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The Vancouver Aquarium has an Arapaima/pacu/RTC tank as well....standing in front of it is humbling.

Pacus belong to the Genera Colossoma and Mylossoma. The Colossoma species grow to be huge. Colossoma nigripinne, the Blackfinned Pacu, is a food fish in its native waters, and grows big enough to keep a large family very well fed! Braz Walker's pocket book says that this fish grows to 2 feet in length, but it'll easily exceed that, and some specimens will exceed 3 feet in the wild. Add to this the fact that Pacus are 'well-padded' and fairly bulky fish (look at a big adult head on and you'll soon see what I mean!) and the maintenance problems these things pose soon become apparent. Shini once said in an earlier post that an adult Pacu would not physically fit into the confines of a 55 gallon (US) aquarium because its body occupies more space than that: this gives you a good idea why Pacus are best left to experts with a lot of funding behind them. Not least because if these things panic for some reason, they're capable of crashing through the front glass unless it's laminated and reinforced, and consequently, building an aquarium to house them is another of those civil engineering projects! To do these things justice, you're looking at something like 20 feet by 6 feet by 6 feet: again, you'll be building that aquarium with the help of a jib crane!

Last edited by Calilasseia at 09-Nov-2004 11:59

Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Hey Shini, in all of my research that I've been doing, I've been trying to figure out if there are actually different species of Pacu, ie- Black vs. red-bellied. Can you or anyone else shed some light on this issue?

When I bought my pacu, I was aware of how large they get and I'm prepared to invest as much as I need to keep them happy!

However, I have disuaded many people from buying them at the store I work at. I have no fear in telling people that if they want that "pirahna like fish", they'll need a 1000 gallon tank in about 3 years.

Pseudoplatystoma fasciatum (I think I have the name right) reaches 9 feet.

Brachyplatysoma filamentosum is the fish to which you refer.:%)

It's a shame Pangasianodon gigas is critically endangered. As a food fish, they're invaluable, but they're being fished to extinction.

Alligator Gars (not to say all other gars are not big fish) are another large fish that'll be hard for any hobbyist to care for when it's an adult.

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

Ah, a bit like Red Tails are they Toirtis?

Only Red Tails are self propelled ammonia factories ... ICI needn't bother building a plant to make ammonia via the Haber process, just put 100 red tails in a big vat and let them do it instead!

Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

For a European Catfish, you're looking at something like 20,000 gallons to keep it happy

At least, since they produce a rather remarkable amount of waste.

Ah. Wels (Siluris glanis), the European Catfish. This is a monster. Some specimens are reputed to reach nearly 5 metres. Mure usually, however, 3 metres is the typically quoted upper limit.

There's quite a few big catfishes for those who like them. Paulicea species from South America reach 7 feet. Pseudoplatystoma fasciatum (I think I have the name right) reaches 9 feet. Pangasianodon gigas from the Mekong River reaches 10 feet or more.

I have to admit, there's something fascinating about huge fish. The only trouble being that most of them are WAY unsuitable for an aquarium. For a European Catfish, you're looking at something like 20,000 gallons to keep it happy



Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Talking about huge fish..i found this one..wels catfish,it can grow bigger than 10feet (120"..min.tank 900 gallons
They are very dirty catfish..that will create a ton of vaste..ohh and they will eat anything,apples,frogs,fish etc.

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I know human beings and fish can co-exist peacefully.

What kind of pacu fish are you people talking about..as they need a big tank..is it the black pacu?they can be up to 60"..i think a 500 gallon tank should be ok.

Last edited by robby1619 at 05-Nov-2004 09:12

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I know human beings and fish can co-exist peacefully.

Oiy... can you imagine one of those monsters loose in a reservoir in S. Cali where it doesn't get cold enough to kill them off? :%)

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And you wonder why the government bans so many fish in CA

I agree with Cali; to keep an Arapaima (or two!) you've gotta be rich. I've only been satisfied with one hobbyist's Arapaima set-up ever, and he's rich enough that he's got a pool cleaner for the pond.:%)

I believe Arapaima are really fast growers when small, but slow down later in life.

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

Yep, anyone contemplating keeping an Arapaima long term had better be seriously rich. Apart from the fact that simply constructing its long-term home will be a civil engineering project involving heavy-lift cranes (plus, you'll have to commission the likes of Pilkington Glass here in the UK to make sheets of float glass 30 feet long by 7 feet tall - that should add alarmingly to the cost), as has been cited above, feeding this beast will (pardon the pun) eat into one's income at a colossal rate. Plus, can you imagine the logistics of a water change in an aquarium that size? You'd have to borrow a fire tender from the local fire brigade to pump the water!

Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Wow..i didn't know they got that huge(picture)
You must have a lake to have these fish
Are these fish fast growers or slow growers?

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I know human beings and fish can co-exist peacefully.

just been to a site and there i saw some new oddball fish for sale
1)Arapaima gigas
2)Weeksii bichir
3)Palmas bichir
4)Retropinnis bichir
5)Delhezi bichir
The prices of these are around 45-80us$ except for the Arapaima gigas that costs around 250us$,you also need a big tank for these fish.
These are real nice looking fish..i wish i could have a big tank to have them in...but the time will tell

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I know human beings and fish can co-exist peacefully.

That reminds me of the Amazon exhibit in the National Zoo in DC. They have an Arapaima/pacu tank. Very cool!

Honestly, I don't think Arapaima should be available at all in the private sector. They simply get way too big...and I can't even imagine the food bill to feed them!

Arapaima need a tank at least the size of most public aquariums' tanks. The fish itself can be about 14 foot long, so your tank would need to be at least that large on each size. More if you want it to have room to move. So how about a 28' by 16' tank, 7' tall.

That's 23,461.39 US gallons according to the capacity calculator on this site. That could fit some pacu as well.

That's a pretty good sized tank for this fish... but... anything under a relatively shallow 10,000 gallon tank/heated pond would be too small for these monsters. (and also don't forget the filtration, heating, etc, for a tank that size) They're on another order entirely from the "large" fish like pacu or bala shark schools that *only* get a couple feet long. Keeping an arapaima in your house is sort of like keeping an elephant in your house. You'd better have a LOT of room and a LOT of money!

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I don't know what the gallon count would be, but I'm guessing something at least 20'x20' for an adult. Which again makes me question why I ever thought that tank would be big enough...

How big of tank does an Arapaima need? 3,000 gallons?

Yeah, I haven't looked at the photo for a while...

I'm thinking about trying to build something close to that for my pacu eventually.