Pound for Pound toughest fish?

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rumblesushi

Feeder Fish
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Jul 18, 2005
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in a tournament of the best predatory fish around, all weighing the same - who would you fancy?

It's fairer to do it by weight, like boxing, for example a 12 inch rhom is gonna weigh significantly more than a 12 inch senegal bichir.

Also I know that fish are not robots, it does come down to the individual - just how aggressive, pugnacious and tough they are.

For example my red snakehead was extremely aggressive even for the species.

Not only would it attack your hand if you stroked the tank and go for your fingers if you went around the top of the tank, but I once tried mixing it with fish the same size to see if anything could live with it. I tried 2 fish of equal size and it ripped them to shreds as soon as they arrived (seperate occasions).

And it was not even hungry, it was very well fed on beefheart, shrimps, goldfish etc.

Yet my pirhanas were not aggressive at all. A goldfish could live for days in that tank, they seemed to prefer dead food. And if i put my hand in they would do nothing.

So let's say we take an average specimen of each fish, not one that's unusually aggresive or timid.

Who would your money be on? (excluding poisonous fish, has to be a fair fist fight (well mouth ;))

I guess the contenders are red snakeheads, wolf fish, african tiger, possibly a rhom? Lungfish?
 
dan, no not at all - those were just the first fish that came to mind :)

I've always know an oscar is aggressive, but take on a snakehead or something like that of the same weight? In my opinion the snakehead would be faster, more powerful, with bigger teeth, and probably just as aggressive. My money would be on the channa.

How about a 20 inch SH vs a 20 inch malabaricus?
 
I want to see a 2' bowfin vs a 2' snakehead, even money?
 
rumblesushi said:
dan, no not at all - those were just the first fish that came to mind :)

I've always know an oscar is aggressive, but take on a snakehead or something like that of the same weight? In my opinion the snakehead would be faster, more powerful, with bigger teeth, and probably just as aggressive. My money would be on the channa.

How about a 20 inch SH vs a 20 inch malabaricus?
do you mean Wolf fish / Tiger fish (Hoplias malabaricus) ? because i would still say snake head fella.

where abouts in uk are you ?

i'm in leeds
 
I mean hoplias malabaricus yup.

Though I love snakeheads, it was my fave fish I ever owned, the wolf just looks mean as hell.

From what I've seen it seems to be even more aggressive and powerful than a SH. Some people have kept snakeheads with other fish, but I've never seen anyone claim to keep a hoplias with anything other than another hoplias.

It also has much bigger teeth.

I'm in brighton, right on the south coast, your area seems to be much better stocked with aquatics than down here ironically :)
 
Queen triggerfish, or fahaka puffer. Their jaws are unmatched by anything other than piranhas, and unlike piranhas, they actually have the balls to use their dentition. They'd remove an opposing fish's jaws/flesh/organs like tree clippers remove fingers.
 
after puffers/triggers, i'd say african lungfish would be next, they have jaws similar in power to puffers/triggers, but lungfish are long and slender and therefore more vulnerable to attack.
 
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