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jim27

jim27

Member
risc:
I've been reading my book about sharks as pets and it mentions a few kinds of epaulette sharks that arn't "readily available for the aquarium trade that would be well suited in captivity". They are the Hallstorm's Epaulette shark and the Freycient's Epaulette shark. The book says that the freyinet's epaulette gets to be 18" and the hallstorm's epaulette get to be 30". What I want to know is if you have ever heard of/had one of these sharks and if so did you get it at a lfs or did you diver get you it?
 
howlnsound

howlnsound

New Member
risc,
thanks for the info! when I'm ready, I hope you'll be around if I have more questions.
I think I am going to put the word out to my distributors to look out for a Ward's Wobbegong. I believe I can give it the best environment while still having some leway about tankmates as long as they are large.
thanks again !
kevin
 
risc

risc

Member
JIM27 and HOWLNSOUND:
I have both epaulettes presently and I know someone that can get them. I also can get Ward's wobbegongs... the only problem right now is that it's very late in season for wobbes and they might be hard to come by.
Just an FYI.
Jim
 
jim27

jim27

Member
risc:
Since Freycient's Epaulette sharks only get to be 18" long would I be able to keep two or three in a 150g?
 
jim27

jim27

Member
risc:
How does that person get the epaulettes for you? My lfs has a 8' x 2' x 2' 240g with lights and stand for $500, how many freycient's epaulettes could comfortably live in it? And how many bamboos could live in itwithout being cramped? Are there any other sharks that would be good for it?
[ September 08, 2001: Message edited by: JIM27 ]
 
risc

risc

Member
JIM27:
You could put 2 Freycient's epaulettes. You could really only put two full grown bamboos in their comfortably. The only problem with that tank you are referring to is that it is only 2 feet wide. A bamboo cat can grow to near 4 feet long. That being said it will be extremely difficult for it to turn around in the tank. If you could get a tank that is 30 to 36 inches wide it would be better for the fish.
Jim
 
risc

risc

Member
Any fish that you can keep with sharks has already been mentioned in my previous posts.
But I think this is probably a good time to mention to you guys that are looking to buy tanks for sharks. The sizes of the tanks that you are thinking of putting in your home or place of residence are going to be large and very heavy. A full 240 gallon tank is going to weigh about 2,800 pounds.
You have the tank, the water, the substrate, the stand, the filtration weight, and any other aquascaping in there to think about.
If it is a glass tank it will weigh even more. Houses unless specially designed can only hold 200lbs per square foot. So it is important for you to take that into consideration. You generally cannot stick these tanks on upper floors of your home. If you have a slab foundation you can put them safely on the first level. Otherwise you may as well start thinking of putting it in the basement, because anywhere else you might have an aquarium sized hole through your floor. Of course homeowners insurance will cover it in case you want to take the risk :p
Jim
 
jim27

jim27

Member
Originally posted by risc:
<STRONG>JIM27 and HOWLNSOUND:
I have both epaulettes presently and I know someone that can get them
Jim</STRONG>
Where does that person get them? I really want two of those freycient's epaulettes. I know the tank should be about 6ft long and about 30" deep but how tall should a tank be for them?
[ September 09, 2001: Message edited by: JIM27 ]
 
risc

risc

Member
JIM27:
After you get your tank setup and cycled and all your equipment bought I can tell you.
Later,
Jim
 
risc

risc

Member
You don't need tall tanks unless you have requiem sharks. You could get by with a tank that is 22 inches or 24 inches no big deal. Just remember that the taller your tank is also the harder it is to clean. Unless you enjoy diving into your tank. Anything much over 30 inches tall and you might as well climb on in.
Jim
 
risc

risc

Member
sweels:
Best practice is a tank 96x48x36 or 720 gallons. But you could probably do 72x48x30 or 450 gallon. With reef sharks lenth, width, and height are ALL important. Unless your tank is completely bare of everything but sand you don't have to worry so much about height. Never less than 6 feet long and never less than 4 feet wide. If you have a 3 foot wide tank you will probably be ok for 2 months or maybe slightly more. But don't even bother, by the time he breaks into your tank and is really comfortable you will have to get rid of him. And believe me it costs a lot of money to get rid of a reef shark. Shipping costs for that much weight aren't very reasonable.
Jim
 
risc

risc

Member
sweels:
You are going to need a 16x4x4 at the minimum. Which is 2,000 gallons. I recommend something more like 16x6x4... and if you have the money 16x10x4. But he will be fine with the 16x4x4. You cannot get by with any less width or height... that is it.
Jim
 
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