wild pipefish experience!!!?

[RedSoxReefer]

So im from RI and went to the beach today...The tide was out and there was very little surf which is not typical for the beach that I go to. The water was crystal clear and had some eelgrass and a few clumps of seaweed here and there. As I was wading I started to sift through a few strands of eelgrass that were floating and I grabbed on to what I thought was a small brown strand but I didnt remove it from the water.... I let it go and took a closer look at it and realized that it looked like a pipefish!!! I then saw it start to swim away and followed it. I was completely shocked and basically in disbelief. I didnt think that pipefish lived in the northeast. It was roughly 6 inches long and brown. It had a head shaped similar to the dragonface pipefish. The tail narrowed very thinly and had a small, round and flat fin on the tip. I dont keep pipefish but find them facinating so this basically made my day. I was wondering if anyone knows anything about pipefish living in the northeast and if my description is any help in identifying the species or if this particular fish came up in a jet stream like some of the other tropical visitors that sometimes make it up here. Anyways, it was definitely cool and any info would be nice... Thanks, Dan

 

[fishyvet]

maybe a Northern pipefish (Syngnathus fuscus)?

 

[b0bby1]

yup thats the kind, i catch them all the time up in cape cod in estuaries. just throw a net in a little section of grass and pull up dozens. what beach were you at today? i was at watch hill over in westerly today.

 

[RedSoxReefer]

bobby, I was at East Matunuck beach in South Kingstown...close to Westerly. You know anything about them such as if they could survive in captivity? I was tempted to take it for my reef seeing that it was in open water away from any grass. I have a 46 that is pretty heavily planted with Macro and i only have a couple of neon gobies. I decided not to because I couldnt see taking it from its natural habitat. I wonder if they could survive in a tank at 78 degrees seeing they can be found throughout the east coast....

 

[MADtanks]

i would imagine they would need a little cooler water but then again how cold are the waters in the summer time up here?? low 70s?? it is very interesting i was going to try to keep one myself but decided i would rather try a tropical kind... i had multibanded pipe but he decided to go sump swimming into my return pump poor lil fella...

 

[fishyvet]

These pipes are most commonly found in waters 4-17 C (highest temp ~63 F). I'd just enjoy them in their natural habitat if I were you. There are several other species of pipes that would do well in your tank.

 

[billsreef]

They will do well in a tank kept around 70-72. I've also found that they readily take to frozen mysis. They would do well in a species tank, but not in a reef tank.

 

[RedSoxReefer]

Yeah that was an after thought for me...I couldnt take the little guy from his natural habitat even though the idea crossed my mind for a minute...

 

[Rays]

Here are a couple that my son and I caught while seining on L.I.
three weeks ago, eating frozen shrimp and mysis like crazy.
http://coralcorral.com/id22.html

 

[RedSoxReefer]

Yeah that is exactly what i saw out there...did you catch that butterfly up here too? I heard that sometimes pockets of warmer water get swept up in jetstreams and dump some pretty cool tropical fish up this way...one of my teachers said that they can be caught pretty easily due to colder temps slowing their metabolism. That angel in the 55 gal. is awesome by the way...

 

[Rays]

I heard that sometimes pockets of warmer water get swept up in jetstreams and dump some pretty cool tropical fish up this way

Yes the gulfstream from the Gulf of Mexico slides up the east coast several miles out and spins off eddies that come in pretty close, that's why L.I., R.I., and the south coast of cape cod are so much warmer.
Yes we got the butterfly the same day along with several seahorses, and gazillions of puffers that we didn't keep. Thanks, that's a goldflake angel, I've had him over four years now.