A few questions on the banded snake eel

[q8cyu]

@Slocke I only have 3 more questions (for now at least) what invertebrates the eel might eat, it would leave urchins, snails (including conchs) and brittle/ serpent/ sea stars alone while eating crabs and shrimp; would a anemone crab on a rock flower and a cleaner/blood shrimp be on the menu for the eel, the crab is about an inch big and the shrimps are both fully grown I would say 4-6 inches
How much should I feed them, in your article you said that juveniles should eat everyday and adults should eat 3 times a week but, how much do I feed them (portion size)
And last would pvc be necessary if I have a sand bed
Thanks for everything

 

[Slocke]

@Slocke I only have 3 more questions (for now at least) what invertebrates the eel might eat, it would leave urchins, snails (including conchs) and brittle/ serpent/ sea stars alone while eating crabs and shrimp; would a anemone crab on a rock flower and a cleaner/blood shrimp be on the menu for the eel, the crab is about an inch big and the shrimps are both fully grown I would say 4-6 inches
How much should I feed them, in your article you said that juveniles should eat everyday and adults should eat 3 times a week but, how much do I feed them (portion size)
And last would pvc be necessary if I have a sand bed
Thanks for everything

So it will eat medium sized snails. It leaves my big AKA mexican turbos alone. As well as the tiny snails like dwarf ceriths. However snails like astrea and nerites may be eaten.

I would worry about the crab. The shrimp is probably alright at that size but the anemone won't save the crab I don't think.

You feed till they stop eating. It will go hide or just ignore food when full. You'll learn to know when its hungry.

They definitely prefer PVC especially if the sand is corse.

 

[q8cyu]

So it will eat medium sized snails. It leaves my big AKA mexican turbos alone. As well as the tiny snails like dwarf ceriths. However snails like astrea and nerites may be eaten.

I would worry about the crab. The shrimp is probably alright at that size but the anemone won't save the crab I don't think.

You feed till they stop eating. It will go hide or just ignore food when full. You'll learn to know when its hungry.

They definitely prefer PVC especially if the sand is corse.

Ok thank you I think that is all my questions I have,
Thanks for your time and helping me understand what wasn’t so clear on the snake eel

 

[MXTWINS]

Hi, I have a few questions thanks in advance

TLDR; tank size for a banded snake eel, special information on care and fish compatibility including gobies, small tangs, Midas blenny, clownfish, damsels, dwarf angle, wrasses, and cardinals, invertebrates are crabs of different kinds (can be removed), snails, sea stars, shrimp(can also be removed), anemones, and urchins. Any reason in why they are considered difficult to keep.

Care info questions; I’m struggling to find a lot of information on snake eels (specifically banded) from what I have seen they won’t eat fish and will only eat small shrimps or hermits, I can’t find a tank size would they be ok in a 75, 4ft tank? Is there anything important I should know about their care, I found that they are considered hard to keep is there any radon for this. I have read through as many articles as I have found.

Stocking questions; I do have 2 gobies, one Randall’s (around 2in) and a diamondback sand sifter (around 4-5in) a Midas blenny fully grown, possum wrasse, tangs, a dwarf angle, clownfish, springer damsels, and a pair of cardinal fish. For invertebrates I have hermits (which if I do get a eel I will remove and put in the refugium to help with algae control there), conchs and other snails, a starfish, a anemone crab and 3 rock flower anemones (which I do plan on getting more to crate a rock flower anemone garden), urchins, and a cleaner and blood shrimp, which I can also put them somewhere safe too.

I am thinking of adding a few more wrasses; 2 fairys’ and a cleaner, and either a mandarin or anthias.

(I’m still learning so if my tank is overstocked sorry, I do not have aggression except with one fish which just snapped recently a year and a half after I got him, and has been removed)

Thanks for the help.

Hi -
I've had my banded snake eel for over a year now. He is fun to watch. I have a lot of fish and I have moray eels. Just keep him fed and he'll be fine. I feed him small bits of shrimp and squid from a feeder stick about every other day. Only bummer thing is that my Christmas Wrasse will go into hiding when the snake eel is out.

 

[q8cyu]

Hi -
I've had my banded snake eel for over a year now. He is fun to watch. I have a lot of fish and I have moray eels. Just keep him fed and he'll be fine. I feed him small bits of shrimp and squid from a feeder stick about every other day. Only bummer thing is that my Christmas Wrasse will go into hiding when the snake eel is out.

Hi, thanks for the response.
I actually did end up getting an eel in August. It’s a long story so I can shorten a bit here: it was miss-IDed but is has worked out so far. It ended up as a barred moray (Echidna polyzona)

Long story and some other details about my eel so far and other stories: I asked my lfs for a banded snake eel and they ordered that (from wholesaler) but they got in a barred moray eel (Echidna polyzona) I didn’t know at the time thinking that it was just a very small snake eel (about 6-8in) when I got him.
He has so far been ok to feed. I offer everything from salmon, silverside, mollusks, but his favorite is just shrimp. Seems to be the favorite as he prefers this over everything even live.
He struggles to catch live ghost shrimp to the point where I think it frightens him when they move as you see he moves back when they are offered.
He sometimes doesn’t eat anything but shrimp and others will try more things. He eats exclusively from tongs (really just long tweezers) and I’ve been feeding the best I can with the most variety
The eel only comes out at night (excluding feeding time once a week) he has grown to about 12in now.
Wish I had a nicer picture of him he only comes out at night so I have to use phone flash and is very shy, I hope he pokes his head out of his cave (really a burrow in the sand) sometime when he’s older.

 

[Slocke]