i have a 240 gallon tank 8'x2'x2' with a 8 inch silver, 7 inch florida gar, 8-9 inch lima shovelnose catfish, 4-5 inch flagtail, 4 inch albino senegal, 5 inch senegal and 8 inch retro bichirs. i want to get an african arowana but i can only find them at about 1-4 inches. if i get one about 7-8 inches will it survive in my tank and how fast would it grow, would it also get picked on?
african arowana
- Thread starter tigrey
- Start date
it would grow fast(1"-1.5" per month) and in my experience,africans would prob attack the silver aro,but make sure you dont have skittish fish,my african aro always liked to attack skittish fish,but it all depends on the fish,OddBall should chime in anytime soon,hes the african arowana expert 
My African Arowana chases my Black Arowana, but it's also about twice the size of it and only does it when it's getting close to feeding time. It never does any damage, it just chases the Black around for a second or two and then goes away. Happens very infrequently.
It ignores my other fish (Florida Gar, Dats, Crenicichla, Marbled Pim, 4x Poly's, etc)
It ignores my other fish (Florida Gar, Dats, Crenicichla, Marbled Pim, 4x Poly's, etc)
They're still fragile under 8" due to not having developed a sufficient fat deposit to keep it's high metabolic rate going between feedings. Always look for an 8+" specimen if you can't ensure it will get enough food when competing with other fish.
tigrey;4021806; said:
I have heard many, many sad stories of African Arowana dying at four inches or less even when fed twice a day or more. I would go with one a bit larger as Oddball says, but even then, you will need to be fastidious about feeding until it's around eight to ten inches.
I've posted this a few times. It'll help if you plan on getting a small afaro:
The only real success seems to be in providing a constant source of food until the aros reach about 8" and develop some fat storage to allow them to receive scheduled feedings like most other fish.
I raised the young in bare tanks with sponge filters. The sponge filters allow the fish to "graze" on previously missed food until the next feeding. Be sure to rinse of the sponges every other day to keep spoiled food off of them. Keep the water on the alkaline side and at 80 degrees. Also keep a good lid on their tank. They're jumpers from the get-go. They also need a cover to provide matching air and water temps while the young's air-breathing architecture is developing.
Feed them on a variety of small foods. Frozen bloodworms, daphnia, brine shrimp, crumble food, sinking food, cyclop-eeze, flakes, and micro-pellets are all taken. Feed high protein foods since they have high metabolic rates (no cheap generic foods). Water changes of 30-50% need to be done every 2-3 days.
Af aros need to be housed either as 1 to a tank or 4 and up to a tank. With 2 or 3 you'll wind up with only one in a short time as their aggression towards each other is high.
Note: my best success was in following the above and allowing my rearing tanks to go green with algae. These are a filter-feeding species, after all, and I think they benefitted from some algae consumption in their diets.
Good luck!!
The only real success seems to be in providing a constant source of food until the aros reach about 8" and develop some fat storage to allow them to receive scheduled feedings like most other fish.
I raised the young in bare tanks with sponge filters. The sponge filters allow the fish to "graze" on previously missed food until the next feeding. Be sure to rinse of the sponges every other day to keep spoiled food off of them. Keep the water on the alkaline side and at 80 degrees. Also keep a good lid on their tank. They're jumpers from the get-go. They also need a cover to provide matching air and water temps while the young's air-breathing architecture is developing.
Feed them on a variety of small foods. Frozen bloodworms, daphnia, brine shrimp, crumble food, sinking food, cyclop-eeze, flakes, and micro-pellets are all taken. Feed high protein foods since they have high metabolic rates (no cheap generic foods). Water changes of 30-50% need to be done every 2-3 days.
Af aros need to be housed either as 1 to a tank or 4 and up to a tank. With 2 or 3 you'll wind up with only one in a short time as their aggression towards each other is high.
Note: my best success was in following the above and allowing my rearing tanks to go green with algae. These are a filter-feeding species, after all, and I think they benefitted from some algae consumption in their diets.
Good luck!!