arapiama/Giga info

[dirtydan]

I was at a LFS and I spotted the coolest looking fish They called it a Giga they had two in stock they looked very healthy and active and their coloring was awsome they looked a very dark almost black color but when in the light they glowed green. any way I just need some info on this fish and I need to know if a $129 pricetag is a fair price. The owner of this store is very trustworthy and he told me these fish were rare. They were about 1 foot long.

[piranha45]

They grow 10 feet long. They're roughly the third largest freshwater fish in the world. Do I need to give you any more information for you to make a judgement on this issue?

Its utter nonsense that they've been put into the aquarium trade. I estimate 1 out of every thousand will actually be cared for properly. Just amazing. :shakehead


http://www.fishbase.org/Photos/ThumbnailsSummary.cfm?ID=2076
http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.cfm?ID=2076&genusname=Arapaima&speciesname=gigas

[aztecfred]

I totally agree. Being a Reptile Specialist, I compare it to Reticulated Pythons being in the reptile trade. VERY FEW people have the accomodations to house and adult female retic for the majority of her life. Once they outgrow the 2-6 ft stage, they pose a problem for most reptile keepers. Once they hit the 14 ft mark they become a disability. People usually off the things when they get around ten feet. Where do they all end up? Who knows. I do know that a lot are produced every year. They have come out with a genetically smaller retic, a dwarf, which is supposed to stay small with normal feedings.


The Arapaimia reminds me of the retic. Most people wont be able to hous it for its entire life. When they get tired of it..what the heck do they do?



Aztec Fred

[rayman45]

biggg
huge
grow fast

[dirtydan]

I decided to get one of them do you guys have any suggestions on what to feed it? I mean besides feeder goldfish I quit using those when one of my oscars got sick and died. So anything else anybody has had success with

[YOULOOKLIKEAFISH]

I decided to get one of them do you guys have any suggestions on what to feed it? I mean besides feeder goldfish I quit using those when one of my oscars got sick and died. So anything else anybody has had success with

you're a friggin idiot. :newbie:

[YOULOOKLIKEAFISH]

why does youre LFS have them they're illegal to own in Cali

[jackspartus]

I had one it was given to me as a birthday present :22_yikes: '' COOL A YOUNG SNAKEHEAD LOOKS COOL''i remember that day... And i considered my friend to be a knowleagable person :shakehead The baby i recived was 4-5'' i set it up in a tank of minnoows it polished off my minnows in a couple of days long story short it cleaned out most of my collection, it reached 7' i moved it to an above ground pool and it died about 8 months later. I'll get another one but this time i'll buy it myself and wait till i can complete the enclosure for an adult animal. Unfortunatly my parnents made me move my collection after that fish due to school, and they did not wanna look after my fish. But now that im out im looking for a place with a lot of space so its a matter of time before i start again, but if that is the fish u want you must! Be willing to put aside space for an adult the worst thing that could happen is some one releasing this fish in a local water way, It would only give authorities a reason to crack down on the sale of many species deemed hazardous to the local fauna and its always a matter of time b4 some guy catchs it

[dirtydan]

no you are a friggin idiot bro youlooklikeafish

[jackspartus]

is that necessary

[jackspartus]

At about a foot long i feed it a wide diet of pinkies, night crawlers, it took some floating turtle pellets, various fish (for some reason my pirarucu did not eat dead fish but it ate turtle pellets???) a few crickets and frogs (all parisite free feeders). "this diet is a direct result of me breeding my own feeders for my reptiles"

[The TRUST]

why does youre LFS have them they're illegal to own in Cali

Arapaima are not illegal in CA. So he's fine.

Arapiamas grow fast. Depending on the fish sometimes they will also take pellets but most of the time they wil eat small fish and other meaty foods like fish meat, shrimp, squid, etc etc.

[dirtydan]

Hey thanks for youre input guys I always appreciate the useful info

[aztecfred]

Have seen them in Calif in many Asian Tropical Fish Stores. Command a pretty high price. You have to ask yourself if you can take care of the thing long term. Peoples lives change, you go to school, get married, go to work...have kids. Anything can derail plans made for animals that get this big. My advice: Rethink it

In my opinion,


Aztec Fred :idea:

[guesswho2005]

I decided to get one of them do you guys have any suggestions on what to feed it? I mean besides feeder goldfish I quit using those when one of my oscars got sick and died. So anything else anybody has had success with

what type of tank do you have and what are you willing to do when it out grows it. I'm putting mine in a 350 gal stock tank until i build my custom tank which will be over 4000 gal. Good luck, but I would reconsider it. I have had in my time taken in those fish that look so cool at 8 inches but when they hit three feet and are eating everything its a different story. Ask arround many will tell you to buy something else and there are some amazing Monster fish out there that will not break the bank come feeding time and that baby will eat more then you. they are a very acient fish with a very fast metobloism and require a great amount of food to maintain itself. They require a lot of room since they never really stop moving. Pet store are interested in selling and thats pretty much it. I have been asked to leave several pet store for giving true information to persepective buyers....

[rayman45]

u got one over there in alaska?