of friendly, and comes to the front of the cage often when i'm there. i'm really enjoying mine so far.
 
Found this at the LFS today. Nice color. Shop owner said its an Antennarius Multiocellatus. Any info on these. Do they get big? It was around 5cm.
 

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