Arowanas..

[millie1]

matter of intrest....as i keep reading conflicting views....

how long could a 400 litre tank house an arowana??
(silver)

do they eat everything in sight - can you safely put any smaller fish with them? (obviously not like neons as that just asking for it)


p.s are there mini versions of arowana??

p.ps no i havent got one

thanks

 

[rabbut]

They get to about 2.5-3ft, so IMO want at least a 12ft tank. They will eat anything that fits in their mouth if it moves, and are preditory, however in the wild, they'd eat mainly insects e.t.c from the surface

All the best
Rabbut

 

[millie1]

gawd the tanks sizes people have them in i thought were to small

i can understand grow out tanks etc.... but i though 6 foot was acceptable??

no way in he11 i can have a 6 foot tank unless i accidentally damage *cough* the sideboard and get rid of it lol!

thanks btw

 

[Colin_T]

It depends on how big the Arowana is when you get it as to how long it can live in a 400litre tank. It also depends on how big the 400litre tank is.
Generally the fish grow pretty rapidly during the first couple of years and can reach 12inches in 12-18months.

They are ambush predators and will eat anything that is small enough to fit in their mouth including frogs, fish, shrimp and insects.
When they are young they can live with other fish but as they get older they become grumpy and often kill the other tank mates. Not all fish do this and it is a good idea ot keep some fish in with them while they are young and growing up. Then monitor the fish and see how it interacts with the others in the tank. You might get one that is happy living with small peaceful cichlids or gudgeons.

No mini versions of Arowana. They all get big, 3ft +.

 

[foley69]

unless you have a tank of at least 7-8ft that is about 1000litres then i wouldnt bother they grow fast and are BIG predators just to highlight how big they are they will eat anything from a mouse to a duckling and that wont probably fill them then there is filtration they are one of the messiest fish and produce one hell of a boiload so you need to have about £300 on hand for filtration i personally wouldnt see them as aquarium fit as they grow too big and cost too much to keep healthy and happy

 

[millie1]

i think they are brill but dont think i could even own one for a year while i grow it out ina 400 lire (dont even have that bigger tank yet anyhow./._!

think my mother would murder me if it ate my fish as well haha

 

[Davo86]

i think they are brill but dont think i could even own one for a year while i grow it out ina 400 lire (dont even have that bigger tank yet anyhow./._!

think my mother would murder me if it ate my fish as well haha

Also with arowanas it is not simply the length of the tank that you have to consider,

Silvers can reach 30inches+ so there is no way you could keep one in a tank that was only 2 feet wide for example,
you would be looking at a custom built tank with a minimum footprint of 6' by 4' for a silver or 6' by 3' for one of the smaller Asian aros

 

[mike os]

6x2x2 is just ok for an asian aro, for a silver you need at least 8x3x2.

no tankmates less than 5-6", serious filtration (mine has a 100gal/425l sump) and £30+ a month to feed.

 

[CFC]

It depends on how big the Arowana is when you get it as to how long it can live in a 400litre tank. It also depends on how big the 400litre tank is.
Generally the fish grow pretty rapidly during the first couple of years and can reach 12inches in 12-18months.

No mini versions of Arowana. They all get big, 3ft +.

Silver arowanas (Osteoglossum bicirrhosum) grow a hell of a lot faster than that, mine reached 24 inches in under 12 months and at one point was growing around an inch a week, it litterally went from being on the border line of being a meal for its tankmates to being the longest fish in the tank without me even noticing its growth was so quick, its growth has slowed down now at nearly 36 inches in around two years.

The most suited to aquarium life is probably the jardini arowana (Scleropages jardini) as captive specimins rarely excede 20 inches in length and can be kept in a 6x2x2 for life, the down side is they are so aggressive that they can have no tankmates.

 

[millie1]

thanks for all the replise

i was reading people keeping them in 400 litres and sometimes less

 

[always4lora]

people probs will keep em 400 litre tanks, probly in even smaller tanks, some people dont care for fish just want it so get it regardless of the fish's health/happyness.

 

[mouth]

I keep m arowana with 2x 8'' oscars and a 12" plec in a 450 litre aquarium and it has been fine for 2 years