Who was it?

[Redfishblufish]

Well, i came home and found out that my silver about 6'' arowana was all torn up. He was in a 75g tank with 3.5'' oscar, 6'' needlefish, and a senegal bircher a bit more than 3''. The arowana was lying on the ground when i found him.He was missing alot of scales. Who was it that did it to him? i removed all of the other fish already.

[cocoa_pleco]

is it possible he died before and they were just eating the body? thats a overstocked tank

[Sounguru]

Sounds to me like common overstock agression.

[Demjor19]

I would say it was either the oscar or the needlefish. Oscars are known to have an aggression streak or the Needlefish could have mistaken it for a meal and grabbed hold of it. You really shouldnt be asking us this...you should have been observing the tank enough to see who the aggressor could possibly be.

The tank doesnt seem to be overstocked YET, but will soon be as all the inhabitants grow.

[tanks4thememories]

I would say it was either the oscar or the needlefish. Oscars are known to have an aggression streak or the Needlefish could have mistaken it for a meal and grabbed hold of it. You really shouldnt be asking us this...you should have been observing the tank enough to see who the aggressor could possibly be.

The tank doesnt seem to be overstocked YET, but will soon be as all the inhabitants grow.

From the size of that tank it wasn't anywhere near overstocked for the size of the fish. Silver arowana are not very aggressive and you had him severely "out gunned" by just about everything in the tank. Silvers rely on their size for both offense and defense. If a silver cant swallow it he wont even pay it any attention. Often running from a fight if he is the recipient of aggression. So my bet would be the Oscar. They can be very aggressive even at a young age. Needle Gar (Which arent really Gar at all - http://tanks4thememories.blogspot.com/2008/08/d-needle-nose-gar-essay-xenentodon.html) Are likley to jab a fish mistaking it for food like Demjor19 said above in this thread. Needle Gar tend to bite first and ask later...lol I wouldn't see one inflicting fatal injury and they rarely bite twice if they cant eat it. You do have a issue there though because both Needle and Silver are "Top" dwellers" and aggression would be high for that prime real estate. If you are going to keep aggressive fish always remember fish often die as tempers flare. an aggressive tank is one big ego tank. It is your job to referee and be prepared to remove aggressors/or victims to a safe place till you can trade them or put them in another tank. Get to know their attitudes and their moods. Even then there are exceptions because most predatory fish are very intelligent so each fish has their own personality. What one guy gets away with with his fish in his tank might not work in yours. Time patience, observation and Trial and error are your tools in an Mixed predatory tank.

If you want an arowanna in that environment I would go with Jardini or go with a larger silver. The trick with a silver is make him big enough to not be bothered just because of his size but small enough not to be able to fit the others in his mouth (or he will)...lol. Jardini get very aggressive around 8-10 inches and it is only then that you really know the nature of your fish. Jardini are very mean once they come into their own. Well as always its just my opinions...hope they help ya some and Good Luck!!!

PS all of those fish get really big so I hope you are making plans to put them in bigger tanks or trade them later on when they do get bigger?

[Demjor19]

The only fish that will need a larger tank is the silver arowana.

[tanks4thememories]

The only fish that will need a larger tank is the silver arowana.

I hope Redfishblufish knows that a full grown silver gets from 3-4 feet and anything less than a 250 gal is a joke for a fish that size.

As a "collection" with the poly at 12-18 inches, the needle @ 12 inches and the Oscar weighing in at anywhere from 8 - 12 inches it will be cramped even with arowana at 18 inches in a 75. also with large fish Wider tank as possible is always better if at all possible...Big fish are subject to wide turns...lol

[OscarFan]

You guys all blame it on the Oscar but Oscars arent all mean. In fact the majotity of them are nice. I think the real problem is in water chemistry or feeding. He probably died and the bichir took advantage of this.

P.S Oscars teeth are in the back of the mouth so they wont be able to make gashes.

[tanks4thememories]

You guys all blame it on the Oscar but Oscars arent all mean. In fact the majotity of them are nice. I think the real problem is in water chemistry or feeding. He probably died and the bichir took advantage of this.

P.S Oscars teeth are in the back of the mouth so they wont be able to make gashes.


It is very possible that his arowana died of health or chemical related causes.
Given its Size (6") it was just coming into the range where arowana are pretty sturdy and resistant to a lot of things. So I find it less likely that the death was non aggression related.
Of the fish in the "Line-UP"...lol
To me, the Oscar is the most likely.
Not as much because oscars are mean (however they can be when they want to be...lol). Of the fish he named the Oscar is the only one that will attack and kill fish larger than itself. The others are far less likely to behave that way especially at their listed sizes.

[OscarFan]

It is very possible that his arowana died of health or chemical related causes.
Given its Size (6") it was just coming into the range where arowana are pretty sturdy and resistant to a lot of things. So I find it less likely that the death was non aggression related.
Of the fish in the "Line-UP"...lol
To me, the Oscar is the most likely.
Not as much because oscars are mean (however they can be when they want to be...lol). Of the fish he named the Oscar is the only one that will attack and kill fish larger than itself. The others are far less likely to behave that way especially at their listed sizes.


But as of now we can not blame anyone without knowing the water parameters and if he cycled the tank or not.

[tanks4thememories]

But as of now we can not blame anyone without knowing the water parameters and if he cycled the tank or not.

Very true!!!
Good point!!!

Although I hope he wouldn't put almost 200 bucks worth of fish in an un-cycled tank...hehehe

Hey Red? Tell us about your water please?

[Demjor19]

Very true!!!
Good point!!!

Although I hope he wouldn't put almost 200 bucks worth of fish in an un-cycled tank...hehehe

Hey Red? Tell us about your water please?

These are some very good points. Bad water parameters could easily kill a young silver aro...they are very sensitive during their earlier stages of life.

OscarFan - I dont think Oscars are aggressive...i keep agressive fish and an oscar is far from that, but in that tank i would think the oscar to be the most likely culprit...nothing against Oscars.:c1:

[tanks4thememories]

These are some very good points. Bad water parameters could easily kill a young silver aro...they are very sensitive during their earlier stages of life.

OscarFan - I dont think Oscars are aggressive...i keep agressive fish and an oscar is far from that, but in that tank i would think the oscar to be the most likely culprit...nothing against Oscars.:c1:


Really I do...honest....lol

Seriously if It wasnt for the way they re arrange the tank I would still keep oscars. I really want this one sooooo badly:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b0/Long_finned_oscar.jpg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Long_finned_oscar.jpg

Now that is a fish!!! its like....its like a Betta on steriods...:hmm3grin2orange:

[tanks4thememories]

(Spoken in my best Sherlock Holmes accent...lol) - So you see dear Watson in referring to the deceased one "Silver Arowana" AKA Mr.Osteoglossum bicirrhosumas as stated in: http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=16&cat=1911&articleid=2223

"When young, these fish are easily harassed by more aggressive species such as Cichlids."

And you will find my conclusion elementary my dear Watson if you read the next sentence which says:

"Knifefish, large Plecostomus, Catfish, and Ornate Bichirs make good tank mates for the Silver Arowana."

And knowing that:

The defendant one "Oscar" AKA - Mr. Astronotus ocellatus is indeed a member of the infamous "Cichlid" crime family.

One can make the highly logical although possibly false conclusion that:

if the deceased death was indeed "piscine-a-cide" and not due to unknown causes then the most likely suspect is Mr. Astronotus ocellatus...DA...DA...DAAAA:27: And the other tank mates were merely accomplices caught trying to eat the evidence.

[donvichu]

Really I do...honest....lol

Seriously if It wasnt for the way they re arrange the tank I would still keep oscars. I really want this one sooooo badly:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b0/Long_finned_oscar.jpg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Long_finned_oscar.jpg

Now that is a fish!!! its like....its like a Betta on steriods...:hmm3grin2orange:


this is a veil tail oscar and its genetically redone oscar...its resistance to disease is low so is its aggression and stamina.....with a normal tiger oscar or albino oscar our veiltail fellow is deadmeat

[donvichu]

(Spoken in my best Sherlock Holmes accent...lol) - So you see dear Watson in referring to the deceased one "Silver Arowana" AKA Mr.Osteoglossum bicirrhosumas as stated in: http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=16&cat=1911&articleid=2223

"When young, these fish are easily harassed by more aggressive species such as Cichlids."

And you will find my conclusion elementary my dear Watson if you read the next sentence which says:

"Knifefish, large Plecostomus, Catfish, and Ornate Bichirs make good tank mates for the Silver Arowana."

And knowing that:

The defendant one "Oscar" AKA - Mr. Astronotus ocellatus is indeed a member of the infamous "Cichlid" crime family.

One can make the highly logical although possibly false conclusion that:

if the deceased death was indeed "piscine-a-cide" and not due to unknown causes then the most likely suspect is Mr. Astronotus ocellatus...DA...DA...DAAAA:27: And the other tank mates were merely accomplices caught trying to eat the evidence.



I second mr.Sherlock tanks4thememories conclusion...slver arowanas greatest asset is its size and worst liability is it is very skittish which makes the fish jump quite often and get DE in most cases....plus 6 inches is just about the time our fellow would be starting to stabilize and the water parameters would have played a major role and so did the oscar

[Northernguy]

Absolutly the Oscar. I know a lot of people think Oscars are not violent.:c2:
When you have one in a tank and he decides its time for new tank mates.He is usually the judge ,jury, and death squad!!:laugh1blue:

[troy]

Old thread.