| The reedfish, Erpetoichthys calabaricus, | | | | because it can literally jump out of the |
| ropefish, or snakefish is a species of | | | | water and capture its prey. It usually swims |
| freshwater fish in the bichir family and | | | | near the water surface awaiting for potential |
| order. It is the only member of the genus | | | | prey. Although it has been known to eat |
| Erpetoichthys. It is native to West Africa, | | | | larger prey like small bats and birds, their |
| with its natural habitat stretching from | | | | main diets consist of shrimps, insects, |
| Nigeria to the Congo. | | | | smaller fishes and other animals that float |
| | | | on the water surface, on which its |
| The reedfish has a maximum total length of 90 | | | | draw-bridge-like mouth is exclusively adapted |
| centimetres, and it is a very long, slender | | | | for feeding. |
| fish (its length is about 24 times its | | | | |
| height). It lives in slow-moving, brackish, | | | | Arowana are also called "dragonfish" by |
| warm water, and it can breathe air (meaning | | | | aquarists because of their shiny armor-like |
| it is able to survive in water with low | | | | scales, which are similar to the |
| dissolved oxygen content). The reedfish is a | | | | Asian’s folklore of dragons. |
| nocturnal creature, feeding on annelid worms, | | | | |
| crustaceans and insects at night. The | | | | In the aquarium |
| reedfish serves little purpose to humans, | | | | |
| although it is sometimes displayed in | | | | Tank size |
| aquariums. Its genus name Erpetoichthys | | | | |
| derives from the Greek words erpeton | | | | It is important to have a large enough tank |
| ("creeping thing") and ichthys ("fish"). | | | | to keep these large fishes. The minimum tank |
| | | | size for one Arowana for life is a 72"L x |
| In the aquarium | | | | 24"Wx 24"H or 265 gal aquarium . As it grows, |
| | | | a larger tank will be necessary to insure the |
| Although reedfish are not commonly found in | | | | maximum length and life span of the Arowana. |
| aquarium stores, they make wonderful pets. | | | | |
| They are inquisitive, peaceful, and have some | | | | Water conditions |
| "personality." Although reedfish can grow to | | | | |
| be 24" to 30" in length, 12" to 15" is much | | | | Water conditions are important for Arowanas. |
| more common[citation needed]. Because of | | | | Some black water additives can help simulate |
| their flexibility, however, ropefish can be | | | | the Arowana’s natural habit. |
| kept successfully in a 12"-wide tank, which | | | | |
| makes a 20-, 29-, or 30-gallon or larger tank | | | | Black arowanas can adapt to most water supply |
| perfect. Although nocturnal, reedfish will | | | | and thrive |
| sometimes come out during the day, and this | | | | |
| can be encouraged by daytime feeding of | | | | Temperature - 24°C to 28°C, but best at |
| bloodworms or, for larger fish, | | | | 26°C |
| nightcrawlers. The fish are known to jump, so | | | | |
| the aquarium should have a tightly-fitting | | | | Also a 25-30% water change is necessary 1-2 |
| lid without large holes | | | | times every week to maintain excellent water |
| | | | conditions. |
| The black arowana, Osteoglossum ferreirai, is | | | | |
| a freshwater bony fish of the family | | | | Feeding |
| Osteoglossidae, commonly kept in aquaria. The | | | | |
| term "Osteoglossum" means "bone-tongued" and | | | | It is very important that you do not overfeed |
| "bicirrhosum" means "two barbels" (from the | | | | Arowana when they’re young, because as |
| Greek language). | | | | they grow, they might develop drop eye. |
| | | | Arowanas will eat insects, shrimp, pellets, |
| Description | | | | live fish, beef heart, frogs, etc. The best |
| | | | diet for Arowanas is pellets, live crickets, |
| Its natural habitat is the Amazon river in | | | | and shrimps. Small feeder fish are often |
| South America as well as in still waters in | | | | raised in poor conditions and can carry many |
| Guyana. | | | | diseases transmittable to predatory fishes. |
| | | | |
| It has a long body and a tapered tail and can | | | | Tank mates |
| grow to a maximum size of around 1 m in | | | | |
| captivity. In the wild, it has been known to | | | | Any fish will do as long as it doesn’t |
| reach over 1.2 m in length. The juveniles are | | | | fit in the Arowana’s mouth. Many |
| usually a dull silver color with black | | | | people like having more then one Arowana in |
| markings around the head and the tail. Once | | | | the tank, that’s fine and all but they |
| it reaches about 15 cm, the markings will | | | | must be at least 5-6 or more in the tank at a |
| disappear and it will start obtain the | | | | time because Arowanas are very aggressive |
| silvery color, hence its common name. | | | | towards each other. It also eats mutton |
| | | | liver(raw). Be sure your arowana is actually |
| The species is also called water monkey, | | | | eating. |