Rafi Amar, Israel
Info
Doryrhamphus japonicus, Araga & Yoshino, 1975
We do not yet have any information about successfully keeping this species of pipefish in a saltwater aquarium, but it should be possible to keep them, initially with various live foods, preferably in a species tank.
Due to the same size, the husbandry experience of Doryrhamphus excisus excisus should currently be used.
If the animals refuse to eat, you should of course try live food (Artemia and copepods e.g. Tigriopus californicus).
In any case, it is important to feed a lot and generously so that the animals are quickly fit again.
After a while, you can try gradually mixing small frozen food into the live food.
Sex and mating
As males and females can be distinguished by the bridge of the nose, it is possible to keep them in pairs and this should be practiced. The male has small bumps on the bridge of the nose, which can be recognized from a size of approx. 4 cm.
But never put two males or two females together, as they will chase/fight each other until the weaker animal dies.
As a general rule, these animals should not be kept in a tank with lots of large and fast-eating fish, as they are rather slow and cautious eaters.
Food intake
Initially, the fish take a very long time to eat, before the food is taken up, a thorough inspection is carried out. After acclimatization, they will eat the frozen food offered without any problems. It should be noted that wild-caught fish behave differently to captive-bred fish when it comes to food intake. The size of the fish you buy also plays a role in choosing the right food for captive-bred fish.
They feed on small crustaceans and also prey on other fish (source, Wikipedia).
We do not yet have any information about successfully keeping this species of pipefish in a saltwater aquarium, but it should be possible to keep them, initially with various live foods, preferably in a species tank.
Due to the same size, the husbandry experience of Doryrhamphus excisus excisus should currently be used.
If the animals refuse to eat, you should of course try live food (Artemia and copepods e.g. Tigriopus californicus).
In any case, it is important to feed a lot and generously so that the animals are quickly fit again.
After a while, you can try gradually mixing small frozen food into the live food.
Sex and mating
As males and females can be distinguished by the bridge of the nose, it is possible to keep them in pairs and this should be practiced. The male has small bumps on the bridge of the nose, which can be recognized from a size of approx. 4 cm.
But never put two males or two females together, as they will chase/fight each other until the weaker animal dies.
As a general rule, these animals should not be kept in a tank with lots of large and fast-eating fish, as they are rather slow and cautious eaters.
Food intake
Initially, the fish take a very long time to eat, before the food is taken up, a thorough inspection is carried out. After acclimatization, they will eat the frozen food offered without any problems. It should be noted that wild-caught fish behave differently to captive-bred fish when it comes to food intake. The size of the fish you buy also plays a role in choosing the right food for captive-bred fish.
They feed on small crustaceans and also prey on other fish (source, Wikipedia).
