Pipefish are cute, eye-catching creatures, just like their relatives, the seahorse. They undoubtedly enhance tank aesthetics, but in return, they have demanding care needs and complex diet requirements. Pipefish are delicate and need pristine water conditions, so they aren’t the ideal choice for novice aquarium enthusiasts. If you’re new to aquarium keeping, you may have to reconsider adding them to your tank. Read on to discover more about whether pipefish are suitable for beginner fishkeepers.
Pipefish Aren’t Suited for First-Time Fish Owners
Pipefish are delicate, sensitive creatures, so they aren’t a good choice for beginner fishkeepers. They need pristine water conditions and a specialized live food diet; you must feed them several times daily. Caring for these creatures is challenging, even for expert fish enthusiasts. Furthermore, most are saltwater species, and keeping a saltwater fish tank can be difficult for beginners.
As noted, pipefish are closely related to seahorses, but they look like small, thin pipes instead of mini horses, hence the name. They can grip aquatic structures with their tail, but unlike seahorses, they have a small dorsal fin, which helps them to swim. Even with the fin, however, they are incredibly weak swimmers.
There are hundreds of pipefish species, and they can grow up to 18 inches long and live for over 10 years. Not all of them survive in captivity, and the most common species for home saltwater aquariums include:
- The Yellow Multiband Pipefish
- The Janss’ Pipefish
- The Banded Pipefish (the most common home aquarium species)
- The Bluestripe Pipefish (is the hardiest and most adaptable)
- The Dragonface Pipefish
Pipefish Have Demanding Care Needs
Pipefish are unique fish to add to your tank, but they are not easy to care for and will challenge even the most experienced fish keepers. One of the main challenges with these creatures is their diet, which we’ll explore in the next section. Pipefish also produce lots of waste, meaning keepers must dedicate sufficient time to monitoring and maintaining their water conditions. If you don’t manage the tank correctly, the waste will quickly pollute the water and become toxic to the inhabitants. Pipefish can perish in unsanitary living conditions.
Pipefish need ample space – and you must keep them in a minimum 30-gallon tank. Ideally, you should give them more than their minimum space requirements because they produce so much waste. A small tank becomes dirtier more quickly than a large one. They need a pH between 8.1 and 8.4, and the temperature must be between 74 – 80 F; you may need a water heater for your fish tank. Regularly testing their aquarium water is essential for their health, and you must deep clean the tank every two to four weeks.
Pipefish Mostly Eat Microscopic Prey
Pipefish are unique aquatic creatures with a diet to match. The best diet for pipefish is live food, such as mysis shrimp, brine shrimp, baby brine, ghost shrimp, and other tiny tank creatures, such as amphipods. They are carnivores with minute mouths, so they can only eat microscopic prey. Pipefish thrive in well-established tanks with a dense population of microorganisms. Many keepers add live rock to their tanks because the tiny organisms help clean the water and are a fantastic food source for fish.
One of the things that makes the pipefish diet complex is that they don’t recognize pellets or frozen foods as a food source. You must feed them live food several times daily, with a target feed, such as a baster, and ensure that they suck the food in through their snout. There are some accounts in online fish forums of pipefish accepting frozen food, but usually, they won’t adapt. If you want to try your fish with frozen food, you must thaw it first.
Do Pipefish Need a Special Habitat?
Pipefish need an enriching, mentally stimulating habitat with plenty of hitching spots and hiding places. A hitching spot is a place they can grip with their tail and anchor themselves. The ideal hitching spots are grabbable artificial plants, coral, or decorative chains. Fake aquarium plants are better for hitching because they are more secure and robust, but pipefish may also appreciate some live aquarium plants in their tank. In the wild, they anchor themselves to plants and wait for prey to pass. They also feel most secure when they can camouflage against seagrass and reeds.
The next thing you need to know about the pipefish habitat is that they can’t tolerate strong currents. They are poor swimmers and can easily get sucked into the filter. You should also avoid housing stinging coral and anemones in the same tank as your fish because they can irritate their skin. Pipefish also need good lighting so that they can see their tiny food.
What Are the Best Tankmates for Pipefish?
The best tankmates for pipefish are other pipefish or seahorses. They have a passive nature and are weak swimmers, so they can’t compete with fast, dominant fish at feeding time. Pipefish will undoubtedly become a target for bullying and potentially starve in a diverse tank. Seahorses are incredibly similar to pipefish in their care needs and diet – and are also timid, making them the ideal companions.
Some fish keepers report keeping pipefish with peaceful species such as Cardinals, Gobies, Dragonettes, and Blennies. Passive invertebrates, such as some snail and shrimp species, also make good tank mates. Adding peaceful inverts to an aquarium will help to maintain the water because they are tank cleaners and thrive on algae and leftover food particles.
Pipefish like to live in pairs or small groups, and a group needs lots of space because females are territorial. The males give birth and carry the babies in a brooding pouch, like their cousins, seahorses. Females perform mesmerizing courtship rituals for the males, and the babies hatch after around six weeks.
