# blue gill and bass?



## TreeLaufe (May 21, 2005)

I've had a baby bluegill (Jaws) in a tank for almost a year now, and just today I added a baby largemouth bass which is only a little longer than the bluegill. The little bluegill is not happy about having to share his tank and is occasionally chasing the bass and wagging his tail at him. My question is.. do you think they will get along if I give them time or are they too territorial of fish? Also, will the bass start picking on the bluegill once he gets more comfortable in the tank? Thank you !


----------



## Imbrium (Feb 7, 2005)

How big a tank do you have? I would imagine that fish like that would probably be pretty agressive towards eachother.


----------



## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Since bluegills are a bass's favorite snack, I don't think they'll ever be too happy together.


----------



## TreeLaufe (May 21, 2005)

*bluegill & bass*

They are in a 5 Gal. tank.. but they're both pretty small. The bluegill is about an inch long and the bass is maybe almost 2 inches. I really want to keep them both.. (without having to set up another aquarium).. I think its funny how the bluegill is the one pestering the bass.. :shock:


----------



## Imbrium (Feb 7, 2005)

You do know that bluegill get to be over a foot long right? And bass get over 3 feet. You need to get rid of these fish.


----------



## TreeLaufe (May 21, 2005)

I have bigger aquariums to put them in if they grow. Do you know how long it would take them to get that large ?


----------



## Imbrium (Feb 7, 2005)

The bass will eat the bluegill. They will get huge quickly. You would have to have an incredibly huge tank, and even then you won't be able to keep them together. You might be able to keep the bluegill if you have a tank that's at least 90 gal.


----------



## Ownager2004 (Apr 4, 2005)

lol since when do largemouth bass get 3 ft?


----------



## TreeLaufe (May 21, 2005)

I don't think that they will get that big.. and I've had my bluegill almost a year and he's still only an inch. I caught him for an ecosystem project in my environmental science class last august... I got kind of attached to him.  Doesn't the size of the tank affect how large they grow, or is that just a myth ?


----------



## Ownager2004 (Apr 4, 2005)

It does affect how large they grow... but in a harmful way. The reason fish dont grow to they're full potential when put in smaller tanks is because of water quality and health issues. Not just adjusting to their environment.


----------



## TreeLaufe (May 21, 2005)

yea it doesn't seem to be working out between them... the bluegill is being really pushy towards the bass, especially when I put food in the tank. I didn't want to set up another aquarium, but I guess i'm going to have to.. my dad won't be too happy about that lol... especially since i'm supposed to be getting rid of my pets because i'm leaving for college in the fall..  Is it safe to let fish go after keeping them in captivity for a while? Will they remember how to survive in the "wild"?


----------



## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

No, it's not safe. Captive fish are usually exposed to aquarium diseases at some point in their captivity, and those diseases wind up in the wild where they wreak havoc. Whirling disease, for example, which is wiping out millions of fish up there in your part of the country, was introdued to american waters by the release of captive fish.
Don't do it.
There are plenty of people who would love to have fish like those, so ask around a bit. The petshops can't take them, but I'm sure that somebody wants them. 

As for the growth inhibition in aquaria, it is true if the water is not clean enough. Growth inhibitor hormone accumulates in a dirty tank and stunts the fish. Since a 5 gallon tank is certainly no place for a bluegill, it's no wonder the fish is still so small after a year.


----------



## TreeLaufe (May 21, 2005)

Wow I had no idea that could happen..


----------



## mlefev (Apr 19, 2005)

I've never seen a foot long bluegill. Although I don't think these two fish should be kept together or in a tank that size, I still have NEVER seen a bluegill that big in my life and my grandparents kept them for years in a large pond (like a real pond...30 feet across or so).


----------



## Imbrium (Feb 7, 2005)

I was just saying they _could_ get that big. Not that they always do. The point is that these fish have no business being in a 5 gallon tank. I think it's ok to keep the bluegill if you get a large tank, but the bass is still going to be to big.
Maybe that huge Cabelas in Dundee would take them. Are you far from there?


----------



## Ownager2004 (Apr 4, 2005)

Ive caught a 10" blue gill out of a really small farm pond before. And my uncle has a few mounted that are bigger than the one i caught.


----------



## TreeLaufe (May 21, 2005)

I do know where there is a store that has one of those huge freshwater tanks... but I talked to my friend today who is opening his own fish store and he said he would take the bass. At the size they are now, do you think they could live happily in a 10 gallon? I also have I think a 50 gallon but I'm not sure. I have one more larger aquarium but it has my turtle in it.


----------



## fishboy (Feb 26, 2005)

I don't know why you kept the bass but if someone will take him get rid of him. I'm not trying to sound cruel as i get this is your pet put you need to take better care of it. If that bluegill lives there to long his growth will stunt for a few monthes. After that he won't be able to take it and will continue his growth on the inside but stay small on the outside. This will cause his intestines to clog as they grow and push together and his spine to get to long and twist into a "S" shape. After this it is all over for Jaws and you may even have to consider putting him down at this point for his quality of life will be gone. So as soon as you can upgrade himinto a cycled aquarium of 90 gallons or even your 50 will hold him for a while DO IT. You can even get him a few friends


----------



## TreeLaufe (May 21, 2005)

My dad didn't believe me when I told him about how stunting a fish's growth in a small tank is harmful. :-x 

I'll try to move them into the bigger tank sometime next week.. if my dad will let me... or I'll just get rid of them. Either way I'm gonna have to get rid of them eventually.. I can't take them to college in a 50 gallon tank lol. Hopefully my dad will get attached to them and keep them for me when I leave.  [In a bigger tank.. don't yell at me!]


----------



## fishboy (Feb 26, 2005)

I'm just saying ditch the bass but u can keep the bluegill. Hope your dad gets attached to it  when you go to college maybe you could try to teach Jaws a trick to get your dad's attention


----------



## cameraman_2 (Mar 28, 2005)

I would love to have the bass for my pond, although you live to fair away to get it. I am building a pond and I was just going to go to the lake and catch a few fish for the pond instead of buying koi.


----------



## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

Just to forwarn you, "little" bass, like the one you have put in your aquarium, are considered gamefish... it is highly likely that you did something illegal by keeping a fish that size, (In wisconsin, a bass cannot be kept under the size limit of 14 inches) In that case, don't get yourself into a whole mess of trouble with the DNR by letting it go in a lake. If you do decide to "ditch" him, think about giving him to someone you know and trust and not back where he came from.


----------



## fishboy (Feb 26, 2005)

Good point if your bluegill and bass are "little" such as 2-3 inches then you have taken them illegaly. This isn't a serious crime but it could result in a small to large fine if your local fishing and game officals ever found out about it


----------



## TreeLaufe (May 21, 2005)

I can't find the rules on the Michigan DNR website.. but I've never met anyone who worked for them, so I should be safe. I probably will get rid of him soon though.. which sucks because he is so awesome to watch.


----------



## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

try to find a home for him... setting him "free" back into a wild environment is usually illegal too heheheheh... I would try to find someone who is a friend of a family that has a pond or something like that. (Actually more illegal than catching a fish under the size limit, in my experiance there usually isn't a size limit on bluegill) I know what you mean by being awsome fish. Bass happen to be my favorite fish to catch!


----------



## TreeLaufe (May 21, 2005)

So... basically anything I do from now on is illegal? >_< My 9th grade bio teacher had a huge bass in a tank in his classroom that would eat worms out of his hand. Thats why I wanted one.


----------



## ALFA WOLF (May 24, 2005)

im sry to tell u but he is right it woudl be best to put him in a pond, if u levae him in a tank it will stunt him and shorten his life span.


----------



## TreeLaufe (May 21, 2005)

Yea so should I let him go where I got him? He's just from the pond in my backyard. Someone on here told me not to let him go because it will introduce diseases. Should I worry about that?


----------



## fishboy (Feb 26, 2005)

DON"T LET HIM GO IN A NATURAL POND. IF YOU DO YOU CAN CAUSE DEADLY FISH DISEASES TO BREAK OUT.Do you really want to be responsible for the death of thousands of fish? and if the disease spreads across the country you may be responsible for the deaths of over 1,000,000 fish if the disease evolves. Even if your pond is manmade stormwater runoff can carry these new diseases into your local waterways. I'd rather you uthenize your fish then put them in a pond and have these things happen to and damage the ecosystem and possibley even damage the bioshere


----------



## Ownager2004 (Apr 4, 2005)

Ok, I think fishboy is on the right track.. lol

and TreeLaufe if you obtain something illegally.. logic suggests everything you do with it afterwards is illegal also.. just a thought..


----------



## MyraVan (Jan 19, 2005)

OK, guys, I'm a little bit confused by this "don't you dare put that fish in a pond" thing.

What if I go to the local aquatic center, buy a couple of nice comet goldfish, and put them in the pond in my garden? I've just put a fish that was in a tank with a bunch of other fish, which could easily have all sorts of imported diseases, into a pond. Which could have runoff and thus could send those diseases into the natural fish population, and they could all die off.

So why is it OK for me to put a goldfish in my pond but not for TreeLaufe to put his bass back into his backyard pond?


----------



## TreeLaufe (May 21, 2005)

People stock their ponds with fish all the time.. and I dont see where my fish would have gotten diseases from since its only been in the pond and in an aquarium with another fish from the same pond.


----------



## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Hmmm... you know, Myra, you're right. 
We must outlaw Goldfish immediately!!!
In the meantime, do something to make certain that there IS no runoff into local waters.
Just one escaped fish with myxosporidium can completely destroy all of England's ecology. 


As for the bass in this case:

IF the pond is self-contained,
and
IF ithas only been exposed to one other fish from the same pond,
and
IF that tank, along with the filters, nets etc have only been used for these fish, 

then it's okay to just put the fish back where you got it.


----------



## Lisachromis (Jan 19, 2005)

Just a shot of the bluegill we got 2 years ago. It's grown approximately 3-4" since then. It's about 8" now. She loves earthworms and any culls I give her. She also took to pellets and flake the same day as she went in her 33g tank.


----------



## TreeLaufe (May 21, 2005)

Awww what a cute picture ! The pond in my backyard was formerly used as a drainage basin for farmland before my subdivision was built. It doesn't have a plastic lining or anything though. I bought the tank new from a petstore, it came with the filter and I bought the rock from there too.. so I'm ASSUMING no other fish used the rock, but the filter and tank were in a box so I'm sure no one used that.


----------



## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Well, then, while it's not legal, it's still doable.
There are still many nongame fish in your area which are small enough to fit in your tank and very interesting.


----------

