Dissapearing Eel

[xerxeswasachump]

Ok, so i was an idiot and bought a "spiny eel" for my 55 gallon on impulse two days ago. He seemed to settle in nicely, hiding near rock overhangs and such. Unfortunately, i haven't seen him since the night i bought him. I understand theyc an burrow in the substrate, but wouldn't his head be stickign out of something? I'd rather not tear apart all of my tank just to find this stupid critter. Are there any good methods for coaxing him out of hiding? Also, i use standard hoods over my aquarium, meaning that there are some small holes in the back, i also have the tank pretty full. Could he have jumped out? I haven't found a corpse or anything and i doubt he could crawl far, although i guess my cat could have eaten it.

Also, i have another slightly unrelated question. I have a big HOB filter for my 55. Unfortunately, it seems to be pumping a little too hard and some of the fish don't seem to appreciate the current (a juvenile angelfish died overnight, my water is fine, i swear). So are there any neat, easy, do-it-yourself methods for decreasing the impact of the filtered water? I read somewhere about a guy who floated pieces of styrafoam by his filter outtake to disperse the exit flow to lower oxygen (something else i would like to do for my plants), and slow down the current.
Would modifying my exit flow mess up my biowheels?

[ALFA WOLF]

yes they do burrow and no his head will not always be up in surface mine somtimes doesnt come out until a few weeks

[always35]

I find that mine puts in an appearance when I put some bloodworm in for them!!

always

[JustOneMore20]

They usually don't stick their heads out unless they are after some food. My ex-boyfriend had one and he would disappear for weeks. Then eventually we would worry and dig around in the gravel and he would reappear. Try enticing him with food. Maybe that will make him come out of hiding.

About the filter, you could try getting a piece of foam and attaching it to the intake with a rubber band. I have never tried it, but it was mentioned to me when my HOB was bothering my betta.

[xerxeswasachump]

Originally Posted by JustOneMore20

They usually don't stick their heads out unless they are after some food. My ex-boyfriend had one and he would disappear for weeks. Then eventually we would worry and dig around in the gravel and he would reappear. Try enticing him with food. Maybe that will make him come out of hiding.

About the filter, you could try getting a piece of foam and attaching it to the intake with a rubber band. I have never tried it, but it was mentioned to me when my HOB was bothering my betta.

I found him! His tail is sticking out of the gravel. Everything else is buried. That seems like a pretty ridiculous position to chill in. Anyway, i guess he is content. I'll try sinking some bloodworms near him. Unfortunately, i think the other fish in the tank will snag them long before he has a chance. How long can these guys go without food? When should i start digging around?

[always35]

Originally Posted by xerxeswasachump

I found him! His tail is sticking out of the gravel. Everything else is buried. That seems like a pretty ridiculous position to chill in. Anyway, i guess he is content. I'll try sinking some bloodworms near him. Unfortunately, i think the other fish in the tank will snag them long before he has a chance. How long can these guys go without food? When should i start digging around?

This guy will eat when he wants to ,if you are worried you could disturb the sand and try hand feeding him

always

[JustOneMore20]

He may eat some ghost shrimp if you put them in there. That's a good snack he can catch on his own.

My ex had the eel and some type of catfish he caught (it was small at the time) and he put feeder guppies and ghost shrimp. They would slowly disappear but I'm not sure which one, or if they both ate them.

I think the eel would eat ghost shrimp.

Do you know what type of spiny eel it is? Tire track, fire, zig-zag?

[xerxeswasachump]

I'm not really sure. It is definitely not a tiretrack. It doesn't have the crazy patterns that i've seen in pictures of tiretracks and zigzags. He is really small right now, probably only 3 or 4 inches. He has a snout that he can move around which is really neat to see. Should i be worried about him jumping out?
He seems to be settling in ok and hasn't explored the upper parts of the tank at all. I fed the tank bloodworms the other day, but i think the other fish got them all. The eel almost got in a fight with one of my red claw macros but he backed off. I'll pick up some ghost shrimp. They're really expensive in my area, at least $1 a piece.

[JustOneMore20]

They are said to be escape artists, so i would probably cover up the holes in the top. He may not be exploring now, but all it would take is one time for him to end up on the floor. What color is he? Some types stay pretty small, but some get huge.

Could be a pea**** eel (i know it will get some ** in the word...weird). They are pretty common in my area. That's what my ex had.
I think they can get like 10-15 inches though...huge.

Fire eels are a darker color...with red markings. P's are tan with little circles on the tails.

I think all spiny eels like PVC pipe to hide in. I found that on a website about them. Maybe it would hide in there more instead of in the gravel. Then you could see it more!

[xerxeswasachump]

I was going to maybe get one of those clear tubes designed for elephant noses and knifefish. Do you think that would provide him with enough cover or would he not fall for it? When he isn't buried he does lurk around my lava rock. I think i am gonna dig up the gravel a bit so the rock overhangs and he can chill under it. I tried dropping a few newt pellets right in front of his face and he didn't even move. In fact, he ran away from the food. Poor guy is scared of food! Anyway, i think he is a peac_ock eel then. He is brownish with some spots on his tail. Do all of them have the tapir-like nose?

[dmarcus]

Baker lets see a signature for what youve got in the 55 gallon, did you dissassemble the 40 gallon? How are the mollies doing? B

[cucci67]

COVER THOSE HOLES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I used to have one, he jumped out the hole buy the filter, too bad I couldn't find him until he was dried up and dead .

[ALFA WOLF]

i have 2 huge holes in my tank but mine usually just chills in the gravel and comes out with alge wafers (ALWAYS) and i feed flake food and he will sorta eat what falls in between the gravel that the fish dont get.

[xerxeswasachump]

I have 2 mollies in the tank though. Those guys are like freakin' vacuums. Anyway, i also have a red claw macro in there who is a good scavenger. I think i am gonna buy 10 or 15 smallish ghost shrimp, throw them in there and see what happens.

I'll go cover my holes. I was planning on getting two 24" glass hoods. Do those things come with holes for filters or am i gonna have to cut the glass? I imagine that would be rather difficult.

[JustOneMore20]

If you buy the versa top or Perfecto glass tops, there is enough space in the back for a HOB filter and the heater cord and such. You shouldn't have to cut it. The All-Glass versa top one comes with a plastic strip that you can cut for the heater. I don't use it, but you may want to because without it there is about a 1-1.5 inch gap (and the eel may escape!).

I'm not sure about the Perfecto top...I will be getting that brand for my new 55g...but haven't got one yet. I like them better than the top/hood that comes with the tanks. It looks better IMO.

[xerxeswasachump]

I think my LFS only stocks All-Glass stuff. I'll try to get a Perfecto hood. Is the plastic part on the All-Glass ones hard to cut?

Dave, the mollies are doing great. My Rams are pairing off, they hardly fight anymore. I got a school of 10 neons and a juvie angel when i got the eel. The Angel, of course, died within 2 days. I was pissed but the crab didn't seem to mind.

Oh, and on an unrelated note. I saw xmen 3 last night, and it was very dissapointing.

Also, does it look like i could add more fish to my tank? I kind of wanted to get another school of neons, those things are just so cool looking. I was also thinking about maybe adding some rainbows. Unfortunately, they are rather expensive for a schooling fish ($8-10 a piece). I definately can't get any more bottom dwellers.

[dmarcus]

i just got a school of 5 neons and theyre awesome, dude dont tell me about the movie i still gotta see it. Post some pics once its all planted, you gotta see my new set up its awesome, i changed around the driftwood, now it spans in this arc over like half the tank and everyone loves to hang out under it. Look into some tetras for some midwater fish, or maybe killis

[xerxeswasachump]

Killies are a top water fish. I don't want to bother with top water fish since i never really look at my tank from above. Although, hmm...aiite, maybe i will get some killies. I was thinking about getting a firemouth cichlid too, they are mad cool. I think he might go after my macro though. Also, i am gonna be getting 20 ghost shrimp as food for my eel and i don't want some other fish eating them.
I was looking into glo-light tetras, they seem pretty cool. I'm hesitant to have 2 schools of different tetras though. I think i'm just gonna hold out for rainbows.

[shev]

Glad to hear you found the fish, keep in mind they are nocturnal with good eye sight. If you want to watch the fish turn off the light and put food in the tank, they have a very keen sense of smell. Spiny eels are not farm bred, they are taken directly from the wild, so if its still small its probably not accustomed to prepared foods, or even frozen ones, newt pellets and other similar foods arent going to be accepted.

How long can these guys go without food?

They can last a very long time without food. This doesnt mean you can test their limits. Diced earthworms may be your best bet as they will be easily smelled.

I'm not really sure. It is definitely not a tiretrack. It doesn't have the crazy patterns that i've seen in pictures of tiretracks and zigzags. He is really small right now, probably only 3 or 4 inches. He has a snout that he can move around which is really neat to see. Should i be worried about him jumping out?
He seems to be settling in ok and hasn't explored the upper parts of the tank at all. I fed the tank bloodworms the other day, but i think the other fish got them all. The eel almost got in a fight with one of my red claw macros but he backed off. I'll pick up some ghost shrimp. They're really expensive in my area, at least $1 a piece.

"Spiny eels" refer to a whole family of fish. Tire tracks are not zig zag eels. Dont use scientific names when looking up spiny eels, or you will be very confused. Finding out what kind of spiny eel it is is very important since there are very large differences between the species. Although it sounds like its probably a pea****, the patterns in each species can vary quite a bit. A pea****, or striped pea**** wont eat your shrimp or other fish. A tire track or fire eel will. They are escape artists. Make sure the eel is getting food, putting it in at night will help. and if you must, a tube. I use a tube to feed my pea****. Theyre smart fish and will quickly realize the tube means food, so its easy to ween them from live or chopped to easier to feed foods.

Could you take a picture of it?


As they grow bigger, they'll become bolder, and will adapt to your feeding schedule, so you can see them during the day.


I would be worried about the red clawed shrimp, they may get eaten if its not a pea****. but more likely, they'll kill your other fish. Neons are small and would probably first to go.

[xerxeswasachump]

He seems to be doing a lot better now. I put in a half a coconut and he chills in it now. It is cool seeimg him stick his head out of the hole in the top. I tried feeding him tonight with the lights off but all he did was sniff it and nibble. Then all of the other fish showed up and ate it all. Those mollies are pigs.

I am down to 7 neons now and i haven't spotted any corpses. I think the eel is getting them. I also bought him 15 ghost shrimp to see if he would be interested. Every morning i see a new part of a shrimp corpse lying around being nibbled on by the other shrimp. If he is eating them, he really likes the heads and doesn't care much about the rest.

The eel has been getting pretty brave. I was redecorating a bit, trying to put a piece of soaked wood in the tank near his hideout. He came out of the top hole and sniffed my hand and the piece of wood. He doesn't seem to be afraid of anything.

I tried feeding him shrimp pellets, frozen blood worms, and newt pellets. So far the only thing he has even nibbled on have been the newt pellets. I don't really know what to do. I don't trust live food. My last experience with black worms killed off all of my female bettas. I guess i could culture the food myself. Maybe breed cherry shrimp or my own black worms or something.

How hard is it to breed black worms if i get a portion from my LFS? Would they still be dangerous after a few generations? Are brine shrimp easier to do? I figured dealing with the salt would be a pain. I think i am gonna invest in a "Tank Baster," I'm pretty sure my mom would be pissed if i used her turkey baster.