Oddball Fish-The Most Interesting And Your Favorites

Kirk · Member Joined: 17 Sep 2004 Posts: 79 Location: Canada

Please post interresting oddball fish and their descriptions. Thanks Very Happy

grnlemonade · Super Senior Member Joined: 24 Mar 2004 Posts: 1027

i think arowannas are nice, but they get WAY to big (in most cases over 3')

t_chelle16 · Moderator Joined: 22 Mar 2004 Posts: 3436

Not technically fish, but I like african dwarf frogs. I also like aplle snails.

For fish, I'd love to have a hillstream loach.

-Chelle

sleeper · Member Joined: 16 Dec 2004 Posts: 90

African Dwarf Frogs are indeed awesome, Chelle!

But my favorite oddball fish... one that's in my 55 gal. Amazon tank... is the Black Ghost Knife. What a winner! They swim forwards and backwards, with a swervy, undulating motion, my guy, "Bowie," is so well-disposed. He's already, after only about a month, completely used to me, to the light, and he comes out to eat his bloodworms and isn't afraid of anything. Eventually I'll have him eating from my hand and juggling tinfoil balls...

(also, not oddballs, but I LOVE DISCUS!!!) ;]

Kirk · Member Joined: 17 Sep 2004 Posts: 79 Location: Canada

Yeah, I myself think that the arrowana is a very cool fish too. How big would your tank need to be to house one?

Kirk · Member Joined: 17 Sep 2004 Posts: 79 Location: Canada

Also, does anyone know of any interesting Africans? My friend has a large tank maybe around seventy gallons. He only has about six fish in it all Africans and he was wondering if there were any interesting Africans he could put in. As far as I know they are all from lake T.

Nameless · Senior Member Joined: 04 Jun 2004 Posts: 958

My favourite oddball is my senegal bichir. I looks like a cross between a snake and eel, it is a really good jumper, he slithers like a snake in and out of the tank and he looks cool and has a cool personality.

OnixRevolution · Posted: Sat Jun 04, 2005 5:34 am Post subject:

I had a Cory cat that would do laps around the tank....REALLY FAST. Not just one or two, but constantly for about 5 minutes. As fast as his little fins could take him.
I also had a black Molly that would do laps around the heater, between the tube and the glass...I counted once, about 35 laps before he stopped.
My blackskirts swim backward alot.

grnlemonade · Super Senior Member Joined: 24 Mar 2004 Posts: 1027

sleeper · Member Joined: 16 Dec 2004 Posts: 90

I saw an arrowana at the national aquarium this weekend (which, incidentally, is really pretty lame compared to the Baltimore aquarium).

He was awesome. A white arrowana, probably about 30-34", with a red bellied pirhana that followed it around (weird!). But I never noticed before how their eyes were turned down so they look down at the rest of the water below them.

In terms of oddballs, I also saw mudskippers -- land/water combo -- and their cousins the four-eye, which actually have two sets of lenses on their eyes so they can see above and below the water all at once.

grnlemonade · Super Senior Member Joined: 24 Mar 2004 Posts: 1027

kc5gvn · Moderator Joined: 15 Mar 2004 Posts: 1147

"But I never noticed before how their eyes were turned down so they look down at the rest of the water below them. "

Arrowanas with down turned eyes are usually a result of one of two causes. Either they have been feed strictly feeder fish causing them to continually look downward for food, or they have been fed fatty foods which causes a layer of fat to build up behind the eyes forcing them to focus downward. In nature their eyes are not forced downward because they actually feed from the top of the water. The natives also call them monkey fish because they are known to leap out of the water to grab monkeys off of low overhanging tree limbs.

sleeper · Member Joined: 16 Dec 2004 Posts: 90

Really? That's crazy! Where did you learn that?

kc5gvn · Moderator Joined: 15 Mar 2004 Posts: 1147

Hi sleeper, I guess you're refering to the monkey fish statement. It was a National Geographic film about fish that's been out for years. I believe it was shown on the Discovery Channel. It also had a long segment on Pacus. It shows a native fishing for Pacus for food and shows a Black Pacu that almost covers the bottom of his boat. I think it is available on video tape.

Kirk · Member Joined: 17 Sep 2004 Posts: 79 Location: Canada

That sounds pretty wicked. Where are arrowanas from anyway?

grnlemonade · Super Senior Member Joined: 24 Mar 2004 Posts: 1027

they are from south america

Nameless · Senior Member Joined: 04 Jun 2004 Posts: 958

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=8307

Kirk · Member Joined: 17 Sep 2004 Posts: 79 Location: Canada

For some reason I thought that they were from Asia. Are they kind of like pike in a way? interesting*

grnlemonade · Super Senior Member Joined: 24 Mar 2004 Posts: 1027

i guess the only pike-like things about them is that they can be carnivorus and also they have an elongated shape.

kc5gvn · Moderator Joined: 15 Mar 2004 Posts: 1147

Hi Kirk, You are correct and so is grnlemonade. There are two varieties an Asian Arawana and a South American Arawana. They are similar in body structure. The Asian comes in several colors the most popular being the reds and golds. The South American variety comes in two colors silver and black. The Asian variety is a little more aggressive. I'll try to find some good links to post for both strains.

This link show both the South American (Osteoglossum) and the Asian and Australian (Scleropages). Asian and Australian are the same species.
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/osteoglossiforms.htm

This link shows some great shots and great info on Asian Arawanas.
http://dragonfish.com/