sorry cichlaguapote it wasnt directed at u. but i get relly fed up because people assume i dont know what im talking about when i aski a queation its so that i may get other input that may be USEFUL not telling me how i did this stuff wrong amd if i did you can just tell me without having to add extra crap.
okay well no one can provide a fish with what is in the wild
for example most of us cant give tetras and cichlids rivers to live in and groups of hundreds to feel safe in for the tetras we try our hardest
In reality.. not really.. especially if you figure genes/age helps to up to actually how big a fish is. Sure take a species and you'll find some huge specimens but how old is it and how many really average that size. Some species there seems to be an "average size" and "largest size".. I'm not advocating keeping an ID in a 240g, because honestly I don't think that's big enough either long term and they're stupidly hard to get rid of because they're everywhere.
And the clown knife may eventually outgrow that 240g but am I "fish police"? No all you can do is warn them about the size and let people figure it out for themselves. I learned a long time ago you can't police fish and where they go and I'm not sure if anyone should.
BigMonster I would probably take the ID back if 240 is the biggest tank you'll ever have. It may or may not outgrow it but if you're someone who could get into a pinch with a 30" ID shark then it's best to get rid of it when it's small.
as far as your gold ck goes i told you it MIGHT NOT outgrow your tank as i have never even seem a gold anywhere close to 18". that doesnt mean they arent out there. personally i dont thinks golds will get as big as a normal ck but i could very well be wrong. all i know is that gold's growth rate is nothing compared to my 2 normal ck's growth rates. the ck i have now is 16" and grows like 1.5" a month with no signs of slowing down.
Owning large fish is a thrill and a challenge. The look on peoples faces when they see them is a rush. My largest ID shark is 25", He is appr. 17 years old. He has owned me for 15. I bought him at 10" .The Imperial ID (I just aquired) is 17" long and about 4 years old. The Golden clown is 22" long and about 4 years old. These three fish are in a 200 Gallon pond 6'x4'x2'. They are comfy. They dont fight. Speaking from experience, they grow. They dont stop. They can live a very long time. It is a major commitment. I have found that large fish are very hard to move. They also dont like a change of environment. My ID had stopped eating for many months after his trip to the pond. I also own a baby ID and a baby Gold CK that will hit the pond in a few years. I know now that I can't buy anymore big fish. For 10 years I only had one. The challenge is water capacity. They hurt themselves in a small area. Long, wide and not that deep seems to work for me. The taller the tank harder to clean. It's not fair to the fish to not be able to move around and swim properly. It can cause humps in the back bone. Think about a big fish before buying. It's not easy to find anybody that will take a big fish. I will do anything to keep my fish happy. Because I have to. Pictures are not the greatest, sorry.
gets more active as it grows bigger.
