Aquacultured Yellowbanded Pipefish

Pipefish are some of the neatest looking fish swimming, and the swimming part is the important detail when separating them from their close cousins the Seahorse. Unlike Seahorses, Pipefish don't do the whole grabbing onto things with their monkey-tails. For years many home aquarists have steered away from keeping them, based mostly on it being a challenge to get the wild caught fish to eat thawed foods. If you're a regular reader here on the website, you've followed along as Quality Marine is an avid supporter of aquaculture around the world. Today, we're shining some light on Dunckerocampus pessuliferus, an absolutely gorgeous pipefish being aquacultured. This has had a multitude of benefits, as we can help protect a species that is threatened in the wild, and importantly for aquarists everywhere, they are much easier to feed than their wild counterparts, solving the primary issue in their husbandry!

Dunckerocampus pessuliferus is more commonly called the Yellow Multi Banded Pipefish, though it also gets called Yellow Banded and Yellow Barred Pipefish, and all these names are apt for a fish with a reddish-brown body with brilliant yellow stripes. They are part of a group of pipefish known as Flagtail Pipefish, so called as their tailfins are oversized when compared to their bodies and generally ornately colored. The more scientifically minded among us will know them as the subfamily Doryrhamphinae (but Flagtail is infinitely easier to say.) 

Yellowbanded Pipefish are small fish that aren't the strongest swimmers and really don't get that big; they'll be six or so inches long as an adult, but pencil thin. As a result, a pair or even a trio could be kept in a display as small as 30 gallons. These tanks don't need anything for the fish to grab onto, but should feature plenty of rocks, making caves and swim-through opportunities. Flow can be marginally stronger than what you would do for seahorses, but not much. This flow should be very diffuse so there isn't a strong current in any one direction. Slow moving water can be challenging in the home aquarium as it can mean that uneaten food and fish waste can build up in low flow areas. Luckily you don't need any substrate, which will aid you in removing this waste and preventing it's build up in the first place. Over time, a bare bottom display will cover with coralline algae and blend into the rocks nicely. Lighting is really immaterial for these fish, so it can be tuned for whatever else you house in the tank, like inverts. Be sure to cover any intakes so that the Pipefish don't get pulled in.

Aquacultured Pipefish aren't that sensitive to specific water chemistry, and the same is true for water quality within reasonable parameters. Specific gravity could be anywhere from 1.020 to 1.026, we find that keeping this closer to actual seawater adds to the stability of the pH in the tank, which should be stable in the area of 8.1-8.4. These fish will do best in temps in the low 70s Fahrenheit but anywhere from 70 to 78 is acceptable. On the water quality front, nitrates should be kept under 20ppm, with no nitrates or ammonia. Filtration and regular water changes will be enough to easily maintain numbers even better than this as long as the aquarium isn't overstocked.

On the topic of stocking, we think a pair or small group of Yellowbanded Pipefish makes a killer display all on their own. They're also fine with most invertebrates like corals, Cleaner Shrimp, clams, and feather dusters, pretty much everything you'll find in a reef type display. If you're set on having them with other fish, you'll want to have those fish also be slower swimmers with similarly placid eating behaviors. Seahorses are a common and perfect tankmate. Fish like Dragonettes, Cardinals, and perhaps even some small Gobies or Dartfish would also be excellent choices. Take caution with strong anemones like Carpets that could easily consume an errant Pipefish. Also avoid any large predators, even sedentary ones like Eels as they could easily make a meal of your Pipefish.

Finally, let's talk feeding. We know of so many aquarists who've said something like “Multi Banded Pipefish are so gorgeous and cool, but I am scared to keep them because they never eat.” Well, firstly, even wild Pipefish can be taught to take thawed foods, but with aquacultured Yellowbanded Pipefish we've already done that job for you. You'll want to offer them a safe, high quality thawed food like Gamma Mysis, Copepods, Rotifers, Tubifex, and some of the Brine Plus products like Brine Plus Omega, Brine Plus Spirulina, and Brine Plus Aloe Vera. Pipefish lack a traditional stomach, and so they feed pretty much all day long. Feed your fish at least twice a day (more would be better), and don't feed more than they can consume in a few minutes. A refugium plumbed into your display can help provide a source of natural food over the course of the day, but refugiums are another article. If you notice your fish getting skinny, bump the food up a bit, if you notice one getting fat, maybe he's pregnant (yup, he.)

Pipefish were one of the first marine fish to be aquacultured in home aquariums, and it's possible for you to do so too. They will have a lengthy and fun to watch mating ritual at the end of which, the fertilized eggs are transferred to the male, and he carries them in a pouch, all very similar to Seahorses. Pipefish are not monogamous though they will form distinct pairs during mating. Females will usually be the brighter, more colorful ones as they compete for males. If you have a group of fish, the males may choose a different female for the next breeding. One of the biggest challenges in raising the fry happens when tankmates eat the new babies, so if you'd like to rear the Pipefish fry you'll need to remove pretty much everything but the mating pair or perhaps maintain a dedicated tank for each pair that you keep. 

When well kept, aquacultured Dunckerocampus pessuliferus can live for five or more years, we've even seen reports of hobbyists having them for up to10 years! In the wild, they often function as cleaner fish, eating parasites off larger fish, but this behavior is rarer in the home aquarium, and certainly not required to keep them successfully. If you keep up with basic home aquarium maintenance, a design your display well in terms of décor and tankmates, you can keep one of the most interesting critters in marine fish keeping for years to come. Head over to your LFS and order your Aquacultured Yellowbanded Pipefish from Quality Marine today!