Bala sharks

[Bbuckley]

I'll soon have a spare 125G 5ft tank available and would love to keep a group of these guys maybe 8/10 of them with one large cichlid.

I know they get big I've seen huge ones in the past.

If all fish was bought small, balla sharks around 3 inches, how long could the balas live in this size tank for. I will be able to upgrade there tank to a 180G in around 6 months.

 

[Deadeye]

FWIW, I was able to get 2 to 6-7 inches in a 55 before my leporinus decided it didn’t want them around any more.
I’d say by 8-9 inches is a good point to upgrade in your case. Most important is keeping them calm, so lots of plants may help.

 

[Krismo962]

DMD123

 

[Rocksor]

Rather than go from a 125g 6 footer, upgrade to an 8 foot or longer. Skittish fish need longer tanks more than a larger volume in the same footprint as the growout tank

 

[duanes]

Rather than go from a 125g 6 footer, upgrade to an 8 foot or longer. Skittish fish need longer tanks more than a larger volume in the same footprint as the growout tank

I agree the difference between a 125 and a 180 is negligible, I consider a 180 too small for adults, much less, then adding a cichlid to the mix.

 

[esoxlucius]

A 5ft tank is ideal for a group of small balas, but as mentioned, if you plan on keeping the group long term then you need to be going way bigger really. A very peaceful fish but will jump when spooked, and in my experience they can spook very easily. A tight lid is a must.

Mine could be very skittish when they were in my glass 180g, but when I moved them to my fibreglass tank, with only one viewing window, they stopped being skittish literally overnight. They're absolutely fine now, I have five.

I think multi viewing panels (as in a glass tank) and heavy traffic in a room can really make these fish uneasy. Something for you to think about.

 

[celebrist]

In my 450 both the balas and silver dollars are very chill. I grew out the sharks in a 150 and they were more skittish for sure. I quarantined the silver dollars in a 90 and they were frenetic

 

[MultipleTankSyndrome]

This may sound ridiculous, but I don't know if I'd keep them in a tank any smaller than 10-12 times their length (this is 4-4.8 meters for the 40 cm adult size). In order to not hit the wall and die from their skittish darts, they'd need way more space for their size than the vast majority of fish.

And, as esoxlucius mentioned, covering 3/4 view panels of a big enough tank will help the skittishness even more.

 

[DMD123]

This is my tank, an 8ft, 300 gallon. In it I have 3 big bala sharks. The largest is about 15" and is visible behind the pearsei (apx 12"). The other two balas are about 12". I dont find them to be skittish at all in my living room with constant movement going on. They are not afraid at all and are quite personable. But they do need space, when they are feeding the largest will chase the next one down in size to try and keep it from feeding. This is when you realize how fast they can get from one side of the tank to the other. Honestly there are times I look at these guys and think they need a bigger tank...

 

[MultipleTankSyndrome]

Definitely agreed with you on that last part. As you could probably tell from my tank size recommendation.