Flashlight Fish?

seth16 · #1 04/12/2007, 10:54 PM

Does this fish REALLy light up, i mena the spots? like does it have bioluminecent light producing cells? That would be sooo cool, like to turn off your tanks lights and then see two little lights moving all around the tank....hahaha, does anyone know anything about this?

http://www.saltwaterfish.com/site_11...ot_parent_id=4

I want to get one..hahaha, that looks soooo cool

chrisstie · #2 04/12/2007, 11:01 PM

yep http://liveaquaria.com/product/prod_...catid=1156&N=0

jsl6v8 · #3 04/12/2007, 11:02 PM

hmm i would do a little research but I do know that some deep water predators(s/p???) will have a light they light up to lure unsuspecting fish into their jaws. But I don't know much about this particular fish but it does look like in the pictures as if it actually lights up.

seth16 · #4 04/12/2007, 11:03 PM

and when i googled it, i didnt find too much info on the fish itself, but more on other bioluminecent fish, like anglers and other things like that...... man, wouldnt that be a cool fish to have in a tank?

jsl6v8 · #5 04/12/2007, 11:07 PM

I'm rather shocked its a peaceful fish, with a flashlight on him he would attract fishes I would expect, including other predators don't imagine that being a perk for a little peaceful fish.

edwing206 · #6 04/12/2007, 11:07 PM

Good news, they do light up
Bad news, they are difficult to kep in home tank. Forget why, I think because of their feeding habits.

They have some at The Seattle Aquarium and they are SOOOO cool to watch.

seth16 · #7 04/12/2007, 11:08 PM

It says only expert care is allowed for this fish, when saltwaterfish says it is an easy fish to care for. SFW.com is pretty accureate, i have found more flaws with live aquaria, so IDK what ti think, loooking at what the parameters have to be for this guy, i dont see why it would be too much of a problem for me, but then again, i am only a couple years into the hobby...what do you guys think?

seth16 · #8 04/12/2007, 11:09 PM

Yeah, i would think it would be aggressive aswell, but hey, that makes it that much more of a candidate for my tank, but i will have ot get A LOT more info on it and find out exactly why it is so hard to care for...

jsl6v8 · #9 04/12/2007, 11:12 PM

well I have a black ribbon eel and all sites list him as near impossible to keep, because they generally don't eat, but in truth once they are eatting no easier eel out there, mine is a charm :-)

Sorry I just like to brag about my eel given any chance

SSweet1 · #10 04/13/2007, 03:31 PM

I researched these a ton and saw some here at Atlantis before they closed. They are similar in attitude as a firefish very peaceful but must be kept in groups. A single flashlight fish would surely die. They are nocturnal in nature like a bangaii so alot of rocks to shade them would be good. They also jump like firefish so be careful! I really wanted to get a few of these guys because my inwall is in my bedroom. They were kinda expensive so I never ended up getting them however they are a really cool looking fish!! Oh and they eat Mysis. Good Luck and post pictures if you get some!! Carrie

seth16 · #11 04/13/2007, 07:10 PM

Well, if i DID get some, it wouldnt be for a couple months as i only get $400 a month in school and $1000 in the summer, and need to buy a car and pay for insurance...... but that is definately one of the fish i would look into, so you said you have done alot of research on them, is the "expert" thing in terms of only having ONE fish, meaning that if i got say two, they would be fine and eat well and all? or are they just really hard fish to keep anyways?

SSweet1 · #12 04/13/2007, 09:08 PM

Honestly I would get at least 3 to be happy, they are supposed to group like chromis do.

seth16 · #13 04/13/2007, 09:31 PM

well, then it may be a while, as they are $70 each on SWF. But are they really hard to keep? like i know that alot of fish are labeled "hard to keep" for reaosns like feeding habits and fragileness....what would it be for this fish?

SSweet1 · #14 04/14/2007, 08:47 AM

If you know that they like rock to hide in and stay in small groups and feed them PE mysis or even live to get them started then they will be fine. If you just get one and throw it in a tank with some aggressive fish (even mildly) they will certaintly perish. They have to list them as fragile because they do have more care required then say a tang or clownfish. Also for some reason even though they are relatively small they need a larger tank and some people will just get fish because they are cool and stick them in a 25 gallon. Now that you know about them and can provide for them you'll be fine. If I wasnt moving I would be looking for some myself, they are really an interesting fish.
Carrie

triggerfish1976 · #15 04/14/2007, 07:30 PM

I would not recommend getting one unless you are planning on doing a species specific tank and want to devote extra time and money to be able to provide these fish with the care they need.
I have attempted to keep Flashlight and Pineapple fish in the past in a reef tank and I determined that these types of setups are not appropriate habitats for these fish. If I were to try them again I would setup the following tank:

100g or larger tank - These fish need plenty of rock work and space in order to feel comfortable.
VHO lighting using mainly actinic spectrum bulbs - M/H lighting is to much for these guys and causes them to hide deep in the rock work.
Chiller - These fish naturally come from cooler deeper waters so the tank temp. should be kept in the mide 70's.
Refugium - These fish rarely except prepared foods. A refugium may keep the pod population dense enough to supply these fish with a constant food source. I would also recommend adding vitamen enriched live brine and ghost shrimp every few days.

If you do a search for these fish on RC you will find very few long term sucess stories with these fish because there requirements for care make it hard to justify their cost.