The Ornate Bichir Prefers to feed on smaller fish, crustaceans and insects. The Ornate Bichir is a carnivorous type of Bichirs
Bichir
Bichirs and the reedfish comprise Polypteridae, a family of archaic-looking ray-finned fishes and the only family in the order Polypteriformes. All species occur in freshwater habitats in tropical Africa and the Nile River system, mainly swampy, shallow floodplains and estuaries.
What is the best food for a bichir?
Feeding: Bichirs are carnivorous so feed meaty type foods consisting of good quality pellets of the appropriate size, sticks, chunks of frozen foods like brine shrimp, mysis shrimp, or beef heart along with chopped market shrimp, chunks of raw fish, blood worms, black worms, and earthworms.
What do ornate bichir eat?
The Ornate Bichir Prefers to feed on smaller fish, crustaceans and insects. The Ornate Bichir is a carnivorous type of Bichirs, so it will eat anything that fits in its mouth which can include other types of water-dwelling animals like frogs or even small turtles!
How to care for a bichir fish?
Since bichirs is mostly a bottom-feeder, the tank bottom substrate should be easy in care and cleaning. It’s better be a thin layer of sand, though small grained gravel will do as well. But the latter is less natural like for the fish and it will be more difficult for the fish to feed from it.
How often should I Feed my saddled bichir?
Saddled bichir (Polypterus endlicheri) Polypterus endlicheri is a large and strong species, that grows to become up to 30 long (75 cm) in the wild. It is not very active during a day, it mainly slowly swims looking for food. Considering the size, it’s better to keep it in a separate tank and feed with live food (once or twice a week).
What should I feed my bichir?
Feeding. The bichir is a carnivore, and very rarely eats dried foods. Therefore, a diet of frozen or live foods is recommended for larger fish, including shrimp, baitfish, mussels, and earthworms. Smaller specimens will also eat mosquito larvae, bloodworms, and vitamin-enriched brine shrimp.
When should I feed my bichir fish?
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What can I feed my dinosaur Bichir?
Dinosaur bichir diet Bichirs need a large assortment of living, frozen, and freeze-dried food, such as bloodworms, shrimp, brine shrimp, earthworms, and other small fish. While the dinosaur bichir is a nocturnal fish species, it is possible to change when they eat.
What do small Bichirs eat?
Diet. Bichirs are nocturnal predators. They are carnivorous fish and enjoy eating small vertebrates, crustaceans, insects, and other small fishes. It is better to feed them with live food rather than pellets or artificial food.
Can bichir live without air pump?
Bichirs have true lungs as well as gills for water breathing, allowing them to survive when water levels are extremely low and oxygen-depleted during the drought season. In aquaria water is typically well oxygenated enough that they don't bother breathing air.
Do bichirs jump?
Bichirs are prompt to jump when in fright or when chasing each other of their own kind or kena chased by other predators. It is a MUST to cover up your tank!
How do you take care of a bichir?
Bichir care is also fairly straightforward. Simply keep them in the right kind of habitat, monitor the water consistently, and don't pair them with the wrong tank mates. Their neat appearance and manageable difficulty of care are why they're one of our favorite freshwater fishes.
How big does a bichir fish get?
Most species grow to between 30 and 60 cm (11.8 and 23.6 inches) long. Some members of the largest two species, the saddled bichirs (P. endlicherii) and Congo bichirs (P. congicus), grow to lengths of 75 cm (29.5 inches) and 97 cm (38.2 inches) and weights of 3.3 kg (7.3 pounds) and 4.4 kg (9.7 pounds), respectively.
Are Bichirs Hardy?
They are very hardy, beautiful, personable, and come in a variety of attractive red-based tones. While nowhere near as large as Peacock Bass, Oscars are still large predators so be careful when keeping them with smaller Bichirs. However any of the medium to large species are excellent tank mates.
What temperature does a bichir need?
They thrive in shallow waters, though much to the chagrin of dedicated aquarists, these bichirs are likely to Houdini their ways out of tanks that do not have tight fitting lids. Waters should be maintained with temperatures between 72 and 82°F, pH of 6.0 to 8.0, and hardness between 5 and 25°H.
How can you tell if a bichir is male or female?
The male Bichir distinguish it self from the female Bichir by having a considerably broader anal fin. You can only sex mature Bichirs, since immature males will have an anal fin similar to the anal fin of a female Bichir.
How do you feed a dragon fin?
The fish is omnivorous and thrives on a high-protein diet in captivity. Feed your pet dragon fish algae wafers, live brine shrimp, mysis shrimp and daphnia. Dragon fish will also consume frozen bloodworms, krill and glassworms. In addition, you can feed your pet fish pellets and vegetable flakes.
What temperature does a bichir need?
They thrive in shallow waters, though much to the chagrin of dedicated aquarists, these bichirs are likely to Houdini their ways out of tanks that do not have tight fitting lids. Waters should be maintained with temperatures between 72 and 82°F, pH of 6.0 to 8.0, and hardness between 5 and 25°H.
How many bichirs can live together?
Author Note: You can keep more than one bichir in the same tank as well. While this isn't done very often (not sure why) as long as you increase their tank size to accommodate the additional fish, they should get along quite nicely!
How big do bichirs get?
Most species grow to between 30 and 60 cm (11.8 and 23.6 inches) long. Some members of the largest two species, the saddled bichirs (P. endlicherii) and Congo bichirs (P. congicus), grow to lengths of 75 cm (29.5 inches) and 97 cm (38.2 inches) and weights of 3.3 kg (7.3 pounds) and 4.4 kg (9.7 pounds), respectively.
What fish can live with a dinosaur Bichir?
Black Ghost Knife Fish are excellent tank mates for Bichirs despite being bottom dwellers. While predatory, Black Ghosts have smaller mouths and are rarely a threat to any fish near their size. They prefer hunting for worms and smaller fish. In terms of temperament, Black Ghost Knifefish are pretty unusual.
Lifespan, Behaviour & Types of Bichir
The lifespan of the Dinosaur Bichir can be as high as 15-20 years, with males living for a slightly shorter period of time than females. These fish are generally shy and avoid contact with other fish.
Suitable Tank Mates For Bichir
So you’ve decided you’re going to get some Bichir, what you’ll want to know next is what are some suitable tank mates?
Breeding Bichir
Bichirs are one of the best beginner fish species. Bichir’s breeding is relatively easy, although getting their eggs to hatch can be frustrating even for seasoned breeders.
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I hope you enjoyed this Bichir Fish Care Guide. If you have any questions at all, just leave a comment here and I’ll do my best to answer all your Bichir Questions!
What is an ornate bichir?
Ornate Bichir – Polypterus Ornatipinnis. Typical Tank setup: A well decorated aquarium with well rooted and over hanging plants is appreciated as Bichirs are mainly nocturnal and do not like bright lighting.
What is the pH of bichirs?
Water chemistry: pH 6.0 – 8.0. Feeding: Bichirs are carnivorous so feed meaty type foods consisting of good quality pellets of the appropriate size, sticks, chunks of frozen foods like brine shrimp, mysis shrimp, or beef heart along with chopped market shrimp, chunks of raw fish, blood worms, black worms, and earthworms.
How big of an aquarium do I need?
Recommended Minimum Aquarium Capacity: Juveniles can easily be kept in aquariums as small as a 20 gallon /80 litre, but full grown adults need an aquarium with large base dimensions measuring at least 6 feet x 2.5 feet / 180 cm x 75 cm , or 250 gallon / 1000 litre. Depth is not as important as “floor space”.
Do bichirs eat other fish?
Depth is not as important as “floor space”. Compatibility: All Bichirs are relatively peaceful with other fish that are too large too eat. They will eat others of their own kind given the chance though, so other Bichir tankmates should be close to the same size.
Can bichirs breed in aquariums?
Breeding: Can be breed in aquarium however breeding is very rare. Polypterus Ornatipinnis scatter their eggs and leave their young to fend for them self. Additional Information: Ornate Bichirs are, considered by some, to be the most beautiful of the Bichirs.
Do bichirs like bright light?
Typical Tank setup: A well decorated aquarium with well rooted and over hanging plants is appreciated as Bichirs are mainly nocturnal and do not like bright lighting. The base of the plants need to be protected by rockwork though, other wise a large bichir will eventually uproot and destroy them.
What is the difference between bichir lungs and dwarf gourami lungs?
This design solves all that. Bichir lungs are a bit different than the lungs of other fish such as dwarf gourami. A bichirs lungs are more of a sac than a mass of tissue. There doesn’t seem to be much of an advantage of one over the other, it’s just the way they evolved. These fish are also very hard to sex.
What color is a Delhezi bichir?
They’re primarily grey with flecks of yellow and green and some short black stripes.
What to put in a bichir tank?
You can add plants, driftwood, or caves and they won’t mind one way or the other. You can also keep them in a more sparse tank too.
How long do bichir live?
Lifespan. The average bichir lifespan is usually 10-15 years in captivity. However, it’s not out of the question for them to hit 20 years of age if they receive perfect care (and have good genetics). The lifespan of these fish can be impacted significantly by the conditions they live in.
What is an albino bichir?
The albino bichir is essentially a dinosaur bichir but white with red eyes. Everything else is exactly the same aside from the color. These are a highly sought after type of bichir (as most albino fish are).
Why are bichirs so interesting?
Bichirs are an interesting fish because they have a pair of lungs and need access to the surface to get oxygen. One of the main reasons for this is the waters where they come from are usually so swampy and dirty that it makes breathing a challenge. This design solves all that.
Where are bichirs found?
They make up the Polypteridae family and are mostly found in Northeast Africa throughout the Nile River and its associated tributaries.
What is a bichir fish?
Habitat in the wild. Bichirs (lat. Polypteridae) is a family of freshwater ray-finned fishes, the only one in the order Polypteriformes and subclass Cladistia . Nowadays, there are 14 modern genus of the fish known and spread over tropical Africa. Another fish E. calabaricus also belongs to this class.
What is a Senegal bichir?
Senegal bichir (P. senegallus) This is one of the most active and less timid Polypterids species. It actively swims almost all the time, it is curious and persistent. The fish doesn’t show aggression towards its kind and other tank dwellers if the latter are large enough.
How long is a fish's body?
The fish skeleton resembles that of a shark and it is not made from bones, but from cartilages. Maximum length of Polypterids species body is over 100 cm (39 in), but most of them aren’t longer than 25 cm (9.8 in).
What pH should a polypterid tank be?
Here are proper tank water parameters for Polypterids keeping: water acidity pH should be about 7, the fish is not demanding as for the water hardness. It will feel comfortable both in soft and hard water, though it’s better not to take chances with extremely hard water (higher than 20).
How big of a tank do you need for a bichir?
Bichirs is quite strong and healthy fish. To keep one you will need a tank of at least 50 US gallons (200 L) capacity and it’s better to be larger. The cover is a must for such a tank! Bichirs can not only jump out of the tank, but also crawl out of it.
How many fins are in a dorsal fin?
The dorsal fin consists of a row of 5-18 small fins, which defined the name of Polypterids. Pectoral fins of the fish evolve from a fleshy blade, which visually resembles lobe-finned fishes construction (however, their skeletons are completely different).
Where do polypterids live?
Modern Polypterids species occur in freshwater basins in Africa and India. The fish prefers muddy water and silted bottom, it can even live in bogs. The fish navigates in water (which is not transparent) due to its sense of smell, at that it has quite poor sight. Some Polypterids species are constant tank dwellers.
Species Summary
Care Guide
Lifespan
Appearance
Size
Behavior and Temperament
Breeding
Gender Differences: Male vs. Female
Ornate Bichir Fun Facts
- An ideal fish for beginners in keeping large fish in aquariums and found in virtually any retail store around the planet.
- They are primitive fish and have a modified swim bladder, enabling them to survive a specific period out of water.
- This species is a direct descendant of the first fish species.
- An ideal fish for beginners in keeping large fish in aquariums and found in virtually any retail store around the planet.
- They are primitive fish and have a modified swim bladder, enabling them to survive a specific period out of water.
- This species is a direct descendant of the first fish species.
- They are animals specialized in nocturnal hunting, but as they have very little visual ability, they have a very refined sense of smell and use it in hunting.
