Anyone Keeping leafy seadragons

[fishoholic]

Originally Posted by justinl

ha haaaaaaa. yeah see, the reason you can't find info on them is because it is very illegal to keep them. they are endemic to Australia (which causes problems just because of that) and while no one really knows if they are endangered (they are very good at camouflage) many suspect they are at least threatened (but then what isn't these days right?). plus, can you afford them at 10k a fish? the only places you'll see them in captivity is at public aquariums with special grants.

There is also the somewhat less pricey weedy seadragon, but same deal applies.

I would encourage you to give up that one. If you have that much cash to burn, you can always donate to me ... no? fine, but if you're really into sea dragons, have you taken a look at ribbon sea dragons? technically they're pipefish, but i guarantee you won't find many home aquaria with them. They are captive bred at some public aquariums, including the Vancouver Aquarium, so if you need info on them, that's the place for you to hit.

have you kept any sygnathids before? I ask because you plan on putting them in after only a month of tank set up... which is a big no no. the system will not even be close to mature or stable enough to support them.

I second that.

[fkshiu]

Charles Delbeek gave us the low down on keeping sea dragons during that lecture at Big Al's a while back. I've forgotten most of the details (except that they require a gentle constant up flow of water - sort of like a verticle gyre) but suffice it to say that they are clearly NOT simple creatures to keep alive. Probably one of those things that should be left in the ocean or at least to public aquaria.

[Chaloupa]

I completely agree......I looked into them when I found them online once....and couldn't get them...at least the avenues I was trying, and they were completely illegal to own. Best left for Mother Nature to take care of in my opinion.

[brizzo]

Wow I had never heard of seen pictures of a Leafy Sea Dragon! What a beautiful and mysterious looking creature!

If its not commonly available, (and illegal!!!), then you shouldn't be keeping them!