Fish that get very large (pic heavy!)

[Orlando]

Originally Posted by Characins

My lfs sells arowanas. Some are only 4", and we have some bigger ones nearly 2'. Even though the big ones are right next to the small ones, people assume theya re a completely different species and then get mad when they find out their cute little arro is now a foot long and ate all the fish in the tank.

By the way, here's a good pic of an oscar, the fish people most often buy that ends up growing out of their tank. I see kids walk out with a 10 gallon tank and a baby oscar in a bag. Poor oscars.


Really big fish, the arapaima-

Oh my geez!

[rasetsu]

The Dallas World Aquarium has several giant arapaimas. I think they are actually endangered and are definetly illegal to keep as pets in Texas because they can survive the winter.

[trackhazard]

Hydrocynus Vittatus - Tigerfish. Up to 30"




Hydrolycus Armatus - Sabertooth. Up to 36"


I know someone who has both of these (a school of 5 Tigerfish and a Sabertooth) in a 150. They are still relatively small (not yet 1 foot). He is getting his 900 gallon set up for them and we are wondering if even that will be big enough.

I'd love to have a tank full of Frontosas but I don't have space for a 6 foot tank as they can grow up to 1 foot long.

-Charlie

[Gezza]

These fish can grow to be larger than people realise and pet shops should advertise this when selling.

[fshfanatic]

Peacock Bass and Tiger Shovelnose couple buddies went flyfishing is South America.

[fishman9809]

daaaaaaaang!!!

[Blue Ridge Reef]

Originally Posted by Gezza

These fish can grow to be larger than people realise and pet shops should advertise this when selling.

IMO, pet shops shouldn't order these species at all. I'm opening a LFS soon, and won't even carry oscars except by demand, and oscars are small (relatively speaking). My problem with Astronatus is that too many live in 20 gallons until they die of hole-in-the-head or simply foul conditions. Every aspect of the pet hobby has these animals people aren't prepared to care for the course of their life, whether it's Burmese pythons, pot-bellied pigs, green iguanas, or pacu.

[neilfishguy]

Why not oscars? They only need 55 gallons...there are many many more fish that grow to large...

[Blue Ridge Reef]

Originally Posted by neilfishguy

Why not oscars? They only need 55 gallons...there are many many more fish that grow to large...

Most people haven't seen a 16 inch oscar, I'm guessing! They get MUCH bigger than most folks have laid eyes on. I've seen many breeder size fish that couldn't easily turn around in a 55 (12 inch wide tank). One oscar can live some two years in a 55, but it will get hole in the head, bacterial infections, lateral line disease, or worse without huge regular water changes. They might can live in a tank that size, but they "need" much, much larger.

Edit, just re-read and apologies if that came off rude. I just feel certain that single full-grown oscar needs a 90-125 gallon tank, minimum.

[fishman9809]

I agree, I do not own huge fish, but I have seen pics

[fishscale]

I think it's ok to carry the species as long as you check out the buyer. I would say that the majority of people who own rays know what they are doing, and yet rays are pretty hard to keep, in terms of equipment. It just depends on what people perceive the fish to be. People look at rays and think wow, big expensive fish, better leave it to experts. People see tinfoil barbs and think, how cute, I will put a couple in a 10 gallon tank.

I think it would be a good middle ground if you didn't regularly stock them, but maybe kept one or two in a big display tank. Oscars are pretty neat fish.

[Ozymandias]

I agree that as long as you stock some as display only to show how big they get people would notice and get the point. also I've watched people feed Oscars feeder fish and it wasn't pretty

[bra_van_drakh]

the only one that can beat these is the arapaima gigas [reach 5 meters in natural habitat, and IS the largest freahwater fish]

Originally Posted by frogmanjared

Fixed the Arowana. I knew that pic was a little fishy... Any other large fish people have seen in their LFS??

-Dinosaur Eel, Senegal Bichir Polypterus senegalus(or other bichir species) over 16"

and this isnt polypterus senegalus [they only reach 9"], its ornatipinis, a ornate bichir, which is large for the polypterus genus [~18"] got one 10" but it jumped and my dog chew only her head off. ..

[BiscuitSlayer]

Originally Posted by frogmanjared

I know what you mean... now there's 2 snakehead species loose in the US. The Northern snakehead has reached most of the way along the east coast, and into Illinois. Now there's populations of Giant snakeheads in Florida... only time will tell how far they will spread. Below: giant snakehead

It's illegal to have any snakehead... but the giant got loose becuase it outgrew someone's tank and they let it go. The northern snake was let loose in one of the east cost states becuase the guy wanted it for a food source.. now it's causing havoc. I've even seen clown loaches and cory catfish let loose in my town's creek! They die over winter of course, but if something gets loose that can survive, we're screwed! It's not just the fish themselves that are problems it's the diseases they carry...anyone heard of VHS? It's destroying our fisheries, and it hasn't even spread yet! Thanks for listening to me vent.

I used to have a friend that had two snakeheads. He kept them in a 180 gallon tank each.

They are the only fish that I have ever seen that appear to kill for sport. These things are vicious and formidable. They would absolutely wreak havoc in the wild. I could easily see a small number of them annihilating trout, bass, sunfish, etc. in an American body of water.

On another note, I have seen pictures of people catching arowanas here in Georgia. One guy on Lake Lanier (about 45 minutes north of Atlanta) caught one last year that was about 3 feet.

http://www.wmi.org/bassfish/reports/108373.htm

People have got to stop releasing these things in the wild. The negative impact won’t be felt until it is too late.

[Characins]

Oscars have got to be one of, if not the most miskept fish species.
They are extremely popular and nearly every fish store keeps them.
Beginners come and see these guys and think they're another dwarf cichlid until it grow over a foot long.

I made a mistake like this when I first started out.

My second tank was a 30 gallon with a single oscar. He lived in there for 6 or 8 months before I finally realized- what am I doing!

He lives in my 75 gallon now, I provide very frequent water changes and excellent filtration. He's nearly 14 years old now, and staying strong!