Shark Tank?

[cynic]

Hi all wifey has been on about sharks ever since we got into fish. Well i now have a tank suitable to use as a 'shark tank'.

Its 3 ft long 15in wide and 18in deep.

Wondered on peoples experience of keeping them and any reccomendations on numbers, filtering etc. Obviously i'm talking RTS and similar.

 

[richpowell1989]

what kind of shark?? if it is silver shark / bala shark this is no were near big enuf when they are fully grown

 

[dbanner]

A red tail shark should be ok in a tank that size. Really depends on what other fish you have in the tank or what fish you plan on getting. Also only get 1 red tail as they get aggressive to their own kind (as well as others) when bigger.

 

[cynic]

A red tail shark should be ok in a tank that size. Really depends on what other fish you have in the tank or what fish you plan on getting. Also only get 1 red tail as they get aggressive to their own kind (as well as others) when bigger.

Thanks, thats it there won't be any other fish. Sharks is something wifey has always wanted in our community tank but i have always overidden it for obvious reasons.

I know there agressive and sensitive to high room traffic etc so i'm thinking bedroom tank with 2-3 fish, mainly gravel stone scape with some planting.

There are a no end of different views and species online and the lfs are useless on this kind of thing. So was after some solid advice. The tank size is fixed, nothing i can do about it so the species has to fit the tank.

 

[Man of fish]

I believe that gravel could injure these guys barbels too

 

[LongS]

If it is fine gravel i think you should be ok. I keep botia loaches with very fine gravel (no sharp edges) and they do fine, they can dig and look for food easy enough.

About the sharks, would you consider keeping a group of loaches? like botia striata or botia kubotai? they are similar shaped shark-like fish, maybe have a look as it would be easier to keep other species with them? But it really depends if you are set on the red tailed black shark.

 

[CichlidLover1995]

a Rainbow Shark and some Flying Fox's might be nice. Bala's or Silver Tipped wouldnt work.

 

[cynic]

Providing i can look her in the eye and call it a shark it'll be fine, after 23 years she knows if i'm fibing before i do

 

[onidrase]

I honestly can't think of any other "sharks" that will fit in that tank, even the red tail is stretching it due to their territorial behavior.

 

[cynic]

Oh, shame, well thats all i have space for.

The big one is a community tank, no chance of a 'shark'in there. And i'm not having another tank for just me and i haven't the space for bigger.

I was kind of after solid advice, seems like a thread of contradiction and negatives.

 

[ZoddyZod]

In a 3 footer you'd only be able to keep 1 red tail (even then it's still cramped - 55gal is recommended) and certainly not with any others ,so your idea of having 2-3 is not workable. Very territorial fish which will not tolerate being kept in close proximity with others of the same species.

As Onidrase says, the red tail is probably the smallest of all the 'sharks' available in the hobby.

 

[cynic]

In a 3 footer you'd only be able to keep 1 red tail (even then it's still cramped - 55gal is recommended) and certainly not with any others ,so your idea of having 2-3 is not workable. Very territorial fish which will not tolerate being kept in close proximity with others of the same species.

As Onidrase says, the red tail is probably the smallest of all the 'sharks' available in the hobby.

Thanks Z, thats all i was after. I know there not actually sharks (more carp) but its something wifey has always mentioned and i hadn't a clue apart from in a community they are bad news and reliable info is tricky to find on the web.

I'll mothball the tank for now then, nowt wrong with it just changed my daughters tank to a much nicer cabinet affair from a friend.

 

[LongS]

In my opinion a single Red-tailed shark would be fine, i think the recommended 55 gallon for one species is pretty large and i've seen them kept happily in smaller. Obviously the people writing the recommendations are going to write fairly over sized tanks to try to persuade novice fish keepers from keeping them in tiny tanks and hopefully avoid a miserable life for one of their most loved fish.

But in my opinion if extremes are avoided and a tank is chosen within reason it would be ok to keep a single species happily providing good water conditions and plenty swimming space.

Just an edit to say that there is the red tailed black shark and the rainbow shark. From memory i think i was told a while back that the rainbows are slightly less aggressive but i could be wrong so check that out.

Good luck anyway mate hope you find something suitable.

 

[envious]

could be worth having a look at rosyline sharks (puntius denisonii) there really nice looking colourful fish they need to be kept in shoals and are quite expensive compared to all other sharks but are well worth the money. iv read they can be kept in 3 foot tanks, but would recomend a bigger tank, but there not really agressive so a group may be suitible for your community tank

 

[dbanner]

Roseline barbs.... Also known as red line torpedo barbs need to be kept in tanks of around 5 feet in length. Longer if possible as they are very active and can get to around 5 or 6 inch in length. They also need to be kept in shoals of 5+ so will be no good for this tank.

I used to keep 4 in a 3 foot tank and it was nowhere near big enough for them unfortunately