# Elephant Nose Fish Help



## Hydr0 JoE (Jan 13, 2009)

I was at my local pet store and they just got some new fish in and i saw these guys there and really liked them, the guy there told me they are kinda hard to take care of, cuz of the small mouths its kinda hard to feed them, he also said they need brackish water, does anyone know about or have elephant nose fish? any info on these fish would help alot, thinking of getting a planted tank for 2-4 of these guys.


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## Sea-Agg2009 (Aug 2, 2008)

Here's a good look at them: link

Try finding live blackworms or blood worms. Also make sure you tank is well established and well filtered.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

they aren't brackish. soft water fish actually. They do best one per tank as they use sonar to find food and adding more can screw up this "sonar"


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## Hydr0 JoE (Jan 13, 2009)

really? i have read they only feel comfortable in groups of 3-5 and are good at committing suicide


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## Hydr0 JoE (Jan 13, 2009)

oh and i hear that they need a planted tank with dim water, so do you think a blue light would work?


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## Sea-Agg2009 (Aug 2, 2008)

They are definately not schoolers. They are electric fish, like knife-fish (not the electric eel). Being next to one another screws with their heads. 

They will starve before they take flake food, and will jump out of a tank if it doesn't have a cover. If that means they are suicidal, then yeah they are. 

They like planted tanks, whether that be real or artificial. The main thing is they like places to hide. Ghost tubes, PVC pipe, big pieces of wood, or lots of plants; all work well.

And any kind of heavy lighting, no matter the color (except red), will force them to hide. It's really not an awful thing, they will just hide in the shadows most of the day. That's what they do in the wild anyways. They say subdued lighting because it encourages them to come out more during the day. They say the same about my ropefish, but he is out most of the day anyhow.


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## Hydr0 JoE (Jan 13, 2009)

ok cool so normal lighting would be the idea then? im thinking of a 20-40 gallon, lots of plants and places to hide, need to soften the water, keep a ph of 6-7, temp form 70-80D, use a ammonia removing filter, and tight hood over the tank so no jumping happens, btw wut kinda tank mates will i be looking at?


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## StripesAndFins (Dec 31, 2008)

i think a 20-40 gallon would be a small tank for a community with these fish. if you want others with them, you should go with a 40 gallon tank with a lot of plants and maybe some cichlid or catfish with them. That is probably the best choice to do with these fish as they get pretty big.


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## Sea-Agg2009 (Aug 2, 2008)

Cichlid wouldnt be a good idea. They are too competitive when it comes to feeding. Smaller community fish would be your best bet.


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## Hydr0 JoE (Jan 13, 2009)

okay so i decided to get just one for now, have a 15 gallon tank cycling for about 2 hours now


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

wait 3-4 months as these are sensitive fish. I would add cories and possibly some peaceful tetras to the display first adding around 4 at a time 3 weeks apart


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