Mata mata with rays and aro's?

[dirtyblacksocks]

Think a mata mata would be fine with some sting rays and a large arowanna in a 500 gallon+ indoor pond?

 

[Dragon Hunter]

no

 

[dirtyblacksocks]

Reason being?

I'm under the impression that they "suck" their food in and generally don't try and take bites out of anything they can't fit in their mouth. Never owned one before, though.

 

[M|L]

they don't swim well, and they will drown if kept in deep water; such as a full aquarium.

as a rule, the water level should be no higher than the length of the carapace.

 

[swede]

no to mention, i think the mata mata will eventually think the rays are yummy

 

[dirtyblacksocks]

Ah I see - how about arowanna's and mata mata in a vivarium type pond - with an incline for them to walk up that leads to a partial basking spot/shallow water platform.

 

[M|L]

dude, a no is a no.

they almost never move. if they can't reach the top of the water line to breathe at where they rest, they might not swim to the shallow end.

only if you have a huge adult would I recommend you keep it in an aquarium.

 

[dirtyblacksocks]

Guess the mata mata gets it's own home then

Any suggestions on turtles for a design of this type of pond that are somewhat out of the ordinary - or will pretty much all aquatic turtles try to taste a ray sooner or later? Maybe a fly river?

 

[pythonloose]

yea they need shallow water, im not sure if they bask or come out of the water too much but a fly river would be a better choice

 

[cobra blitz]

they don't swim well, and they will drown if kept in deep water; such as a full aquarium.

as a rule, the water level should be no higher than the length of the carapace.

Thats not true, if they have some size on them they can be kept in deep water.

I've kept hatchlings in 6-8 inches of water. Perfectly fine if you have enough driftwood in there for them.