Anyone else feeling the aquarium hobby drawing them away from herps?

[Bluetongue1]

My mum told me that I was chasing anything that moved in the garden before I could even walk. Early on that biological interest developed into a passion for reptiles. When I moved to WA and could no longer legally keep reptiles, I turned to growing plants and keeping aquaria. I have had at least one aquarium on the go pretty much continuously for the last 35 years plus and I spent 20 years in the Wildflower Society. When I lived up north, and before the kids arrived, I’d go snorkelling over the inshore coral mid-week after work, just as a fun way to exercise. Lots of different gobies and blennies, damsels, wrasses, anemone and butterfly fish, and the Moonwrasses would cruise around and check you out. There was one particular hole in the rock ledge at Pt. Quobba, 2m plus deep and about 3m wide, protected by an overhanging ledge and full of blue damsels and the like. A lion fish lived in this hole and on occasions I saw two of them there. It was awesome stuff. Yet the sight of a dragon or monitor in the sand dunes would always get my heart beating faster. If anything, I think aquarium keeping has helped me to maintain my passion for reptiles over the years.

 

[Sdaji]

Goldfish are mentioned if you read the entire thing. It's often touted that goldfish are stupid and have a 2 second memory.... nonsense. Fish, ALL fish are quite intelligent.

Obviously they don't actually have a memory limited to 2 seconds, but 'quite intelligent' is meaningless. By fish standards goldfish don't rank highly, there are far more intelligent fish, and by comparison goldfish are extremely low in intelligence. By animal standards fish don't rank highly. There are animals far more intelligent than fish. So what do you mean by 'quite intelligent'?

I know it's cool and hipster and trendy to say any particular animal is remarkably intelligent, but that doesn't make it true, unless you simply want to say that any level of intelligence at all, no matter how basic, is 'quite intelligent'.

 

[Flaviemys purvisi]

But it just so happens the world's smartest fish is a goldfish so it all evens out in the wash.

 

[Sdaji]

But it just so happens the world's smartest fish is a goldfish so it all evens out in the wash.

The world's smartest fish is not a goldfish. That's as ridiculous as measuring intelligence by the ability to sit still and declaring a rock to be the winner.

 

[Flaviemys purvisi]

The world's smartest fish is not a goldfish. That's as ridiculous as measuring intelligence by the ability to sit still and declaring a rock to be the winner.

Hahahaha you choose not to believe. No one can make you.

 

[Pythonguy1]

At a recent trip to an aquarium shop, the owner said he has noticed a rise in reptile people going back into fish.

I certainly am enjoying keeping a few fish again, I know of a few others too. Some have got out of reptiles altogether.

I started back with fish just keeping a few natives, then started to tinker with a few Bettas.

Thoughts?

Well Rory I have to admit you're right. A guy came into the store last week and was looking at our snakes. Over the years I've been able to tell which people are Herp people and which ones aren't. He struck me as herp. Sure enough he mentioned he was in the snake hobby. However he then asked me if he could purchase some gudgeons. So I went and got a bag to put the fish in. As I was doing this I thought to myself, 'This must be the first herp/fish guy I've met'. I was wrong. As I got the fish out for him he said, "Yeah mate they're for the strap-snouted brown snakes, bastards won't take pinky mice".
And apart from that I've never had a herp/fish person come into the store.

 

[Friller2009]

Who’s the bastard?
The snake or the gudgeon?
I thinks it’s the gudgeon.

 

[Pythonguy1]

Who’s the bastard?
The snake or the gudgeon?
I thinks it’s the gudgeon.

Apparently it was the snakes. However I'd take a snap-snouted brown over a gudgeon any day of the week. Gudgeons just die and clog up the filter lol.

 

[Harpo]

apart from that I've never had a herp/fish person come into the store.

I'm one of those guys, but I try to avoid pet shops, and find I very rarely need to visit. I do try to support a locally owned shop though ?. Some online places are just too easy now days, with various ways to save a few bucks, but that's a different conversation entirely. Fish are cool, snakes are cooler...cannot believe I just said that .

 

[Pythonguy1]

This is a bit off topic but only once have I sold a snake to an experienced keeper, almost EVERY snake I've sold has been to a newbie and that one guy that was experienced didn't ask me any q's about the snake and only bought a snake hook along with it. If an experienced keeper comes in they only come in to buy their frozen rats or maybe an enclosure (baker buys from my store I believe). I used to get so excited when I was a little kid and mum would take me to the pet store. Now I'm like a kid in a candy store whenever I go to Bunnings.

 

[Friller2009]

This is a bit off topic but only once have I sold a snake to an experienced keeper, almost EVERY snake I've sold has been to a newbie and that one guy that was experienced didn't ask me any q's about the snake and only bought a snake hook along with it. If an experienced keeper comes in they only come in to buy their frozen rats or maybe an enclosure (baker buys from my store I believe). I used to get so excited when I was a little kid and mum would take me to the pet store. Now I'm like a kid in a candy store whenever I go to Bunnings.

Bunnings, is hobbyist’s heaven