Channa Stewartii and Blehri

NOTE - It is not illegal to keep SH where I stay..

I picked up 3 Channas s a couple of days ago.. The Blehri follows my finger where as one of the stewartiis flares when I pass by... Sharing some pics of them and a vid of my fav stewartii.. I shall take some more pics/vids in a day or two..

Baby Blehri


Stewartiis




[YOUTUBE]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70X8BhOkWhU[/YOUTUBE]

Don't mean to be rude, but that Bleheri looks in bad shape. Even for new tank. Are you sure it is Channa Bleheri?
Here is a picture of my Bleheri when I first got them 20mins in their new tank after a shipment:



Months later settled in, these two became a pair:



My male:


My pair formed within a few months, and have spawn fry on 4 occasions.

IMO, your Snakeheads look in a bad way due to their housing having no cover. Channa DO NOT fair well in bare tanks. They need heavy foliage.

Also I suspect you are keeping their water too warm.
Remember both Bleheri and Stewartii are both SUB tropical. Water temps should be no more than 22c in the summer and around 18c outside winter.

Also, are they in the same tank? If they are, your bleheri will not live for much longer.

To answer your questions..

Each snakehead is in a separate 3x2x1.5 feet tank.. The tanks have gravel, driftwood and plastic plants..

The snakeheads were got from a local fish shop 1 day ago, the pics were taken 15 minutes after I got them.. 25 snakeheads were kept together in 1 tank hence they have fin and body damages..

The tank temperature is 25 degrees.. I stay in India and this is the coolest it gets...

The pics were taken from a point and shoot camera, not a professional camera..

Originally Posted by nikitanain

To answer your questions..

Each snakehead is in a separate 3x2x1.5 feet tank.. The tanks have gravel, driftwood and plastic plants..

The snakeheads were got from a local fish shop 1 day ago, the pics were taken 15 minutes after I got them.. 25 snakeheads were kept together in 1 tank hence they have fin and body damages..

The tank temperature is 25 degrees.. I stay in India and this is the coolest it gets...

The pics were taken from a point and shoot camera, not a professional camera..

First off, sorry if I sounded rude, I really didn't mean to.
I have had quite good success breeding Bleheri, and you can see from my pictures they grew into stunning Channa.

I meant my post as advice only, not criticism.

25c is a little too hot for Channa Bleheri, and they WILL NOT improve in color or patterning at that temperature. Same goes for the Stewartii.

Yours were taken 15 mins into the tank, my first pic is 20 mins into the tank, and the group of 6 I bought were also in a (rather small) tank with possibly 30.

Fin damage is not a worry, but the body color and stress patterning is. Keeping Channa too hot for too long can and does lead to bacterial infections. They are PRONE to Columnaris at this temps.

So as you may imagine, temperature REALLY does matter with Channa.
May I suggest getting some tank fans? they do work. You can combine that with a very small hole mesh cover, top cover plants (such as duck weed) and keep in shaded area. I bet you the temperature will lower!

Good luck with your Channa, if I were in India I would be out Channa hunting everyday, you guys have some stunning local fish!

Cheers, TGM.

Hi,

Sorry if I sounded rude as well, that was not my intent..

The channas were stressed when I got them, maybe that's why they look they way they did in the pics.. Furthermore, you may be correct, the blehri may not actually be a blehri, it may have been mislabeled. An id would be appreciated

I shall invest in tank fans for the channas, but it will take me 2 days to get the fans..

My camera doesnt do justice to these fellas, I shall try to take better pics soon

This is the best pic I could get from my cam.. This pic is of my favorite Stewartii..

[farish]

Do bhleri do ok when keep only 1 piece in a community of other bigger fish 0r better to keep a few together?

Originally Posted by farish

Do bhleri do ok when keep only 1 piece in a community of other bigger fish 0r better to keep a few together?

Al Channa do best in species only tanks. They are NOT community.
Channa Bleheri (and the large majority of smaller Channa are also SUB TROPICAL.
They need very cool water (think 16c-20c) so keeping with tropical fish is a no no.