toubles with a GW killifish

[Morgie]

I've seen several killifish threads recently and I'd like some advice on the species from those of you that have kept them before
So I picked up a "killifish" a few days ago from petsmart. The species wasn't labeled, but I've wanted a killifish for a while, and this one just seemed to need some help. It was in a tank with a ton of huge rainbowfish so I didn't expect it to be in the best condition. Later found out it was the golden wonder killifish.
I've had it in my nano tank for a few days to get it healthier before moving it to it's permanent home and I can't get the thing to eat. It's also extremely skiddish and doesn't act like what I thought the fish was typically known for.

I was originally going to put it in my 55g but now I'm not sure.

Suggestions for what to try to feed it (I've tried frozen food, flakes, pellets, it may just need more time)
and
Opinions for which tank I should put it in would be greatly appreciated. :>
And any stories you have dealing with the fish would be nice as well.

 

[jetajockey]

Golden wonders get large, so the bigger the tank the better IMO. Some of my killies take some time to get comfortable with the tank. I get killies from the wild, so I usually give them a couple days to transition, I don't mess with their tank, try not to bug them in any way. Killies are schoolers so they do much better in a group, that may help as well. For the most part though I've not had any issues transitioning killies into tank life, just give them some time.

(ive seen the GW killies at petsmart, some of them have some serious spinal deformities, IDK what is up with that)

 

[Morgie]

Thanks :>
I'm just a little hesitant to put it in my 55 because of the temperament I've seen from it so far. All of my fish in there are very aggressive eaters and I'm not sure if the killie could hold it's own. I'll definitely look into getting it a school, that would probably help.
A lot of fish at petsmart lately have had spinal deformities, not just the killies. :/ Mine doesn't appear to have anything major, but it could appear over time.

 

[Morgie]

Well that did not work.
I transferred it to the 55g. All was well for about five minutes and then it was eaten. Bad judgment on my part.

 

[jetajockey]

that sucks! what ate him? The ones I see in PS are already fairly big, 2-3" +, but I think it's because no one buys them.

 

[Morgie]

my green sunfish. The killifish was mayyybe 2"
I wasn't expecting it, since I also have a school of Odessa barbs in there with him and he never bothers them. But the killie looked more like the food it would eat in the wild I guess. My sunfish is WC, but I caught it when it was maybe 2-3" and I've never fed it live food, but it went after it immediately and ate it before I could remove the killie.

 

[jetajockey]

I have a few different sunfish myself. I'm going to start stocking (for sale) dollars, bluespotted, and possibly a few others in the near future.

I've caught a lot of sunfish and killies in the same area so it probably threw him back to the days when he used to eat them.

 

[absolutangel04]

Sad day. I am sorry about that.

 

[Tigroscr]

Sorry to hear about your fish . Do you ever feed your fish live food? If you do that could be why he was eaten.

 

[Morgie]

I never feed live fish, occasionally some insects or worms but that's it.
The killie was eaten because my sunfish is a fat.
Also dollar sunfish are probably my favorite, the green variety is just the most common around here, especially in my grandparent's ponds. He's a handsome and intelligent fish most of the time

 

[Tigroscr]

I love sunfish! They are so beautiful! But where I live I've never seen any at lfs. You say yours was wild caught by you, how did you catch him?

 

[Morgie]

Yeah, you typically won't see native fish at an LFS. My grandparents have multiple ponds on their property with native fish, and I borrowed one of my grandpa's "redneck fish traps" AKA a minnow trap:

I tied it to the pier and threw some dog food and bologna in the trap and caught several.
You can also make a similar trap with a two liter bottle...
and I've also caught wilds with buckets and nets as well.. as well as hook and line. :T

 

[jetajockey]

I use a cast net and a 'perfect dipnet' Jonah's Aquarium... The Perfect Dip Net , which is pretty much indestructible, but even the cheap dipnets can work, just break easily.

I'm going to try those fish traps soon, believe it or not, I've never tried them! I bet they work great for small sunfish and shiners.

 

[Morgie]

they work crazy well for sunfish at about a 2-3" size, or any fish about that size.
You do have to monitor it though, the fish eventually figure out how to get out of them as I've learned..

 

[Tigroscr]

So is a sunfish a type of perch? At least I think that's what we call them here in Kansas.

 

[Tigroscr]

I'm sorry I don't meant to mess up your thread it's just I have wanted to get a sunfish for a long time. Just have never known how, since they're not at any lfs around here. Maybe I should start a new thread. "where can I find a sunfish in Wichita KS" lol!

 

[jetajockey]

Sunfish are sunfish. I like to think of them as north american version of cichlids :]

I don't know what's local to your area but I'm sure theres some different species. The key is finding out what will work out with your tank, many get VERY large and require huge tanks.

 

[Morgie]

No problem! It's not really messing up my thread since my sunfish caused some problems.
In NC/the south we call sunfish Bream. It was only recently that I discovered this is a misnomer.
Here's a good site with sunfish info: All about Freshwater Sunfish
If you have any other questions about them size/temperament wise feel free to ask. :>