Shark and Ray tank planning.

binaryterror · #1 04/21/2006, 06:05 PM

I decided to just go with a 240. Now, I am thinking of buying an Epaulette shark for the 240, and 1 or 2 rays (hopefully a mating pair if I can). But I am just wondering if that will work or not. Also, are these fish compatible:

-Achilles Tang
-Powder Blue Tang
-Vlamingii Tang
-Lunar Wrasse
-Goldentail Moray
-3 Heniocus Butterflies
-Lyretail Anthias school (if compatible with Eel)

Pilot Fish · #2 04/21/2006, 06:30 PM

I have seen tons of these threads that ask the same question, will these fish be ok together in my tank. The answer is who knows. You need to start off with a fish or two and see how they behave towards each other. You may get a few individuals that don't get along. As far as shark and ray tank planning goes I would plan on getting a much bigger tank. I have a 375 and I am very limited thats just reality when it comes to housing these animals. Don't listen to anyone who tells you can cramp a bamboo or banded catshark into a 200gal tank because they are only 8" long when you buy them in the store,but within year or so they will eventually grow to 4ft long.
Beacreful, a lot of LFS will tell you anything to sell you a shark or ray many times they are mis labeled or the sales kid has no clue anout the animal.

Lord Voldemort · #3 04/21/2006, 06:43 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Pilot Fish
Don't listen to anyone who tells you can cramp a bamboo or banded catshark into a 200gal tank because they are only 8" long when you buy them in the store,but within year or so they will eventually grow to 4ft long.
.

Hmm... No species of the hemiscylliidae family (bamboo/epaulette sharks) reach 4ft. Most get 3ft or lower. And they won't be 8" long when you buy em from the store. They can be 1" (in an egg) or 3ft as an adult.

Lord Voldemort · #4 04/21/2006, 06:44 PM

And the Sharks and Rays book should be read.

Lord Voldemort · #5 04/21/2006, 06:46 PM

Here's a thread with a girl owning a brownbanded bamboo shark in a 240 http://www.saltwaterfish.com/vb/showthread.php?t=181751

binaryterror · #6 04/21/2006, 07:33 PM

Thanks. I am sort of re-thinking getting a shark and ray.

Lord Voldemort · #7 04/21/2006, 08:58 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by binaryterror
Thanks. I am sort of re-thinking getting a shark and ray.

Understandable. I change my mind so quickly too. If you think you are ready go for it. If you don't, well, put it this way, you still have your whole life ahead of you

mitzel · #8 04/21/2006, 09:52 PM

NorthFace · #9 04/21/2006, 10:47 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Lord Voldemort
Hmm... No species of the hemiscylliidae family (bamboo/epaulette sharks) reach 4ft. Most get 3ft or lower. And they won't be 8" long when you buy em from the store. They can be 1" (in an egg) or 3ft as an adult.

Not to be rude but, PLEASE...do us all a HUGE favor and stop giving advice until you have proper experiance with sharks. Last time I checked, you not only have never owned a shark/ray but you dont even have a saltwater fish tank.

Bamboo Sharks will reach lengths close to 48", in the home aquaria...it is VERY, VERY common for them to max out 40" - 46" for both males and females, respectively.

Anyone can read a book and look at a few pages online and quote advice, as you do...it takes someone who's kept sharks and has quite a bit of experiance with them, before you should be giving other people starting advice.

evolust · #10 04/21/2006, 11:19 PM

Wow your stocking list looks similar to mine! I have a male female pair of epaulettes, a PBT, goldentail moray, vlamangi, and a squarespot anthias. Along with 6 other tangs. and i had a lunre in there. Trust me, that is a huge bioload! I have a 300g with 2 40g sumps, a G3 skimmer, a fuge and a UV. I do 35g water changes every week. And still have nitrates at 10-20ppm. I have also read that butterflies are a no-no with sharks, but I have no first hand experance with this. If you do set up a shark-ray tank a grounding probe is a must! I just put one on and it has really made a difference with the time the sharks stay out in the open instead of hiding all day. GL

binaryterror · #11 04/22/2006, 07:57 AM

How active are your sharks? I am trying to decide between a reef tank, or a shark tank.

binaryterror · #12 04/22/2006, 10:24 AM

Well, I changed my mind and am going with the shark tank. Will 2 Brownbanded sharks be able to live together in a 240? Or is that a bad idea. Maybe I could get 2 Epaulettes (or 1 if 2 is unmanegable). I am just wondering what the differences are between the Epaulette and Banded catshark? Thanks

evolust · #13 04/22/2006, 11:40 AM

Sharks are nocturnal, so they will be out all night and sleep most of the day. They will come out when they smell food, otherwise they hide during most of the day. Is this your first salt tank?

NorthFace · #14 04/22/2006, 01:11 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by binaryterror
Well, I changed my mind and am going with the shark tank. Will 2 Brownbanded sharks be able to live together in a 240? Or is that a bad idea. Maybe I could get 2 Epaulettes (or 1 if 2 is unmanegable). I am just wondering what the differences are between the Epaulette and Banded catshark? Thanks

You already have 2 very experianced people, telling you that a 240gal. tank would not be enough for one of those species...let alone two.

Evolust is willingly admitting that his 300gal. is cramped with his 2 Epps.

It just doesnt work...unless you're planning on substantially upgrading within a year of purchasing the sharks.

binaryterror · #15 04/22/2006, 01:29 PM

There is a guy on SWF.com that has a banded shark in a 240 for 3 years. And he is doing great. I would think that it will be big enough.

stykthyn · #16 04/22/2006, 08:49 PM

man, 2 in a 240 is gonna be bad news

evolust · #17 04/22/2006, 11:13 PM

They would be fine for a year or so in a 240 but then you will need to upgrade. A 240 is only 24inches from front to back right, within a year or two your shark will be over that in length and wont be able to turn around without bumping into the sides all the time. Just because somone else is doing it does not make it right. Just my .02

hambalid · #18 04/30/2006, 09:24 PM

Just out of curiosity, what are the dimensions of the 240 that you are considering? I have a 375 reef, but the dimensions are 72" x 60" x 20". Lots of swimming room for my fish.

I have no experience with sharks, but I came upon this thread doing a search for rays which I am casually considering.

I have some large active tangs that spend all day swimming around and around my tank because it has a large turning radius. Have you thought about the front to back depth of the tank?

How should the sharks be viewed? Just from the side(s)? How about from the top?

Not knowing about sharks, is depth very important for a sharktank? Could you shave of some height for some increased footprint? Either way, you have a very interesting project ahead of you. Best of luck!

jjcrim · #19 05/01/2006, 02:32 PM

Just wanted to throw in my $.02. I have an eppaullette and a stingray in a 220. They've both been in there about a year and the eppaullette is almost ready to move on to a bigger tank. The dimensions of the tank are important. Most of this is just opinion, but IMO, to house an epp. for life, I wouldn't go less than a footprint of 96" x 30" minimum. The 96" x 24" 240 gallon would only do for a while. Eppaullettes are among the most active and aggressive of the bottom dwelling sharks and they can reach lengths of up to 42 inches. After a while, they can make your tank start to look very small. IMO, stingrays are a better way to go and they're more active. If your heart's set on a shark, then consider a coral cat, marbled cat, grey bamboo or another that maxes out at around 25". Again, just my opinion.

Lrgclasper · #20 05/01/2006, 03:47 PM

I have a whitespotted bamboo and mexican hornsharks in my 300 for 4 years now, no issues. I would not mix sharks with stingrays thou- you may end up with a shark with a stinger wound. I have seen this happen when these species are mixed. I agree that you may want to go bigger for an epp., but if your 240 is the 96" and you watch your feeding, I think you will be okay for a while and may be ok for a very long time. Sharks have asymtotic growth which means they will grow fast initially, but as they near their full length, growth slows way down. The sex of the shark also makes a difference- females generally tend to grow a little larger. Moreover males have a smaller size at maturity (60cm for epp.).

I am not convinced stingrays are better option. Rockwork is generally out and you need to thinkabout the disc size on the fish. Many stingrays have a 20"plus disc size which makes it very difficult for the animal to move around. You have to remember Epaulatte sharks are used to tight spaces in the reef- stingrays generally are not.

Lrgclasper · #21 05/01/2006, 03:49 PM

I would go for the bamboo shark- easy to take care of and captive bred.

flyingace2005 · #22 05/01/2006, 06:03 PM

I have a 200 table tank (84X48X12) that I hope to set up this summer for a couple of small atlantic or california rays. If only this tank was taller it would make an awesome tank for a bamboo or something similar.