This is my pet Arowana that has been with me since 29 August 2006. Hong Bao(HB) was bought home at the size of 7 inches. Month after month with the love and good water management HB has grown tremendously to a size of 18 inches(click on photo to view video)
Arowanas belong to the Osteoglossiformes family which is one of the most ancient fish species. Their origin has been traced back to the Jurassic era, close to 200 million years ago. They have a long body, large slanted mouth, upturned jaw, sharp teeth, big eyes and a pair of barbels (whiskers) growing out of the tip of its lower mouth. One of the most unusual characteristics of arowanas is their bony tongue which is used to crush their prey. Some varieties can grow as long as three feet.
Native Habitat
Arowanas are native to four continents: Asia, Africa, Australia and South America. In Asia, they are called a Dragon Fish or Feng Shui Fish. They are on the endangered species list in several countries. The exportation of these fish is strictly regulated and can only be shipped from countries where they are bred on farms where the supply is considered plentiful. This accounts for the high price (usually $1000 minimum).
Feeding
Arowanas need to be fed live foods such as brine shrimp or red worm when they are juvenile. As they grow in size crickets, cockroaches and live feeder fish can be the main diet. Arowanas can also be train to feed on pallet which are formulated for their diet and market prawn which is good to enhance the scale colour especially the Red Arowanas. They have a voracious appetite so be prepared to spend a lot of money on food. Live food is always more expensive.
Tank Size
Tank size is a very important aspect as it affects how the fish is going to turn out when matured, whether it is straight swimming with fins fully opened or one that is sickly, stunted and hunched. The larger the tank size is, the better. In general, a bare minimum size for an adult arowana should be 5 ft by 2 ft. One general rule is that the length of the tank must be at least 3 times longer than the length of the fish. As for the tank's width, it must be at least 1.2 times longer than the length of the fish. It is ideal to place the fish tank in a quiet spot of the house to avoid asserting unnecessarily stress to the fish by human traffic. Surrounding stress can easily affect the fish's base color, especially for Cross Back Golden. Sufficient lighting is also required for arowana to ensure good color developments and it is ideal for tanks to expose to some natural morning or evening sunlight. However, too much sunlight can lead to algae problems such as green water or drastic temperature change in smaller tank etc. Avoid switching on the aquarium light suddenly in a darkened room, or the fish may panic and injure themselves. Switch on the room lights first, then a few minutes later switch on the tank light.
