Invertebrates for the Loach Tank?

[andyroo]

Sask is loaded with reeeeally cool little fish. Darters and shiners and stuff, many of which are very similar to loaches. More temp-tolerant then you'd expect, so long as you keep the flow high.
The south (draining into the Sask) has quite different stuff to the north (middle), which is different again from the far north.
I forget the fish names right now.....
Get your butterfly dip-net and get out there !!!!

NB: it's sometimes illegal to transport living native species. Not sure about keeping them, but it's probably about the same. Ring Mr. Lightle at DFO Prince Albert, ask him the law re: this sort of thing and say hello. Ask him if he gets the job announcements i send him when he complains about the weather :)
A

[Batch]

Hello...

I was wondering if any of you keep invertebrates in your Loach tanks and if so, which ones?

I keep amanos, and red cherry shrimp with my 9 (4-6") yo-yos, and tiger barbs. The red cherry shrimp are very easy to keep, and once a colony gets established you'll have a LOT of them. I'm sure the loaches and barbs eat some of them, but if you give them a lot of plants to hide/breed in you should be okay. If you decide to go that route, a good place to get some at a good price is http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/ (you need to register to get to the swap and shop area)... mostly US people posting, but there is a canada section.

Cheers,
Batch

[Matthew]

Good afternoon,
I just thought I had better point out to soul-hugger that collecting native fish species for aquarium use is illegal in Saskatchewan. You can sometimes get a collection permit from your local Sask. Environment fisheries biologist. I work for Sask. Environment in the summers and as such have a fairly good grasp of the regulations. This law mostly exists to control the transportation of fish so usually if you explain to the biologist that you will not be moving these fish after they are in the tank it will be ok. I would also like to point out that any fish you harvest MUST NOT be placed back into the wild as they could have come in contact with diseases, parasites, etc. that our native fish have no immunity against.
As far as keeping native fish from northern streams, it can be difficult. Even at room temperature water is often to warm for these fish to be comfortable (depending on the species). Some of these streams do get quite warm in the summer however only for a few hours around midday, after which they cool off.
I have kept several native species in the past so if you would like more info let me know! It is best I think to chose fish like darters, shiners, chubs, that are more generalist species. Darters like flow and are very interesting little fish! Okay I think I have said enough, sorry for the super long post haha.

Matthew

P.S. This regulation does not apply to invertebrates or plants unless they are threatened in some way. For example you can collect all the cray fish want to use a fishing bait.

[soul-hugger]

Hi, andyroo..,

Did you visit or live in Saskatchewan at some point? It is certainly a long way from Jamaica! You seem to know more about its wildlife than I do, and I live here, though I am originally from BC. I moved here a few years ago after living in The Kootenays all my life. I lived in two different towns a mere three-hour drive apart and it was almost like living in a different world. The climates, plant and animal life were vastly different. I'm sure Saskatchewan is no different; the forested terrain around Prince Albert is completely unlike the flat prairie here. Us Canadians often forget how big Canada really is compared to most countries. And how diverse it is too.., having everything from frozen tundra to temperate rainforests.

In studying fish it has been interesting to learn that the cold is no deterrent to many species, so it doesn't necessarily urprise me that there would be some interesting fish around here. In keeping them I ould certainly want to find out if I could create appropriate conditions for them at home. If I ever do decide to go this route I will certainly say hello to your friend. I'm not surpried he complains about the weather. I saw a sign in one of my old classrooms and it said: The Four Seasons of Saskatchewan: Almost Winter, Winter, Still Winter, and Road Construction.

Hi, Batch..,

Thanks for the link. I am already a member on that site, and it's great. Many people there do keep invertebrates, and that is part of the reason I wanted to inquire about them. Shrimp almost seem to be synonymous with the planted tank.

Hi, Matthew..,

Thanks for the timely and well-delivered information. The collection of native fish species is something I would not take lightly. I had already assumed there would be some regulations as to the collection of wildlife, and would not have gone ahead without knowing for sure. It is thoughtless actions like this that give aquarists a bad name. I would want no part of that, or the disastrous natural consequences it could bring. I had also thought of the issue of re-release, and decided on my own that it would be a bad idea one way or another. It makes sense about diseases and parasites being the reason for this, which helped me come to an important conclusion: It would require a lot of study. I would want to capture only those fish that could be kept long-term without any forseeable issues in a biotope system suitable to them. I would certainly be interested in discussing this further with you and learning about your experiences. At this point it is something I am curious to learn more about but not quite ready to do. Since they are native species I could also just learn about their lives and how to appreciate them in Nature, and perhaps find that equally satisfying. I seem to be one of those people who is interested in almost everything and have trouble narrowing things down and focussing on one project or interest at a time!
Don't worry about a long post, I like to read as much as I like to write.

Thank-you all!
soul-hugger

[andyroo]

I grew up in Penticton (BC) and shocked fish (biodiv. surveys) around N.Sask for one of the logging companies, then for DFO after Uni.
Listen to Matthew re: the temperatures etc... He's right- my observations of temperature were pretty short-term.