Feeding a snowflake eel

cginter · Jul 23, 2014

I fed mine frozen krill.

tyler1503 · Jul 23, 2014

Frozen shrimp is ok as long as its just shrimp and doesn't have any preservatives and stuff like that. Also make sure it's raw, some frozen seafood is pre cooked. Most meaty seafood is ok :)

SaltedReefer · Jul 24, 2014

Just figured I'd share the new edition with you guys.

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I sent my mother a picture and this is what she said lol

tyler1503 · Jul 25, 2014

Hahaha Christmas eel :)
She looks like a nice sized one! How big is she?

SaltedReefer · Jul 25, 2014

Probly about 10" and already escaped out of the egg crate on top....lol

tyler1503 · Jul 25, 2014

She looks much bigger in the photo! She'll probably be really active for the first few weeks/months then settle down quite a bit. Hopefully she won't jump out again! I know how stressful that can be. Do you have glass lids you can replace the egg crate with?

SaltedReefer · Jul 25, 2014

Lol! It's a close up I guess that's why. Only about 3/4 thick. I wish it was a tad bit smaller to start off with but hey, she's perfect lol. I don't have glass but in gonna go get screen from lowes in the morning

SaltedReefer · Jul 26, 2014

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whag do you guys think about this?

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SaltedReefer · Jul 27, 2014

Anyone ?

tyler1503 · Jul 27, 2014

It should be ok to feed her that stuff. What would concern me is the sodium tripolyphosphate. You don't wana over feed that food as it will increase phosphates. I don't know a lot about chemistry so I don't know what sort of effects that particular phosphate has on livestock. Perhaps start a new thread about it?
Also you shouldn't feed the cooked mussel.
The rest looks good though :)

sean9_man · Jul 28, 2014

I have a few questions that are a little bit off topic here so please excuse me. I've always wanted a snowflake eel but my LFS tells me i can't have one without a sealed tank? Also, would they be a threat to my shrimps? I have 2 bloodfire shrimps and 2 doctor shrimps.

tyler1503 · Jul 29, 2014

sean9_man said:
I have a few questions that are a little bit off topic here so please excuse me. I've always wanted a snowflake eel but my LFS tells me i can't have one without a sealed tank? Also, would they be a threat to my shrimps? I have 2 bloodfire shrimps and 2 doctor shrimps.

Eels are great escape artists. They will find any small gap and try to get out. In the wild they can get trapped in tide pools and travel between them across the exposed rocky surface to find food. It's an instinctual thing that most will not ignore. While you don't need a sealed tank, you don't want any holes or gaps any bigger than half the size of the eels head, but even that's no guarantee. I had a huge gap between my lids and stuffed it with filter wool. It looks terrible, but it works.
If you get one, she will be a threat to your shrimp. They eat shrimp in the wild so again, it's an instinct thing. If you keep it well fed it will be much less likely to eat your shrimp, but the risk is always there.

sean9_man · Jul 29, 2014

tyler1503 said:
Eels are great escape artists. They will find any small gap and try to get out. In the wild they can get trapped in tide pools and travel between them across the exposed rocky surface to find food. It's an instinctual thing that most will not ignore. While you don't need a sealed tank, you don't want any holes or gaps any bigger than half the size of the eels head, but even that's no guarantee. I had a huge gap between my lids and stuffed it with filter wool. It looks terrible, but it works.
If you get one, she will be a threat to your shrimp. They eat shrimp in the wild so again, it's an instinct thing. If you keep it well fed it will be much less likely to eat your shrimp, but the risk is always there.

Thanks for the advice. I'm just thinking with all the trouble and risk I might as well start up a new and small tanker. I don't want it eating my shrimps!

tyler1503 · Jul 29, 2014

sean9_man said:
Thanks for the advice. I'm just thinking with all the trouble and risk I might as well start up a new and small tanker. I don't want it eating my shrimps!

All good :)
A species tank is awesome for eels. If you have the space for another tank, it would be ideal. How many are you thinking of getting?

sean9_man · Jul 29, 2014

tyler1503 said:
All good :)
A species tank is awesome for eels. If you have the space for another tank, it would be ideal. How many are you thinking of getting?

Ha! I think one to begin with will be best! I don't want to buy two and have them die on me!

I definitely have the room. Hardest part is convincing the wife....

tyler1503 · Jul 29, 2014

sean9_man said:
Ha! I think one to begin with will be best! I don't want to buy two and have them die on me!

I definitely have the room. Hardest part is convincing the wife....

I have one in a 24 and he's as happy as larry. He gets a bit snappy sometimes, but he is an eel after all. Eels are definitely way underrated fish I reckon!
Hahaha yea the wife factor is something I know very well.

sean9_man · Jul 29, 2014

tyler1503 said:
I have one in a 24 and he's as happy as larry. He gets a bit snappy sometimes, but he is an eel after all. Eels are definitely way underrated fish I reckon!
Hahaha yea the wife factor is something I know very well.

I may need advice for that too then!

I have been looking into pipefish too. I would buy one for my current tank but I have a splendid dottyback which is a complete ****** when I introduce new fish and I hear pipefish aren't very good swimmers so it will probably take it out...

tyler1503 · Jul 29, 2014

sean9_man said:
I may need advice for that too then!

I have been looking into pipefish too. I would buy one for my current tank but I have a splendid dottyback which is a complete ****** when I introduce new fish and I hear pipefish aren't very good swimmers so it will probably take it out...

The best advice I can give is to just pretend like you always had that new coral or fish lol.
Pipefish are awesome. I don't have any personal experience with them, but I'm pretty sure they're the same as keeping seahorses. There's not a lot you can keep with them unfortunately.

sean9_man · Jul 29, 2014

tyler1503 said:
The best advice I can give is to just pretend like you always had that new coral or fish lol.
Pipefish are awesome. I don't have any personal experience with them, but I'm pretty sure they're the same as keeping seahorses. There's not a lot you can keep with them unfortunately.

Lol I'll be sure to let you know when it happens!

I really want that eel though! Oh actually. Is it ok with your corals?

tyler1503 · Jul 29, 2014

Mines in a fowlr, so I haven't had this particular eel in with corals yet except a small zoa colony. They're no danger to coral though, plenty of people keep them in reefs. The main issue is they can knock over pieces that aren't firmly attached to the rock work. They're a lot stronger than you'd think, so even large colonies can get knocked over. As long as you can glue your coral down pretty solidly they'll be fine together. And with the eels thick slime coat, they're fairly well protected against even some of the strongest coral stings :)