stingray, fresh water
Dennis Ellis i
compatible with koi, comets, orfe, etc. and are they a viable type of
fish to raise in a 3,500 gal garden pond? How big do they grow?
Patrick Sobalvarro
I am a little hesitant to follow up your post because I don't know a great
deal about these fish, but I do know a little. The freshwater stingrays I am
familiar with come from the Amazon River basin. The specimens I have seen
(about five, all in aquariums ranging in size from about 100 gallons at a pet
shop to something in the thousands at the New England Aquarium) were never
bigger than about 10 inches across. Additionally, I've seen a photograph of
one in National Geographic; in this case, it had been caught for dinner by a
native of the area -- again, it was perhaps 10 inches across. I don't know
that they don't get bigger; these are just the specimens I've seen.
Because they come from a tropical environment, I tend to doubt they would do
well in an outdoor pond anywhere in the continental United States, but I am
really talking off the top of my head here. I think it might not be such a
good idea to put them in a pond unless access was carefully controlled;
they're dangerous to step on. Like all rays, though, they're wonderfully
graceful and rather beautiful in their way.
As for where they can be found for sale, check a tropical fish hobbyist
magazine. I saw a small one in a pet shop in Cambridge a number of years ago,
and I think the price was $400 -- not all that much for so unusual a fish.
Mark Bianco
>Does anyone know where I could get freshwater stingrays. Are they
>compatible with koi, comets, orfe, etc. and are they a viable type of
>fish to raise in a 3,500 gal garden pond? How big do they grow?
>
freshwater stingrays. I did consider getting one for an aquarium, once. But
I heard that they have *very* stringent water requirements (for example,
*any* ammonia and they die). They also like to eat live foods from a sandy
bottom. I'm not sure about temp, pH, hardness, etc.
Now, if you want an unusual fish for your pond, have you considered a
sturgeon? I understand that it is a common practice of our European pond
keepers.
Best advice: whatever you get, find out as much as you possibly can before
you get it. BTW, rec.aquaria may be able to help with water quality
requirements of stingrays.
--
Mark Bianco
mbi...@pipeline.com
BACKUPS? We don't need no stinkin' BACk*$x6
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Mark Bianco
(Chris Light) said:
>
>In article <3nbh2o$1b...@usenetw1.news.prodigy.com> KKN...@prodigy.com
>(Dennis Ellis i) writes:
>>I haven't considered sturgeon, but will if someone can tell me more about
>>them. I am looking for unusual fish to add to our new 4,000gal pond to
>>join the usual stock of koi, comets, etc. Any suggestions out there?
>>Whatever fish are suggested have to be able to survive upstate NY
winters.
>
>Dunno how you get em in the States, but they are fairly easy to come by
>here. They will certainly survive anything Koi will, I'm assuming you have
>3'-4' feetof water in this pond, if you don't you are probably going to
>loose the Koi! They grow to about 4'-8' depending on exactly what variety
>you obtain, become quite tame, are uniformly a sort of graphite colour.
>
Well, here's my .02 for what little I know about them. I purchased one in
an aquarium shop (Fayetteville, NC) last year for $15.00. I kept it in a
125 gal aquarium, where he met his demise 2 weeks later. I think the tank
was too small and crowded for his needs (aquascaping, not fish) along with
the 360 mile trip home to Maryland. I had intended to put him in my indoor
pond when he got larger. I really liked that fish and am tempted to redo
the tank.
Anyway, they do well in temperate zones. I understand that they're kept
widely in European ponds without bothering the koi. One of the species of
sturgeon (beluga?) is the largest freshwater fish in the world at over 30
feet! They're also one of the oldest species (2 million years, I think) -
they even look primative.
You might try your local aquarium shops - they'll sometimes special order
hard to get fish if you ask.
>I missed the Stingray reference, I only know of tropical freshwater
>stingrays, unless you know better?
>
The original post was regarding the feasibility of keeping stingrays in
ponds. Assuming that stingrays wouldn't work we got on the subject of
sturgeon. I find the fish truly fascinating and would love to hear from
anybody that's kept them. There's not much literature on them in the
traditional aquarium/pond mags/books.
Dennis Ellis i
Unknown
Dunno how you get em in the States, but they are fairly easy to come by here.
Thet will certainly survive anything Koi will, I'm assuming you have 3'-4' feet
of water in this pond, if you don't you are probably going to loose the Koi!
They grow to about 4'-8' depending on exactly what variety you obtain, become
quite tame, are uniformly a sort of graphite colour.
I missed the Stingray reference, I only know of tropical freshwater stingrays,
unless you know better?
ByE!
Unknown
In article <3nchbl$b...@pipe1.nyc.pipeline.com> mbi...@nyc.pipeline.com (Mark
Hmmm, think I have a few articles somewhere... When (if) I can find 'em, I'll
OCR scan them and post. OK?
ByE!
Stephen Rodgers
: Ellis i) writes:
: >I haven't considered sturgeon, but will if someone can tell me more about
: >them. I am looking for unusual fish to add to our new 4,000gal pond to
: >join the usual stock of koi, comets, etc. Any suggestions out there?
: >Whatever fish are suggested have to be able to survive upstate NY winters.
I've seen Sturgeon at my local Koi supplier, in S.E. England. They
certainly do get tame, the ones in their tanks could be picked out
of the water, simply by holding them just behind the head.
They're pretty weird looking, rather primeval.
I wonder if you could get caviar off/out of them........?
Steve R
Mark Bianco
(Chris Light) said:
>Hmmm, think I have a few articles somewhere... When (if) I can find 'em,
>I'll OCR scan them and post. OK?
>
found and summarize them. Don't have a scanner, but there's not much there
anyway.