Other Turtle Discussion :: Fish with turtles

[jay2487]

I noticed a lot of people who wish to keep fish with their turtles and have had no luck. I on the other hand have had great luck with many fish, I have also had plenty of $10 turtle victims as well. The set up I have now has over 50 fish of varying species and I have had no deaths or "murders" other than feeders in quite a while. I made a video of the fish that have survived well so others will have an idea of what to purchase and to show that I'm not BSing, these fish dodge 5 different turtles daily and manage to survive.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7wwWhnYs9s&feature=youtube_gdata

[Sir Max]

Could you name some of the species?

if you know any haha

[jay2487]

Melanochromis Auratis, Jewels, socolofi, bluegill, senegal bichirs, common plecos
some tiger striped cichlids I cant identify, electric orange ones I cant identify, an albino who hangs with the tiger striped ones, and a few swordtails and mollies who haven't been eaten yet but will eventually as the cichlids weaken them and the turtles get them one by one.

FYI Senegal Bichirs are NOT fast, they are good hiders but they will get bit, but they have an armor comparable to the common plecos and always manage to squirm out of the turtles jaws with no injuries. Amazes me

[Sir Max]

bluegills..how much did you pay for them? their amazingly expensive here

[mikee]

ja--87 Fact of life: turtles like to eat fish. It may take some time but they will bet eaten. They will either eat them our right or snip at them until they slow down until they can catch them.

[n00bEmpty]

You think you need a bubbler because it helps circulates the oxygen around the water and keeps your fishes healthier. But it's up to you, my turtles tend to try to dig them up and bite the bubbles.

[jay2487]

Sir Max, the bluegill came from castnetting along with one of the common plecos. I have never seen them on sale at a pet store here. I caught two and a speckled perch about hand sized but one bluegill was eaten, I think weakened by the transition and move, the speckled perch(crappie)ate 15 feeders a day so I gave him to a friend who loves him. My bluegill will jump out of the water and catch moths and bugs that fly low over the water! I am trying to teach him to take worms from my hand. They are super smart like Oscars and very fast.

Mikee, an extremely NON-natural occurrence: A red ear slider eating an African cichlid, not an everyday "fact of life" as you put it. That attitude is the exact reason I made this thread. My jewels are hiding in that log as we speak guarding their future spawning ground and not only avoid getting eaten but plow any turtle who gets too close away from that log. If they successfully spawn there will be another 50 cichlids when I haven't lost one in months. I think I'll gain more fish than I lose.

noobempty, I use 4 HOBs to filter my tank, the water is about 4 inches below the ridge, so the water falling that far from five different streams aerates the tank excellently;)

[Sir Max]

I agree.. that attitude towards the "fact of life"..is frusturating to say the least

[SINI5T3R]

thats a fat [---] tank..how big is it? and are most of those cichlids?

[jay2487]

6ft x20in x 18in 110gal 1/2in thick glass. its an oldie i got off craigslist for $75;)
and yes they are mostly cichlids

[roseK]

my pleco lasted 3 years, but then he got ripped apart.. it was not pretty.. and he still was living for a few hours after, we found him in a floating plant and my turtle trying to untangle it out... put him in a seperate tank and hoped he would be ok.. it was a sad day....

i also have Kribensis in my tank, male and female. they are done very well. they are an african dwarf ciclid. i also have a couple tetras in there. Fast fish can survive. the pleco was big and not so fast

[SINI5T3R]

yeah I am going to start keeping some of my baby Convicts in the tank with my turtles. they should be okay..