catching "feral" dojos

[loafingloach]

Hi. This is my first post here, though I have been lurking for awhile.

I have recently discovered that there are dojo loaches (weatherfish) living wild in our local waters (seattle). Has anyone caught wild dojo loaches? I looked elsewhere online and haven't come up with any information on the subject, other than using minnow traps.

I rather shell out and make a homemade trap than buy anymore loaches of questionable health from local fish stores.

[joitoy]

i once was told a good place to look was fast moving streams of shallow depth

[Mad Duff]

We used to collect wild Stone Loach from local rivers and streams and found the best ways to be either with a large net positioned behind stones on the downstream side and lift the edge of the stone closest to the net, the fish swim out with all the debris that is dislodged and straight into the net.

The other way would be a minnow trap like you have already mentioned, we used to make these out of large plastic pop/soda bottles, cut the bottle slightly above half way put some stones in the main part of the bottle for weight and then slot the neck end of the bottle back in so that the neck end is pointing into the middle of the bottle and this way the fish swim in but usually cant get back out.

[Fear_The_Loach]

Almost sounds like an old way to catch a raccoon.

Yeah, minnow trap. If they're shallow, you may just be able to wade in and net a few. Watch out, they could get stuck in a net. But I recommend a trap instead.

[Martin Thoene]

I was looking around to see if there was official record of Dojos in WA waters. The WA site for Non-Indiginous Species didn't list them.

Another aside was I found a link to this:

http://www.invadingspecies.com/Invaders ... age&PID=23

So if they're banned in Ontario (which I wasn't aware of), how come I still see Snakeheads in shops around here?

Martin.

[mistergreen]

well, they can definitely live in washington's weather.
http://www.aquahobby.com/gallery/e_dojo.php

I have kept Weather Loaches in my aquariums all my life. They are important bottom cleaners, great community fish, and are very entertaining to watch. Twelve years ago I bought a small pair for my 200 L tank and enjoyed watching them grow and clean the bottom for me. After five years they had grown to over 15 cm long and it was time to find them a bigger home. Not wanting to give them away and with no larger tank at the time, I decided to give them a try in my 1100 L pond outdoors. I live in Washington state (USA) and our winter can be quite harsh, but I figured they would be okay outdoors for the summer time and I would find them a permanent home before winter came. Well, they just loved their new home outdoors and kept the bottom spotless all summer long. By the end of summer they had grown another 3 cm, were eating out of my hands, and very fat and happy. So I decided that I would let them try the winter out there in my pond along with the Koi. I kept a close eye on them to make sure they were doing okay and they have done fine. That was seven years ago. Now they are twelve years old, live outdoors, and are over 20 cm long. I poke holes in the ice when the top freezes over in the winter and keep a small fountain going to circulate the water. I never would have thought they could survive the cold water, but they love the pond and do real well. They share the bottom with a pair of Crayfish and they all get along fine, of course the loaches are bigger. And it is true what they say about the Weather Loaches predicting the weather changes, whenever we are about to get a storm the loaches are swimming rapidly all around the pond and higher in the water column. I always know when a storm is coming just by watching them. In the summertime they laze around in the warmth of the sunbeams that reach the bottom of the pond. They are great little pets and I highly recommend them if you have a large area for them or are willing to pass them on when they get too large for your tank.

Contributed by Lee Ann Hightower

[joitoy]

http://www.invadingspecies.com/Invaders ... age&PID=23

So if they're banned in Ontario (which I wasn't aware of), how come I still see Snakeheads in shops around here?

Martin.

Same reason Petco tried to sell Pirahnas in Texas.

:\

Lack of research, stupidity, and too few people who knew they were illegal.

[KoiGuy]

diy 2L bottle trap

http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forum ... light=trap

http://www.boyslife.org/workshop/minnows.pdf

[tglassburner]

http://www.nanfa.org/NANFAregions/or_wa ... Hunt99.htm

Thought this might be of some help.