Killifish?

[jinmon]

Quick question - the LFS has a couple freshwater killifish left, very cute, don't ask me what type - I just called and I got the wrong guy. The sticker on the tank says "golden killifish" - and that's AFTER I had to ask him to go look 'cause "just killifish" wasn't cutting it with me. When I was IN the store, one of the other LFS guys got out the book and the picture and started browsing with me... but I digress.

Anyway, I'm starting up (slowly, very slowly) a 40 gallon community FW tank and I keep looking at these guys in the store... can anyone point me to a good website to learn more about these fish, or tell me your experiences with killis, or warn me away, or something?

Thanks!

 

[jbarr]

killies.com has a good forum set up, I believe.

My buddy has Golden Wonder Killies. Awesome fish, beautiful, pretty sizeable too, for a killi.

 

[Mosaic]

I wanted the Golden Wonders. They're pretty common in LFS, so chances are good that's what they are. I've heard the can get pretty aggressive though, so I passed them over.

I'd also love to have clown killies.

 

[guppy12]

Did you see them at PetSmart? I got 2 of them from petsmart. quarinteen them. They seem alright. They WILL eat anyhting that fits in their mouth... just tell that to my swordtail fry

 

[jinmon]

Nope, saw them at the local independent fish shop - and we're in California, a ways away from your PetSmart. How are yours doing? Ick?

 

[jbarr]

I havent seen ANY killie other than the Golden Wonders. It bums me right out.
Anyone know some other commonly available killies?

 

[DepotFish]

The american killifish association is the best place to get any other variety. They aren't too expensive. Its nice to be able to get a batch of eggs. You could get a little tube of them for like $10 and just hatch a few when you want them. They don't have a long lifespan at all so starting from eggs gives you the maximum time possible with the fish. Some varieties have a lifespan of 9 months. Luckily the golden wonder variety can live to 4 years.

Reasons they should be kept in a species only tank:
-many varieties thrive in cool water and die if its too warm
-many varieties are territorial and can be nippy at other fish
-most people prefer that the eggs are undisturbed and able to hatch because they don't live long at all, and a community tank can make this hard

 

[Alchemy129]

Just wanted to chime in here on my experience with a golden wonder killie i've had for over a year. By far the most aggresive fish i've owned, and i've had dwarf puffers. I still keep him becasue he's a unique and fun fish to have to look at/ watch, so i adapted a semi aggressive tank for him with tough guys as tank mates. When I first bought him he was labaled as a community fish and i dropped him into my community tank. within a few weeks i noticed that he had desimated a school of 6 white clouds down to 2 and witnessed him kill a rummy nose tetra and can cofirmed he also killed three more of those. I noticed he claimed the top of the tank as his territory. One of my most interseting fish, but definetly one thats going to control what u can/can't stock your tank with.

 

[jinmon]

Aha! A couple stores near me have some Golden Wonders and I can now confirm - those weren't what I saw! I'm pretty sure the REALLY pretty killifish I saw were Fundulopanchax Gardneri killifish - yellow with red spots and fancy tails... and if not, well, they were similar.

Evidently some killifish are annual and some live for a few years, and supposedly these are some of the latter. They're really pretty, if you see them I'd definitely ... well, I'd definitely stare at them for a while.

Thanks for your responses, guys! I'll definitely give some careful thought to their tankmates if I decide on getting some killies! Might avoid the trouble though, since this is my first tank I'm working on...

 

[LindsayB]

I got mine from PetsMart

I bought three golden killifish from PetsMart in St. Louis, MO. I love them, however, they do eat anything...including one of my african dwarf frogs. Also, it is nearly impossible to give my bottom dwellers sinking pellets...the killifish will gobble them up. They are however, very beautiful, and active!

 

[WaterPond]

I havent seen ANY killie other than the Golden Wonders. It bums me right out.
Anyone know some other commonly available killies?

Florida flagfish are killifish.

I have only seen Gold wonders and flagfish at my LFS. I have owned some other killies which i got from people in my aquarium society. Killies arent that common in stores..

 

[BillD]

The so called annual killiefish will live longer than a year in a tank. I have had Nothabranchius rachovi for 2 years. It is one of the most colourful killies, and it is unfortunate that they are rarely seen in the hobby. Aphesemion sp. are also very colorful and longer lived. As mentioned above, starting with eggs is a good way to go. Most of the small killies are easy to breed, don't require large tanks, or fancy equipment. My spawn of rachovi yielded close to 150 offspring.

 

[Gillie]

Waterpond, Florida flagfish are a Pupfish not a Killi, but are still really cool fish.

 

[BillD]

Pupfish are Killies, as is the Florida Flagfish.

 

[Gillie]

Okay, my book of native fish has Pupfish listed as Killi like fish, sorry about any confusion.

 

[BillD]

Killie is a fairly generic term that covers a lot of ground.

 

[buttercup]

they say they are 'peaceful' but just a warning from experience, they WILL eat anything that will fit in their mouth. They wont pick on other fish but i had one in a 55 gallon and he ate all the guppies... just swallowed them whole.