General newbie questions..

[guidofatherof5]

Here's a short list I found of safe and not safe fish. Article: Thiaminase – What it is, why you care

[Snake lover 3-25]

tailapia isn't on that list???

[guidofatherof5]

It was just a short list I found. I'll see if I can find the long one.

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

Fathead minnows, aka rosy reds, are not safe and contain thiaminase.

[Snake lover 3-25]

but what about FLAThead minnows???

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

Those, I do not know.... are we sure they are not just two misnomers for the same group of fishes?!

[misskris]

Flathead Chub.




Hybopsis gracilis

• Characteristics - straw to brown colored on back shading to silver on the sides and belly, strongly depressed head and large sickle-shaped pectoral fins
• Distribution - Missouri River drainage
• Foods - aquatic insects and young fish Flathead chubs have a body form, which is adapted for life in strong currents. The most distinctive characters are their strongly depressed head and large sickle-shaped pectoral fins. A large, sub-terminal mouth has a barbel at the corner of the jaw. Pharyngeal teeth are arranged in a pattern of 2, 4-4, 2. The dorsal, anal, and pelvic fins contain 8 rays, while the pectoral fins contain from 16 to 19 rays. The lower lobe of the caudal fin is usually darker than the upper lobe. A complete lateral line contains from 48 to 57 scales. These chubs are straw to brown colored on the back, shading to silver on the sides and belly.
  This chub species is found in large schools over shallow, sandy bars in the smaller tributary streams. They can survive quite well in turbid water, which historically characterized the Missouri River. This minnow is quite active when feeding on aquatic insects and young fish. Little is known about their spawning habits, but they are believed to be summer spawners. Adults reach 10 inches in length after 4 years of life.

[misskris]

Fathead Minnow



Pimephales promelas

• Characteristics - dark olive above with coppery tinge behind head and along sides, sides silvery and belly white; back broad and flat in front of dorsal fin; dusky band or blotch in front and rear rays of dorsal fin; maximum length of about 3 inches
• Distribution - statewide in streams, man-made lakes and natural lakes
• Foods - microscopic plants, small insects and their larvae

Other names - blackhead minnow, tuffy minnow

The fathead minnow is found in every watershed and is considered the most abundant and widespread fish in Iowa. It is listed as common to abundant in nearly all fish collections from streams, man-made lakes and natural lakes. The continental range of this cyprinid is centered in the Midwest and Great Plains states, but it also extends through the Great Lakes basin to New York, south to Texas and New Mexico, and north into the Yukon Territories.
Fathead minnow has a stout body form that is moderately compressed laterally with a broad flat area just before the dorsal fin. A typical Pimephales, they have a shortened and closely attached first ray in the dorsal fin and smaller, crowded scales in advance of the dorsal fin. The small, terminal mouth is oblique and without a barbel. Slender, slightly hooked pharyngeal teeth are arranged in a 4-4 array. Body color is dark olive above with a tinge of copper or brass behind the head and along the sides. The sides are lighter with a silvery hue, and the belly is white. A dusky band or blotch appears in the front and rear rays of the dorsal fin, which helps distinguish them from the bullhead minnow and bluntnose minnow. The lateral band is faint in specimens from turbid waters and prominent in specimens from clear water. An incomplete lateral line, which does not reach to the caudal peduncle, contains from 42 to 48 scales. Intestine length is about twice the body length and the peritoneum is black. Dorsal and pelvic fins contain 8 rays, while the anal fin contains 7 rays, and the pectoral fins contain 15 or 16 rays. Spawning males develop a swollen, black head with breeding tubercles appearing in three rows on the snout. Typical males are light silvery behind the opercle to the pectoral fins; then a dark bar extends to the insertion of the dorsal fin followed by a light bar to about mid-way along the dorsal fin.
Fathead minnows spawn from early May through August. The adhesive eggs are deposited on the under surface of floating objects, and the male guards them. The eggs hatch in 5 to 6 days. Adults reach a maximum length of about 3 inches. Food of the fathead consists mostly of microscopic plants, small insects and larvae, and occasionally fish.

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

well, there you go!

[infernalis]

Oops, I just saw the flathead, fathead (easily confused) Google time......

Here is a thread I started about Dace minnows. My snakes love these.

http://www.thamnophis.com/forum/husb...atratulus.html