Toadfish terror!

[Grunt]

Hi Dr. Ron

Today I found an oyster toadfish(forgot scientific name) in my tank. It was put there spring break by my girlfriend. It was about 1/2 of an inch when she put it in. She said hey look what I brought back. UGH! Tried to get him then but he shot into some rocks. Well today I tried to bait and hook him. After 45mins of that I finally got ****ed off enough to pull up rocks. I still am trying to catch him. He was at least 3 inches.....From 1/2in at spring break to 3inches now. In a 30gal, how much crustaceans have fallen prey to him? How do you think he has affected my creature population? I know these creatures eat anything and everything they can find. Does he eat pods by any chance? Should I just let him grow to about 5inches where he will be easier to catch? Thanks for any information you can offer.
-Josh

[rshimek]

Josh,

I have moved your thread here as I think you may get more informed opinion here.

I haven't kept one of these fish so I can't work from experience.

Going from 1/2 inch to three inches, would indicate a LOT of successful feeding, so I suspect it has impacted your crustacean population. However, if the bug population was large and you have provided good microhabitats, it may not be signficantly effected.

Good luck in the information quest.
:D

[hcs3]

hey josh

Today I found an oyster toadfish(forgot scientific name) in my tank. It was put there spring break by my girlfriend.

how are you sure that you've got an oyster toadfish? oysters aka Opsanus tau rarely occur in southern habits. depending on where your girlfriend vacationed, it might not be an oyster. more likely, it's a leopard toad aka Opsanus pardus or a common toad aka Opsanus beta . these are regularly occurred by tourists because they tend to be attracted to dirty, polluted water. the leopards look very similar the oyster, but are found in the gulf of mexico. oysters are found in the atlantic, all along the eastern seaboard. rarely as south as miami. the common toad sometimes extends down to the bahamas.

all toads are voracious eaters. the growth of yours shows it is obviously eating. i'm assuming there are no other fish present in this tank? at least not anymore? are you feeding this tank at all? they are active feeders, so it will feed on anything you put into the tank.

all 3 toads discussed above get large. at least over 12", possibly up to 15". they do extremely well in small 30g tanks. as your aware of, they tend to hide, often not moving a bit unless/until food is near. even then, it's a quick dash and back to the same hiding spot.

possibly earlier when your toad was 1/2" it may have preyed upon your microfauna, but i doubt it now. however, any type of larger crustacean is fair game now. the amount of devastation is up to you, i think. if you direct feed it, i think it will put less pressure on your tanks inhabitants, and make a neat tank inhabitant.

what you you do with it is up to you, but if you decide to get rid of it, please find a good home for it or take it to a pet store.

HTH

henry

[Grunt]

It was collected in West Palm Beach. Off of a dock. I had been cast netting for mullet and stuf and I would get oysters. My girlfriend went picking through it looking for the neat critters. She put everything into a little butter container. We left ath day....

It is an oyster toadfish. I checked it in various books and it looks exactly like one. I thought they were voracious feeders thats why I asked Ron about my fauna lvls.

I hate these fish, I catch them all the time. It usually takes pliers to get them off hte hook. They are garabe fish. :D
Thanks for the info hcs3
-Josh

[Bob McGee]

Would a toadfish be an effective preditor againts a mantis shrimp?

[hcs3]

though i have no experience with toadfishes, i do with mantis. i think a toad would be a quick meal for a full sized mantis. however, an adult toad and a juvenile mantis could be interesting...

henry

[Crazy-Algae-Eater]

Cool Post

[M.Dandaneau]

An adult toadfish will likely consume an adult mantis with ease, any species up to the size of a Peacock.

Use care with your toadfish........they will vigorously defend their lair under rocks, etc. and attack any digit within range without hesitation, locking on with a vise-like bulldog grip and often having to be pried off with pliars (rated by this poster as EXTREMELY PAINFUL)**grin**.

These often come in 3 sexes, by the way...Huge males, small females and small female mimics that are actually males.

The male guards the eggs and fry (VERY easy to spawn and raise in captivity) under a ledge or in an empty shell, getting several females to lay eggs for him if possible......that's where the 3rd sex comes in, allowed in by the normal male and guarded while he has his way with the ladies in the bedroom.

The first three dorsal spines, by the way, are mildly venomous and they are occassionally sold as "Freshwater Lionfish" due to the ability of some to survive in very light brackish mixes.

There are a couple of tropical species that are simply beautiful, but with the same attitudes

Mike

[hcs3]

my dive master came away with three bloodied fingers after trying to lure out the splendid toadfish thursday while diving in coz :)

...and no, i didn't get a pic of the attack :lol:

[M.Dandaneau]

That's GOT to be tough for a dive master! LOL!

Not too many years ago, the splendid toadfish was highly sought after, before its extremely small range was discovered.....strangely, that area and Belize seems to be the home of all the royalty in that family with the whitelined toadfish (Sanopus greenfieldorum) and the whitespotted toadfish (Sanopus astrifer) occuring there.

Many don't realize that the toadfish has a Pacific relative which has become internationally famous as the source of the "singing" that can be heard and even felt in the San Francisco area during their courting season.

They've always reminded me of "Oscar, the Grouch" of Sesame St. fame, and are even often found locally residing in old tin cans littering the bottom of bays and estuaries.


Mike