does anybody keep them? I always thought they were saltwater, so how come people keep them in freshwater? Also, don't they get as big as arapaimas? I would love to see pics of people who have them. Thanks!
TARPONS
- Thread starter AroW
- Start date
Luckily I know a thing or two about tarpons.
Firstly both are ultimatley SW.
They are in FW/BW in tthe younger years of their life so thats when peeps keep emin fresh. BUT they are adaptable to BW because sometimes they like to go into the mangroves and hunt baby fish. They certainly do not get as big as arapaimas (they can get to 10ft) but they do get large... rather large max is about 6-7ft so a very large tank is advised. A pool would be best really. But i think the coolest would bee your own little netted off dock in warm shallow waters
OK thats my dream I'll shut up now 
Firstly both are ultimatley SW.
They are in FW/BW in tthe younger years of their life so thats when peeps keep emin fresh. BUT they are adaptable to BW because sometimes they like to go into the mangroves and hunt baby fish. They certainly do not get as big as arapaimas (they can get to 10ft) but they do get large... rather large max is about 6-7ft so a very large tank is advised. A pool would be best really. But i think the coolest would bee your own little netted off dock in warm shallow waters
OK thats my dream I'll shut up now they can live in straight fresh water thier whole life but i think it stunts thier growth. a lake by my house has a few of them and they are around 4' long. theyve been that size for a few years now.
What would be the tank size required? Who has the biggest tarpon on here and how long did it take to grow that big?
the juvy tarpons (6" to 12") i see in the LFS around my area keep them in pure freshwater and they seem ok.
Adult tarpons breed in freshwater. Baby tarpons venture into salt, but those trapped in freshwater becomes freshwater but they'll never breed.
Only the pacific tarpon gets GIGANTIC. The ones commonly sold in the pet trade are the indo-pacific species and stay much smaller.
Only the pacific tarpon gets GIGANTIC. The ones commonly sold in the pet trade are the indo-pacific species and stay much smaller.
I kept 3 small Indo-Pacific (Megalops cyprinoides) tarpons a while back in totally fresh water. Really quick movers. Pretty hardy fish and not that demanding to keep, actually got mine to take pellets.
Wish we get your big version (Atlantic) over here. Ours are alot smaller. I've caught them up to 3 ft long (about 8-10lb) in North Queensland. They absolutely go berserk on a line, jumping and twisting all over the place. Apparently the can get up to 1.5m long, but most in fresh water only grow to 60cm.
Sydney Aquarium has some in fresh that were about 45cm. The common name for them ver here is Oxe-eye herring.
The atlantic version Megalops atlanticus grows alot bigger, read somewhere up to 300lb. The all tackle record was caught in Venezuela at 283 lb. Read an article in 'Sportfishing' magazine about one hooked on fly took over 9 hours to bring it to the boat only to lose it at boatside. Amazing fish-hope one day to make it over to the Florida Keys to catch one on fly
Wish we get your big version (Atlantic) over here. Ours are alot smaller. I've caught them up to 3 ft long (about 8-10lb) in North Queensland. They absolutely go berserk on a line, jumping and twisting all over the place. Apparently the can get up to 1.5m long, but most in fresh water only grow to 60cm.
Sydney Aquarium has some in fresh that were about 45cm. The common name for them ver here is Oxe-eye herring.
The atlantic version Megalops atlanticus grows alot bigger, read somewhere up to 300lb. The all tackle record was caught in Venezuela at 283 lb. Read an article in 'Sportfishing' magazine about one hooked on fly took over 9 hours to bring it to the boat only to lose it at boatside. Amazing fish-hope one day to make it over to the Florida Keys to catch one on fly