ID Shark with commet?

gsparsan

gsparsan

AC Members
Dec 2, 2007
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Hi all,
I have a 6ft tank kept outdoor, with 4 comets about 5" size. The tank looks pretty empty and I would like to add some fish. Instead of adding more commets, I would like to add 2 ID Sharks 8" long. I have some doubts though. Will the ID Shark end up eating/killing the commets? Tank has a large pond pressure filter.

Alternatively, my brother has a large pond (12ft x 36ft) full of tilapia. Nothing else survives because of the tilapia that just eats everything. Will the ID shark be ok there
 
I wouldn't do it, the sharks are would probably view the goldfish as meals. From what I've read ID sharks reach 4' or so in length. I just looked them up,

"....Their omnivorous diet consists of crustaceans, other fish, and plant matter....Juvenile iridescent sharks are often sold as pets for home aquariums. However, they are not easy fish to keep, and are not recommended for home aquariums. Iridescent sharks are schooling fish that prefer to be kept in groups of five or more.[SUP][2][/SUP] Accustomed to living in rivers, they are very active fish that require a lot of space. They have very poor eyesight, so any foreign movement they detect outside of their habitat, they will see as an utter threat. If stressed, their first instinct is to flee, and such a blind dash can result in injuries, especially in an aquarium environment. These flights may be terminated by the fish sinking to the bottom, where it may lie on its side or back until it recovers.Many fish owners are unaware of the enormous size an iridescent shark can reach and also that they can bite very harshly. If given enough room and fed adequately, an individual of this species can reach 1 m (3 feet) in length. In most home aquariums, the amount of space an iridescent shark has severely stunts its growth. For this reason, most iridescent sharks kept in home aquaria grow to only 15 to 30 cm (6 to 12 inches) in length and die prematurely from organ failure.[SUP][dubious – discuss][/SUP] As a rule of thumb, an iridescent shark requires a minimum tank size of 12 m (40 feet) to develop naturally and live a long, healthy life. Schools require even larger tanks. When provided with adequate sized aquaria and proper husbandry, an iridescent shark may live well into its teens and grow to full size."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iridescent_shark
 
Thanks for the info. I am conscious that they will outgrow the tank. At their current size, I think the 6ft tank is ok. Depending how fast they grow, they will be too big for the tank in a year or a few years. That is why I need to know if I can keep them in a big ppond with tilapia. I am not worried that the ID sharks will eat the tilapia. I'm worried about the other way round. Tilapia will just finish off any other similar sized fish. This one will be much bigger in size by the time it is introduced to the pond. I have seen tilapia kept with bigger carps with no problem.

My intention is to keep in the tank for some time and transfer it to the pond. unless I can do that, I will not buy the ID sharks because I have no plan of getting tanks bigger than 6Ft.
 
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