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Re: LI Killie
-----Original Message-----
From: Josh Wiegert <jwiegert at nexus_v-wave.com>
To: nfc at actwin_com <nfc at actwin_com>
Date: Tuesday, July 07, 1998 8:13 PM
Subject: LI Killie
>Did some collecting over the w/e on Long Island. One of the fishes I
>brought back was a very common baitfish, commonly called a "Kiliefish."
>This is definitely a marine fish, though fom what I've heard, I could have
>brought them back in some moist towels, :) Anyone know what exactly these
>guys are, what they'll eat (esp. if they'll hurt the soft corals in my
>tank) and so on?
>
I would assume that on Long Island you collected either mummichogs (Fundulus
heteroclitus) or striped killifish (Fundulus majalis). They are carnivores
and will eat most anything you decide to feed them, but I don't know if they
will bother soft corals. They are both extremely hardy fish. I have
accidently left them a seine overnight only to return the next day and find
them quite alive and frisky.
Their salinity tolerance (especially F. heteroclitus) is also notable. I
used to collect them as food for fish in a freshwater tank. They were
collected in approx. 10-15 ppt salinity and dumped directly into the 0 ppt
tank. They were momentarily stunned by the salinity change, but if the
predators did not get them immediately they generally recovered and were
then too fast for the the predators to catch.
They are, altogether, quite remarkable fish. If you decide to breed them,
the males will put on a nice color display for you.
I hope this helps.
Ed Matheson
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