Sting ray?

[GuOD]

Hey everyone,

I am considering setting up a FW tank if I can have sting rays, but I know nothing about them and can't find information because I don't know what FW sting rays are called.

The tank I'll have is 4x2x2 and I'll use aragonite sand substrate. I'd like to be able to keep 2 rays but I don't know if 120gal is enough for 1 even.

Thanks!

[coldmachineUK]

Some of the smallest FW stingrays out there still grow to a fair size. The more common is the Potamotrygon motoro, or Motoro teacup stingray:
http://www.aquahobby.com/gallery/e_P...gon_motoro.php

You need a min. 1000G tank for these.

I've read elsewhere through some side research that there are smaller rays you can get, such as the Potamotrygon Reticulata. But the recommended tank dimensions even for these are 5' in length.
http://aquaticpredators.com/forums/i...0&#entry273951

HTH at least. Personally I'm not sure a 4x2x2 is a good idea for a FW stingray.

[coldmachineUK]

There's some useful pages of information on WWM:

http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebI...vestkindex.htm

[DepotFish]

I don't see why you couldn't have a Potamotrygon orbignyi. You might even find one at a walmart. As far as I know they only get 40cm in diameter.

[GuOD]

Thanks. I guess the tank isn't big enough then. I'll pick something else to do.

I thought there were some really small ones that could handle it.

[coldmachineUK]

I think the problem is that the diameter is only part of the story depotfish: they need space for that tail too which can be as long as the diameter total. I.e. a 14" diameter ray might have a tail of 12-14"...
On top of that there's an issue with lacking a gas bladder or something which means once they're moving they need space to move. That's from memory: you may want to check it out!
And, the smallest rays are actually: Potamotrygon hystrix, Potamotrygon scobinae, and the reticulata I already mentioned.

They aren't the easiest of fish to accommodate. I've seen some great articles on them before: people usually opt for round pond-like housing for them instead of the standard rectangular (or bowfront) tanks. That might be something you could look into?

Also, where are you from? The US? There are some state restrictions I've read about for: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Nevada, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah.

[coldmachineUK]

This is an example of a site giving out misleading information:
http://www.dcpaleo.org/Leisure/Anima...sStingray.html

There you see someone keeping a motoro - which grow in excess of 90cm with that recommended 1000G volume (and suitable tank dimensions to boot) - not only in a tank that's far too small (4x2x2) but with a gravel substrate, terracota pot decor, and a tankmate! All three of which you should avoid doing as you'll see in all the other (more authoritative) articles out there.

[locorosa]

They are not stingrays but...hillstream loaches are very sting ray-esque. I am considering one for my goldfish tank. A.k.a. Wui Fang.
They also max out at 4"...very cool fish!

[GuOD]

Thank you very much for all of the information. I've seen some small stingrays locally (in Canada) and they only cost $60. I asked and he said they will be under 2' for sure but I don't think my tank would be big enough. It could be completely empty except for ray+sand.

I already have the 4x2x2 tank so I'm just looking into options at this point.

[coldmachineUK]

Well, if you have a 4x2x2 tank and you want to dabble in FW (I'm taking it you're a salty? :P) then you could have an absolutely amazing African cichlid tank, or something of that order! You could probably even go for a dual species tank of mbuna with that size

[GuOD]

Originally Posted by coldmachineUK

Well, if you have a 4x2x2 tank and you want to dabble in FW (I'm taking it you're a salty? :P) then you could have an absolutely amazing African cichlid tank, or something of that order! You could probably even go for a dual species tank of mbuna with that size

I got the tank originally to have cichlids but decided to go salt.

I am going to be focusing majority of my attention on my reef tank so I'd prefer to just have 1-2 unique creatures in FW tank that are easy to take care of (was gonna try a community at first but decided I might like to have just 1 ray or something).

[coldmachineUK]

Well, a 4x2x2 would make a lovely home for a green spotted puffer if you were after an 'oddball' fish, but the problem is they need marine conditions later on in life too though if you're a salty already the upside is you'd know what you were doing! The downside is you sound like you wanted an FW tank

I wish I could have suggested a single mbu puffer, since its FW and fits the bill of "1-2 unique creatures", but again the tank would need to be just that teeny bit bigger (5x3x3 recommended)

Another option is a brackish environment with some monos or something and perhaps a couple of figure eight puffers? Only going on what I like here tho :P

I'm sure there's lots of other oddballs out there though that might be fitting and that other people know about: I hope they post here to help out with ideas. A tank of that size is a perfect fit for lots of fish I'm certain.

[tropicfishman]

I hear they get huge and require extremely clean water, and sometimes picky eaters. I've only seen 1 freshwater stingray at my lfs and that was a year or so ago

[hc8719]

are you sure about argonite, it will raise the pH

stingrays, even if they are only 10" in diameter, are also an extra 10" long with a tail