Indian Mudskipper setup

[Fishyfan]

Hey guys,

I would like to set up a Indian mudskipper (Periophthalmus novemradiatus) tank, but there doesn't seem to be too much info about keeping mudskippers on the internet. I have 3 magazines with an article about mudskippers, and the only thing they say about Indian mudskippers is that they max out at about 4" and that they are harder to keep. Does anyone know why they say that Indian mudskippers are hard to keep? Not as hardy? I have a 40 gallon tank (48"L x 12" D x 16" H) and i am going to divide that in half so that would give the mudskippers a 24" x 12" land area and a 24" x 12" water area. Does that sound good? Would two 12" x 12" areas be better? Maybe a few mangroves? I'm thinking of keeping the water level at 6-8" as i would like to keep a few small fish to occupy the water area. Does anyone know what mudskippers are compatible with? I've always wanted to keep a fig 8 puffer, probably too big... As for food, my LFS carries live blackworms, krill and baby crickets. From what ive read, that sounds like a good diet for mudskippers. Right now, i have a fluval 304 on the tank. Would this make a good filter? It seems that mudskippers also need humid air, am i correct? If i were to position the filter outtake so that it makes a little bit of splashing, would that keep the humidity up? I also have tight acrylic tops to keep the aquarium humid. Also, Ive read that SG can be kept anywhere from 1.005-1.015. What would be the optimum SG?

Does my plan sound good? Please post your comments or suggestions

thanks

[kass]

I currently have 2 indian mudskippers and find them to be quite hardy (I've moved them between 2 cities 2 times, which have very different water) althought I think that would depend on how healthy they are when you recieve them as they would most likely be quite small and wild caught. Your tank size sounds great, I just put mine in a 20 L from a 10 gallon and they're loving the extra space, its really bringing out their personalities... except that one of them hasn't eaten since. I find my mudskippers spend around 95% of the time on land and most of that time is on "flooded land", where they can be in the water but their head is above the water line. I think a F8 would definately not work, and I'm not sure about any other fish. I know mine eat feeder guppies, which I give them very occasionaly. My skippers eat just about anything, their favorite is bloodworms. When they were smaller they had much dificulty eating crickets, they couldnt really bite through them and usually just killed them and left them. Even now that their a bit bigger they still have to chew them for a while.... and they always leave the head. If you have a tight fitting lid the air in the tank should be fine. I dont think its necessary to create splashing, as long as there is some current it should be fine. I find splashing waters makes the glass quite dirty and salt creep could be an issue. I keep mine at around 1.005, although they have been in an SG of around 1.012 and did fine. They also like a pH of around 8.
Your plan sounds great! Hope that Helps.

[kass]

If your looking for tank mates, I currently have 2 fiddler crabs in with them and so far they are getting along fine. There is also another member here that has fiddlers with his skippers.
Just wondering how many mud skippers your planning on getting? With a 40 gallon you should be able to house 4-5 I would think, provided there is enough land area for teritories, or else it could get ugly.