would like to start seahorse tank

[ferretscent]

I have had saltwater fish now for several years, and just recently got curious about seahorses. what is needed for them as far as setup, what kinds do people recommend? what size tank, filter, water flow, substrate, rock, etc...? I am just starting to do some research and would like the help and advice of others. I also would like to know if they are best kept alone, or is there other fish you can keep with them. I also was interested in weedy sea dragons. are they possible to keep heathly in an aquarium? please if you have advice let me know.

[TamiW]

To get this out of the way, no, you really can't keep weedy seadragons in a home aquarium. You'd need an absurdly large aquarium (I heard 600 gallons) with an absurdly large chiller. Then you'd need to locate a source for them, as their trade is highly regulated and you can only purchase captive bred ones. Since its mostly public aquariums you'll likely not have any luck obtaining them . . .

Regarding the specifics of seahorse keeping, the tank size will depend on the species. As a first seahorse, I recommend captive bred H. erectus. They CAN be kept in an aquarium as small as a 20high, but you're better off with a 30 - 40 gallon aquarium to start. Yes, you can keep other fish with them, but you have to choose non-aggressive tankmates. Gobies are great companions.

Water flow should be somewhere between 3x/5x per hour. I prefer the berlin method with skimmer for filtration, although you will find heated debate about whether or not a skimmer is okay with seahorses. Seahorses need hitching posts and more open space than your typical reef aquarium, so at least some tonga branch is a good idea for seahorse aquariums.

[seacraze]

Seahorses can be kept with Macros, corals and other livestock as long as they do not sting, are not agressive eaters and can survive the temperature requirements of the horses. Seahorses are very mellow so you don't want any animal in there which will out compete them for food. They also tend to get infections and very ill from stings, bites and poor water quality. Once they are ill its so had for them to recover. My seahorse medicine cabinet is very well stocked becuase once ill action has to be taken quickly.

Tank size I go by by is min - 30 Gallons and 15 to 20 additional gallons for each additional pair added. If two pairs min 45 gallons etc... If you wish for them to reproduce then I recommend a taller tank.

All of my seahorse tanks have live rock, sand, macros with the exception of the fry tanks which are bare bottom. FYI --- Weedy Sea dragons are near impossible to obtain legally - I would love to tackle that one !!

I have seahorse tanks on sumps and Hang on filters both work very well - I am more than happy to help you in anyway i can.

Of ll the tanks I have - nothing compares to being greeting first thing in the morning to dancing hungry happy horses! They are full of character and personality.