Native to north america fish

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Fish042099

Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Joined
Dec 2, 2011
Messages
33
Anyone know an online dealer where i can get a native to north america fish? Please help need the fish by monday!
 
I found a site jonahs aquarium. Sachs aquaculture can't get the fish until after monday. Ive ended up getting a nice 1'' red breasted sunfish.
 
You can also try the NANFA forum.
 
This is an older thread but I thought I'd flesh out a good list of native fish sellers, you can be the judge of the best prices and variety:

Sachs Systems Aquaculture - Sachs Systems Aquaculture Welcomes You!

Zimmerman's Fish - Zimmerman's Fish - North American Native Fish

Jonah's Aquarium - Jonah's Aquarium... Need Fish?

BT Darters - BTDarters..Your on-line resource for American Darters and other Native Fish!

Smith Creek Fish Farm - Native Aquarium Fish Packages | Koi Pond Supplies | Fish Farms NY

I've purchased fish from Zimmerman's and Jonah's and some copepods and red worms from Sach's. I've had good experiences with those orders. No losses, delays, etc. Smith Creek Fish Farm is seasonal and they have a good selection of "big cool fish" like Largemouth Bass, Yellow Perch, and Bullheads and actually cater to the home aquarium on their website.

Hope this was helpful.
 
Yeah, natives imo are easier to keep and seem to be a lot hardier than the hardiest tropical fish I've kept. Darters, daces and sunfish are a good way to go.
 
jldwoodsman said:
Yeah, natives imo are easier to keep and seem to be a lot hardier than the hardiest tropical fish I've kept. Darters, daces and sunfish are a good way to go.

What temps do you keep them at?
 
If it helps any, I roughly estimate the temps of the water that I collect my fish in. This is florida, but the water in some areas is still pretty cold by aquarium standards. I collected fish this morning (post with pics coming soon), and the temps varied around the upper 50s to mid 60s in areas. These areas have several sunfish, shiner, killifish, darter, and various other species even in this weather. As spring comes, the temps will go up into the low 70s-ish, and in some areas up over 80+.

The other thing is certain fish are naturally found in different temps/water types so in a biotope type tank it's important to try to keep it all compatible.
 
If you are having issues spawning, I would, but otherwise I wouldn't. We don't change temps for the other fish in aquaria. Many are long-removed from their wild counterparts, but there are still several that are wild caught or farm raised in pond settings (i.e. uncontrolled temps), so I don't see why it'd be imperative unless breeding or having issues keeping the fish happy.
 
What temps do you keep them at?

Yep jetajockey pretty much covered it. If you're in the business of getting your fish to spawn then temperature definitely matters (along with a few other factors on occasion). I deal with fish from the Lake Michigan watershed and so these fish are accustomed to 70°F in the summer and around 35°F in the winter, which is what it is in streams right about now. The colder the water the more sluggish the fish tend to be in general.

So long story short, I just keep them at room temperature and they're fine. If there's a significant difference in temperature from their home waters I like to acclimate them for a few days, but I've personally seen a few species handle instant acclimation to water with >15°F difference.

I'll be looking forward to those photos jetajockey I haven't seem much of what the Florida fauna looks like.
 
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