# need advice stocking new pike



## lloyd (Aug 24, 2005)

i ordered a trio of c. lenticulata, for a 220 i am setting up, and they arrived much bigger than i expected. the smallest two are 8-10". the largest is near 12". at day 5, it appears they have no interest in each others company. the largest has taken one of the three pipes i offered, but has a passion for cruising the rest of the tank 24/7. this leaves me with two other pike hiding. to help ease aggression, at day 3, i added some deco wood and dither tank mates to the 125 gal. Q tank. they are a 1:4 group of 4-5" geophagus 'bahia red and a single 6" male macaw cichlid. the macaw is holding his own. the geo are missing a bit of fin already.
questions are: will the three ever accept the conditions as is?(dream answer... :roll: ) when i am ready to stock the 220, should i pull the aggressive one, leaving the pair together with the other fish? or should i pull the two hiding, and leave the tank for the one aggressor? or should i pull the most reclusive female, hoping the other two tolerate each other? or...should i single each one on their own right off? and if i single them now, is there any chance i can reintroduce them to each other later?


----------



## dwarfpike (Jan 22, 2008)

If you want a pair, I'd try all three. You are doing things right, lots of pvc pipes (more than 1 per fish, usually 2-3 per fish with pikes) and driftwood. And target fish, though you might need rougher fish for that.


----------



## RayQ (Sep 26, 2007)

I would add somehting big and kinda dumb, I like to use tinfoil barbs - tough as nails but not fin eaters like silver dollars. I'm with dwarfpike, keep em all together, just watch closely for damage, once a pair pick eachother, you will know it and pull the extra female - would be a shame to loose a female Lent!

May I ask if these came from Winnipeg? I assume that they did :lol: They ARE amazing looking fish and I would have bought 'em all if I wasn't leaving for Uruguay in 4 days :lol: Please post up some pics and keep us updated.

Ray


----------



## lloyd (Aug 24, 2005)

the level of aggression was markedly 'up' this morning, so i pulled the two female to another tank, leaving the male in the Q tank with dithers. i really need to see them relax for a bit, so i can confirm their health and acclimation, before i test their conspecific limits. hopefully, they will focus on eating more now.

RayQ: yes, they came from Winnipeg. great looking fish-just a bit larger than i anticipated. i also bought a few L200 pleco from same source, and they are huge too. next time i'll ask... :lol:

dwarfpike: in my house, geophagus ARE the rough fish. the singled male lento is busy expending all of his energy on the remaining fish within his Q now. he looks t'd off for sure. the two female are tucked nicely into wood, resting among my datnoids. i hope they both eat tonight.


----------



## dwarfpike (Jan 22, 2008)

Sadly, it sounds like the male is showing why pikes when in mixed tanks, are often kept with jags and other central american bruisers. And to think lents are a milder pike to boot!! Gotta love them!!! Lents are sooooooooo pretty, it's worth the aggrivation!!! :thumb:


----------



## lloyd (Aug 24, 2005)

update:
the two females are moving about easily and joined the other fish in a krill feast. there is no aggression between them, and only face-offs to other fish. tank mates for them include large datnoids, mono sebae, and a few gymnogeophagus. the tank is a 7 ft. 285gal., with lots of wood, and low light. 
the male is relentless. he is still in the 125 Q with dithers. he rests for a bit under wood, or in a pipe, then comes out to chase everything, only to return to hiding for another few minutes. his mood is contagious...even the dithers are starting to pick on each other. i will re accommodate him tomorrow. 
pictures to follow...but not until i see them smile.


----------



## RayQ (Sep 26, 2007)

Good luck! they were/are real beauties! I hope he calms down for you :thumb:

Ray


----------



## lloyd (Aug 24, 2005)

update: the two females are doing great. they are together all the time. the male has calmed 90% compared to yesterday. i assume, but i am not totally convinced, because the other two pike are out for a full day now. his preference seems to be solitude, but is still unsettled, and continues to pace the tank. he did not eat yesterday or today.
i am curious if all this activity is 100% caused by conspecifics alone?(the easy answer) or, is it possible that lighting and/or decor stimulate their tolerances to each other? the 285 tank, that holds the two females now, is much darker than the 125 Q that still holds the male. it is also 6" deeper. all three pike were at each other in the 125. 
i am tempted to add the male to the 285, to confirm if the tank has anything to do with my initial troubles...anyone care to share their opinion before i move him over?


----------



## RayQ (Sep 26, 2007)

I would say that a "bare" tank, as it is for most people's Q tanks is not a great way to have Pikes housed. If he had somewhere to claim as his own, I bet it would calm him dramatically and he would stop searching for a spot. When I watched all 6 of them in a 100 gal tank, it was not a problem at all - they mostly stayed to the back and it is a black plywood tank - may help as well :lol:

If you add the male to the big tank, be prepared for the two females to be on his case until he is comfortable enough to push back, once that happens, I would expect that they should all get along "ok"

Can't wait to see pics and hear how it all turned out!

Ray


----------



## lloyd (Aug 24, 2005)

update: all three pike are in separate tanks alone. no matter what you read, about some pike being less aggressive than others, be aware that lugrubis are not capable of sharing space with anything else than their own shadow.  beautiful fish though....


----------



## kayanat (Mar 9, 2009)

My husband has three South American Cichlids (Midas, Green Terror, and a Firemouth). He'd like to know if we can put a Pleco in with them. If yes, what kind would be best? (We have plenty of space in the tank. We just want to know if they will get along.)


----------



## RayQ (Sep 26, 2007)

Hey Lloyd, I just got back from Uruguay, I found a surprise pair of lents in my travels, they are the same size as the ones that you have, any updates? Are they settling down at all???

Ray


----------



## lloyd (Aug 24, 2005)

RayQ said:


> Hey Lloyd, I just got back from Uruguay, I found a surprise pair of lents in my travels, they are the same size as the ones that you have, any updates? Are they settling down at all???Ray


 i have all three in separate q tanks now. all three are eating fry. only two are eating krill. none of them touch pellets. only one will pull out of hiding to eat in my presence. IMHO, a tough fish to feed, and a tougher fish to enjoy. 
what fish did you bring for me from Uruguay? :wink:


----------



## RayQ (Sep 26, 2007)

Sorry to hear that they are not playing nice for you yet! I hope to find my two alive when I get home from work today :-? I pretty much brought back . . . pikes :lol: although there will be some new gymno variants among other things in the hobby in a couple months :thumb: I have creni "saxatilils", creni Scotti and 3 small and 4 LARGE creni Missionera. The Lents are on their own for now.

Ray


----------



## con-man-dan (Aug 19, 2006)

Ray, where in uraguay did you go? Sounds like the same mix of fish Ken Davis brought back last year, just curious if you went to the same places or used the same guide?


----------



## RayQ (Sep 26, 2007)

Same Guide, some similar places, but, most of the fish in the country appear across the whole country, with the exception of a couple of the Pikes and the Apistos :thumb:


----------



## RayQ (Sep 26, 2007)

just because, here are a couple shots of one of the Lents, they are still VERY shy and not great eaters (very clumsy with feeder fish), I'll get em going and fatten them up :thumb:


















(I'm pretty sure it's impossible to take a pic of these fish that doesn't look cool!)

Thanks for looking,

Ray


----------



## lloyd (Aug 24, 2005)

congrats on getting yours out for pics, Ray. i need a miner's cap to see that much of mine. :roll:


----------



## RayQ (Sep 26, 2007)

Thanks Lloyd, what are you keeping with them? I have 6 extra large Gymnogeophagus "Norte", the Lents don't like them, but, they are putting up with the sneak attacks :thumb: It has been a frustrating week waiting for them to come out! Especially since the tank they came from was about 30 gals and they were swimming around in there! Are they eating for you? I know Spence had those ones on frozen Krill, but, mine are clumsy hunters and aren't keen on anything frozen! Maybe worms when the ground thaws :lol:


----------

