Re: NANFA-- FW: Black Banded Sunfish

Scott Davis (unclescott_at_prodigy.net)
Sun, 2 Jun 2002 22:39:40 -0500

> I have found that they need to be fed several times a day or they starve
to
> death...

Are blackworms appropriate fare for black banded sunfish? When trying to
discourage egg and/or fry eating among killies, it is possible to squirt a
day's worth of blackworms into a jar or turtle bowl or goldfish bowl -
depending upon the size of the customers. Something similar can be done with
livebearers with pronounced cannibalistic tendencies as they get ready to
drop.

It seems that blackworms can climb almost any surface in an aquarium except
glass. Being contained in a glass contraption keeps most of them out of the
gravel or spawning mops.

Some aquarium fishes are such dedicated bottom dwellers that they don't seem
to often get the hang of swimming up and into a worm bowl. I've seen
Nothobranchius and Apistogramma smack their faces trying to get through the
glass.

Would darters be clever enough to figure out how to get in?

For small fishes, such as the little sunfishes. which need to browse food
items over the course of the day, that little trick might be some help.

By the bye, don't try that in tank which is salted (not an issue with the
dwarf sunfish). Worms are sensitive to salt. One doesn't want a bunch of
blackworms dying and fouling the tank.

All the best!

Scott
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