Black Knife fish 19"??
- Thread starter Lukee
- Start date
my neighbor had a 12" african knife in a 20 gallon high. he is an idiot though, no doubt. anyone who feeds his fish ground hamburger instead of regular food is a purebred idiot.
cripes, i asked him one time when he came over to fix a faucet if he keeps any fish and he said he keeps some fish thats long and brown and likes to eat other fish. i asked him what type it was and he said its an african fish. he said he feeds his ground hamburger at times from his finger. i tried telling him, that its a bad idea cause i didnt think they could process that food and he said hes been doing it for YEARS! i was like, whoaaaaa......
dont worry though; the fish part isnt the worst of it. he has recently married and can now reproduce the idiocy- that IS the worst of it!
cripes, i asked him one time when he came over to fix a faucet if he keeps any fish and he said he keeps some fish thats long and brown and likes to eat other fish. i asked him what type it was and he said its an african fish. he said he feeds his ground hamburger at times from his finger. i tried telling him, that its a bad idea cause i didnt think they could process that food and he said hes been doing it for YEARS! i was like, whoaaaaa......
dont worry though; the fish part isnt the worst of it. he has recently married and can now reproduce the idiocy- that IS the worst of it!
lol
There is a HUGE difference between all of the common knifefish. This is one of those things you really should get the full info on what the thread starter is talking about because all three of them differ greatly and I have seen african knife fish (Xenomystus nigri) and ghost knifefish (Apteronotus albifrons) labeled as "black knifefish".
There are usually 3 types sold:
-african knifefish (Xenomystus nigri)
-clown knifefish (Notopterus chitala)
-black ghost knifefish (Apteronotus albifrons)
Clown Knifefish get around 3-4 feet, are highly predatory, and are definitely NOT a community fish at all.
Ghost Knife fish get around 2 feet I believe, and are actually quite docile. But they will eat anything that will fit into their mouth. And they don't defend themselves very well so they should be kept with large, docile fish.
African Knifefish only get around 8-12 inches usually. They are also docile, but will eat small fish that fit in their mouth. THESE are the knifefish most people should get because they don't get monstrous. You can keep them in a 55 gallon tank easy.
There is a HUGE difference between all of the common knifefish. This is one of those things you really should get the full info on what the thread starter is talking about because all three of them differ greatly and I have seen african knife fish (Xenomystus nigri) and ghost knifefish (Apteronotus albifrons) labeled as "black knifefish".
There are usually 3 types sold:
-african knifefish (Xenomystus nigri)
-clown knifefish (Notopterus chitala)
-black ghost knifefish (Apteronotus albifrons)
Clown Knifefish get around 3-4 feet, are highly predatory, and are definitely NOT a community fish at all.
Ghost Knife fish get around 2 feet I believe, and are actually quite docile. But they will eat anything that will fit into their mouth. And they don't defend themselves very well so they should be kept with large, docile fish.
African Knifefish only get around 8-12 inches usually. They are also docile, but will eat small fish that fit in their mouth. THESE are the knifefish most people should get because they don't get monstrous. You can keep them in a 55 gallon tank easy.
So you have an african knifefish that is twice the size of most maxed out african knifes?
My Black Ghost Knifefish is currently happily living with Zebra Danios and Buenos Aires Tetras. Both are very fast - and seem to have enough common sense to move out of the way when "shadow" is eating.
It is great to watch - I drop in a cube of frozen bloodworm and the smaller fish go crazy - until the cube drops to the floor of the tank - then Shadow takes over and the rest is definiately all his. He has gone up to the top of the tank a couple of times - guess he was getting impatient.
I don't know what else to put in the tank, but I am looking. It has to be something that will be able to co-exist with Shadow - the tank belongs to him. He is currently in a bow-front 72 gal and will likely be upgraded to a larger tank around Christmas - at least a larger tank is on my list to Santa
.
Also - with the speed and appetite of the Tetras - any other fish I introduce would have to be aggressive enough to get some food - it disappears fast with this bunch - if you snooze - you loose.
Just take a look at my signature for stocking info.
It is great to watch - I drop in a cube of frozen bloodworm and the smaller fish go crazy - until the cube drops to the floor of the tank - then Shadow takes over and the rest is definiately all his. He has gone up to the top of the tank a couple of times - guess he was getting impatient.
I don't know what else to put in the tank, but I am looking. It has to be something that will be able to co-exist with Shadow - the tank belongs to him. He is currently in a bow-front 72 gal and will likely be upgraded to a larger tank around Christmas - at least a larger tank is on my list to Santa
.Also - with the speed and appetite of the Tetras - any other fish I introduce would have to be aggressive enough to get some food - it disappears fast with this bunch - if you snooze - you loose.
Just take a look at my signature for stocking info.
