Black Ghost Knife Fish

[tropicalgirl2007]

Hi,

Im interested in the above fish. How many people on here have managed to keep it with small fish? I have spoken to some who said that theirs eat their small fish. Others have said theirs lived with them quite happily.

Any advice would be great.

Becky

 

[Davo86]

Hi Becky

In my experience of them they have been fairly peaceful twoards fish of a decent size( i.e.average molly size), I work in the local aquatics store where we sell a few of these fish and i myself own one,

my BGK is only about 5" at present but is much more peaceful than the kribs and RTB shark and Reed Fish that share its tank, Also a regular customer of mine owns a BGK which he says is around 12" this is also kept with Kribensis as well as Large Gouramis.


This is a brief intro to them :

These fish are generally timid and should be kept in an aquarium with numerous hiding places such as roots and caves, if properly cared for they will become quite trusting and can even be hand fed. The aquarium should have a fine gravel bottom with many plants. They should not be kept with very small fish or aggressive larger fish. They possess a weak electric organ at the caudal peduncle, which is used to locate food.

IMO it would be fine to start off with a very young BGK and keep it with medium sized fish, in a suitable sized tank, With any Big fish people will say that if another fish will fit in its mouth then there is always a risk of it eating them, However i think that if the fish are fed the right foods and as much as required then the fish will have no need to hunt for food,

 

[tropicalgirl2007]

Hi Becky

In my experience of them they have been fairly peaceful twoards fish of a decent size( i.e.average molly size), I work in the local aquatics store where we sell a few of these fish and i myself own one,

my BGK is only about 5" at present but is much more peaceful than the kribs and RTB shark and Reed Fish that share its tank, Also a regular customer of mine owns a BGK which he says is around 12" this is also kept with Kribensis as well as Large Gouramis.


This is a brief intro to them :

These fish are generally timid and should be kept in an aquarium with numerous hiding places such as roots and caves, if properly cared for they will become quite trusting and can even be hand fed. The aquarium should have a fine gravel bottom with many plants. They should not be kept with very small fish or aggressive larger fish. They possess a weak electric organ at the caudal peduncle, which is used to locate food.

IMO it would be fine to start off with a very young BGK and keep it with medium sized fish, in a suitable sized tank, With any Big fish people will say that if another fish will fit in its mouth then there is always a risk of it eating them, However i think that if the fish are fed the right foods and as much as required then the fish will have no need to hunt for food,

Thanks for all the info. I still have to find some where that sells them, I have galaxys in my tank, so they are something worth considering, but I will buy a small one and go from there, WHEN I find one,

 

[jayjay]

This is a brief intro to them :

These fish are generally timid and should be kept in an aquarium with numerous hiding places such as roots and caves, if properly cared for they will become quite trusting and can even be hand fed. The aquarium should have a fine gravel bottom with many plants. They should not be kept with very small fish or aggressive larger fish. They possess a weak electric organ at the caudal peduncle, which is used to locate food.

IMO it would be fine to start off with a very young BGK and keep it with medium sized fish, in a suitable sized tank, With any Big fish people will say that if another fish will fit in its mouth then there is always a risk of it eating them, However i think that if the fish are fed the right foods and as much as required then the fish will have no need to hunt for food,

Where was that quote taken from? I disagree with parts of it, mine have seemed to prefer being able to dig in sand over gravel and do just as well with plants as without them.

Fish when fed the right foods are still a risk to smaller fish. What if you couldn't feed them for a day or two? Many fish will eat as much as they can in one go, in the wild they never know where the next meal will come from.

These fish grow large given correct care. People own 18" long BGK's so think if you can care for that size fish, though according to most they take a long time to grow to that size mine has grown 6-7" in 8 months. They will what some type of cave I've found mine like piping over hiding in plants, bogwood, hollow logs etc. As you most likely know they eat a meaty diet, mine will eat prawns so they shouldn't have a problem with small fish, galaxy rasbora's would make a nice meal.

 

[Illest_Soulja]

speaking of this fish i have one in a 55 gallon tank and hes bout...4-5 inchs but im kinda hvaing 2cd thoughts on keeping him. im just scared he will get to big, but i have a friend who would gladly take him if i choose not to keep it, im just wondering ig it was worth it for some of you guys who have had one and how big urs are and how long u guys have had it?

 

[starrynightxxi]

don't confuse "peaceful" with "won't eat my tiny fish if the opportunity presents itself". My senegal hasn't a violent bone in her body, but you better believe she'll eat any small fish she can catch. BGKs, also, are nocturnal, and many fish are diurnal, meaning when your galaxies are drowsy and sleeping, your BGK is wide awake and looking for food. I think even the smallest i've seen in petshops could easily eat galaxies. talk about expensive live food

for more info... BGK profile

 

[Darkstar]

I have one at 12-13" and he's no problem, happily lives with much smaller fish of 2-3" in size and has never eaten any of them.

Having said that I know someone who had one and one day she watched it swim across her 8ft tank and take a large chunk out of one of her plecs, which died...she ended up getting rid of the bgkf. So, I guess it's luck of the draw too...

 

[tropicalgirl2007]

Thanks for the info darkstar. I guess I will buy one and see how it gets on.

 

[DarkEntity]

Thanks for the info darkstar. I guess I will buy one and see how it gets on.

Im assuming you do know how large these fish get and are ready for that undertaking should you keep it that long? Do be fooled into thinking that itll max out at 10-12".....16-20" is common for a properly cared for BGK

And no matter what anyone says, its a Predator, given half the chance it WILL eat smaller fish if it feels hungry or even peckish.

 

[tropicalgirl2007]

Thanks for the info darkstar. I guess I will buy one and see how it gets on.

Im assuming you do know how large these fish get and are ready for that undertaking should you keep it that long? Do be fooled into thinking that itll max out at 10-12".....16-20" is common for a properly cared for BGK

And no matter what anyone says, its a Predator, given half the chance it WILL eat smaller fish if it feels hungry or even peckish.

Yes I do know how large they get thanks, I research my fish first, which is why I was asking the questions about smaller fish, I am on many forums and I have had different answers about the fish. However the ones I have seen are fairly small so it wont be eating any smaller fish soon. However if circumsances change then I will have to move it / the small fish to a different tank.

Thanks again

Also

Does anyone know how big they get before they will start eating small fish?

Thanks

 

[jayjay]

I don't think mine would have much trouble with neons at 8" and it's grown that size as I've said in 8 months, so not long.

 

[tropicalgirl2007]

im wondering if its a case of trial and error!!! everyone says something different, my lfs said he keeps his with neons and its fine... but them someone else has said theirs ate them all....

 

[jayjay]

Did the person say what size their BGK was? What it was fed? What size tank it had? etc. etc.

 

[tropicalgirl2007]

290 litres, about 10" fed on bloodworm.

 

[Jules H-T]

My BGKF is 14 inches long and about 2 years old. The last 6 months have been spent growing outwards rather than longer. His head and jaws are huge. He is struggling for room in my 60 Gallon but getting a 125 to play in next week. How big is your tank? If it doesn't have a footprint of at least 4ft by 2ft, you're going to struggle to house him properly beyond a year or so.

He has eaten a few neons, gone for the Danios (the numbers keep dwindling), and practically bit the head off a pearl gourami who died from it's injuries.

These fish look cool and are great pets (I hand feed him prawns), but do not underestimate the predatory nature, or the size and power, of these impressive fish.