Any cool Natives ?

[BrAin]

Just wondering if you have any cool natives. I thought about catching some of those colorful sunfish (red) but havent really decided if I want to go that direction on my next tank change.

[mnemenoi]

There are quite a few cool natives, just depends on what size your trying to go for. Most of the larger sunfish/perch/bass/gar/bowfin can get sizey. There are quite a few smaller oddballs that can be very cool as well, killifish, Heterandia Formosa, tadpole madtoms, pirate perch and even chain pickeral are all very interesting. There are a few brackish fish like the Jade Sleeper, Diamond Killifish, mangrove killifish (the only vertebrate hermaphrodite), sheepshead, and sailfin molly if that appeals to you. Some cool amphibians are also very interesting and entirely aquatic like the Amphiuma and Sirens. Quite a bit that is found locally that can be fun to keep...

[BrAin]

I was thinking about the bigger fish. I've had mollies, killifish, and even had a few of the jades. If I catch some more I'll usually keep them but not always.

[sunkenmetal]

I need a swimming pool for some gar lol

[alexrex20]

the Texas cichlid is pretty nice

[mdwalt]

Longear sunfish (Lepomis megalotis) are my favorite. They get to about 6" to 8" max, have incredible coloration, are not very agressive and have great tank personalities. I thoroughly enjoy mine! They can be caught just about anywhere.

[Tek]

I need a swimming pool for some gar lol

me too. some of those things look really nice.

[mistahoo]

Caught like 5 lepomus macrochirus the other day. 2 of them had sky blue dorsals and tails with a dark blue body and their bellies were a bright orangish red.

[sunkenmetal]

Caught like 5 lepomus macrochirus the other day. 2 of them had sky blue dorsals and tails with a dark blue body and their bellies were a bright orangish red.

any pictures they sound sweet

[mistahoo]

any pictures they sound sweet

2 images of the same one. The other 4 died and this is the sole survivor (currently in QT). This one isn't as nice as the other two I mentioned. They practically killed themselves attacking the bait so aggressively (hook was too far down their gills)

[BrAin]

I picked up a Red Texas the other day out of compulsion. I was in a buying mood and the other fish stores had closed. I havent really decided if I'm going to go that direction of if I want to maybe try peacocks.
Your also right about the longears. I bet they get some awesome colors in the right water. There is a creek near Cleveland where we caught some dark red sunfish one time and I think those may be cool also.

[mistahoo]

I picked up a Red Texas the other day out of compulsion. I was in a buying mood and the other fish stores had closed. I havent really decided if I'm going to go that direction of if I want to maybe try peacocks.
Your also right about the longears. I bet they get some awesome colors in the right water. There is a creek near Cleveland where we caught some dark red sunfish one time and I think those may be cool also.

Yeah they do! There were two that just attacked the bait once in water. Sadly that was the cause of their death. Thinking of starting a native tank after seeing how nice they could look

[decal]

Longears are crazy awesome. It's amazing that we have such a beautiful fish here that's completely neglected in the fish trade. There's a lot of variation in them through the states in terms of coloration and size. The one's down here are pretty unique, will probably be elevated to the level of a new species at some point. Redbreast and redspotted sunfish are also cool looking. Most of the pictures of redspots online don't do them justice, when I first caught one in Oyster Creek I didn't even recognize it because it was so colorful.

You can reduce mortality by cutting the barbs of your hooks and using larger cricket hooks. Be careful collecting now in the heat, battery powered air pumps help a lot.

Tadpole madtoms are also pretty tight. Miniature catfish that don't produce as much waste and aren't as predatory as the bullheads, channel cats etc. They hide most of the time, but once settled in they come out to feed in a frenzy. My largest ones are only around four, maybe five inches.

[BrAin]

I've got enough access to water that I wouldnt use a hook and line. Cages and nets are alot easier on the fish. A long time ago, I used an old rabbit cage to catch perch in the pond. I would leave it for a day and they would enter through the door in the front. I think it was b/c they like structure alot.

I'm liking the idea of a native tank with some colorful "perch" but it seems almost too easy. I guess b/c I always had some around. (got one now <1")