Beginner's guide to Raising an Arowana
Arowana Introduction
Arowana are freshwater bony fish of the family Osteoglossidae, also known as bony tongues. In this family of fish, the head is bony and the elongate body is covered by large, heavy scales, with a mosaic pattern of canals. The dorsal and the analfins have soft rays and are long based, while the pectoral and ventral fins are small. The name bonytongues is derived from a toothed bone on the floor of the mouth, the tongue equipped with teeth that bite against teeth in the roof of the mouth. The fish can obtain oxygen from air by sucking it into the swim bladder, which is lined with capillaries like lung tissue. The arowana is an obligatory air breather.
Osteoglossids are basal (primitive) fish from the lower tertiary and are placed in the actinopterygiid order Osteoglossiformes. There are ten described living species : there from South America, one from Africa, four from Asia, and the remaining two from Australia.
Osteoglossidae is the only exclusively freshwater fish family found on both sides of the Wallace Line. This may be explained by the theory that Asian arowanas (S. formosus) diverged from the Australian Scleropages, S. jardinii and S. leichardti, about 140 million years ago, making ot likely that Asian arowanas were carried to Asian on the Indian subcontinent.
Osteoglossids are carnivorous, often being specialized surface feeders. They are excellent jumpers it has been reported that Osteoglossum species have been seen leaping more than 6 feet (almost 2 metres) from the water surface to pick off insects and birds from overhanging branches in South America, hance the nickname water monkeys. Arowana species typically grow to around 2 to 3 feet in captivity.
Several species of osteoglossid exhibit extensive parental care. They buildnests and protect the young after they hatch. All species are mouth brooders, the parents holding sometimes hundreds of eggs in their mouths. The young may make several tentative trips outside the parent's mouth to investigate the surroundings before leaving permanently. These fishes are best kept with live or frozen feed and they easily out grow the tank within a span of 8-10 months. Always preferred in a large type aquarium of at least 150 gallons.
Visit : Learn Insider Arowana Care Tips
Osteoglossids are basal (primitive) fish from the lower tertiary and are placed in the actinopterygiid order Osteoglossiformes. There are ten described living species : there from South America, one from Africa, four from Asia, and the remaining two from Australia.
Osteoglossidae is the only exclusively freshwater fish family found on both sides of the Wallace Line. This may be explained by the theory that Asian arowanas (S. formosus) diverged from the Australian Scleropages, S. jardinii and S. leichardti, about 140 million years ago, making ot likely that Asian arowanas were carried to Asian on the Indian subcontinent.
Osteoglossids are carnivorous, often being specialized surface feeders. They are excellent jumpers it has been reported that Osteoglossum species have been seen leaping more than 6 feet (almost 2 metres) from the water surface to pick off insects and birds from overhanging branches in South America, hance the nickname water monkeys. Arowana species typically grow to around 2 to 3 feet in captivity.
Several species of osteoglossid exhibit extensive parental care. They buildnests and protect the young after they hatch. All species are mouth brooders, the parents holding sometimes hundreds of eggs in their mouths. The young may make several tentative trips outside the parent's mouth to investigate the surroundings before leaving permanently. These fishes are best kept with live or frozen feed and they easily out grow the tank within a span of 8-10 months. Always preferred in a large type aquarium of at least 150 gallons.
Visit : Learn Insider Arowana Care Tips