New here, got some questions about leaf fish

[Sandtiger]

Hi, new here. I got a few questions about leaf fish. Do they require live food or could I stick some frozen silversides on some of those feeding tweezers that are used to simulate movement? Also, could I keep one of them in a five-gallon hex tank or do they need more room? Oh, one more thing, could I keep other (larger) herbavores with these guys?



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"There's a fine line betwen fishing and just standing on the shore like an idiot."
-Unknown *GOLDFISH*

 

[Fruitbat]

Sandtiger...

I'm assuming that the leaf fish you have is the more commonly available one from South America (Monocirrhus polyacanthus) but it is possible that you have something else. Where did you get the leaf fish and is there any possibility that you could post a picture?

If you do, indeed, have Monocirrhus polyacanthus then your chances of getting it off live food are very slender. These are very specialized hunters and their hunting response is often triggered by the prey's movement. I have heard of people getting their M. polyacanthus on to frozen food by impaling the frozen food (thawed, of course) on a piece of brook straw and wiggling it in front of the fish.

A 5-gallon hex is too small to house an adult of any of the leaf fishes but a juvenile would be fine in it for a while because they're not particularly active fish. You could house larger herbivorous tank-mates with it as well (though you'd be pushing to the stocking limit in a 5-gallon hex) as long as they're not aggressive to the leaf fish.

Hope this helps

-Joe

 

[Sandtiger]

Thanks fruitbat. I actually don't have a leaf fish yet, I was asking in advance so I didn't make a mistake after I got one. I already have a 20 gallon rectangular tank with nothing in it yet, that's why I was asking about tank-mates for a leaf fish, I wouldn't keep them in a 5-gallon hex! Thanks again! BTW, what would be a good tank size for a leaf fish? (Yes it would be the South American leaf fish.)

____________
"There's a fine line between fishing and just standing on the shore like an idiot."
-Unknown *GOLDFISH*

 

[Fruitbat]

A 20 gallon tank should be fine for a leaf fish. They can get to 6 inches in length but because of their sedentary habits they don't need a whole lot of swimming room.

-Joe

 

[Sandtiger]

Cool, thanks.