Should I add the new black aro directly to my 220g tank with my large cichlids or should I add it to my 72g discus tank for a little while until I know it's eating and adjusted to my water? My 220 has some large fish but they have never been agressive or tried to eat any other added tank mates. Plus they also never are more then halfway up the tank except at feeding time.
What size are your cichlids? Recommend that the aro be 2x as long as the cichlids. Assuming your 72g is a 48" bowfront, I would say you could grow your black aro in that tank up to about 15 or 16".
My 220g also has some small grow out fish that are around 2.5 inches. They are geo's that stay at the bottom. Do I need to move them to a different tank for fear of them getting eaten?
Not likely, but if it will fit into the arowanas mouth it could become food.
What should I expect upon the aro's arrival? Should it eat soon or is this going to take a few days? What foods should I have ready for it? I feed a wide range of pellets and frozen foods to all my tanks. Do I need anything else for my new aro?
I have had aros not eat for 3 weeks and Ive also had an aro eat within an hour of being placed in the tank. If it doesn't eat, don't panic be aware it could take a long while to eat. There is a good sticky on arowana feeding, check it out.
How many years will a 8-10 inch black aro be OK in my tank? So how long will it take it to reach 26-27 inches? At that point I will either half to upgrade my tank or sell/trade the fish for another young one.
Seems to me for what I've seen here on MFK blacks grow a little slower then silvers. You should still expect about an inch per month. Myself I have had two blacks. One grew quickly from under 3" to 9" in about 4 months. The other, she may be the slowest growing aro ever. She has only grown about 8~9" in the 25 months I've had her, she is now at 19". To answer your question, really IDK. I would say 2 to 3 years at least, but it could be longer or possibly even sooner.
