Oscars.....
Hello,
Oscars are a lot of fun, these fish are very exciting and very smart. Oscars need at least 75 Gallons of water, remember Oscars can grow between 12 to 14.5 Inches. Their favorite food is Crawfish (they look like baby lobsters). A carnivorous fish definetly, however you can feed him pellet food especially made for Cichlids; this is the family of fish Oscars belong to. Their scientific name is ASTRONOTUS OCELLATUS, they are indigenous to the rivers in Amozonia and Guyana in South America.
Best thing I can recommend do the Oscar some justice and purchase a bigger tank if you can afford it, if you can do this and take care of him you will never regret it. Oscars are a very rewarding fish to keep, they will grow to recognize you, for they are very very smart. I had some in the past, and I was the only one who could stick their fingers or hand into their tank, without getting bitten, they knew who I was, they even ate out of my own fingers, and never once did they ever bit me.
There is several types of Oscars, you have Red Oscars, Tiger Oscars, Golden Oscars (very rare variety), Albino Tiger Oscars, Albino Oscars. All of them are a blast, however I can tell you the albinos are more sensitive to really bright light, then the other varieties. You are going to need a very good power filter, or mechanical filter. I have used the marineland Emperor 400 Power filter in conjuction with a h.o.t. magnum 250. (Hang on tank) filters. Oscars are very very messy eaters so you will need frequent water changes and cleanings. Also use a under gravel filter with a combination of marineland power heads (660) for water circulation and aeration. For oscars needs strong water current, and a very high concetration of Oxygen.
If you need any more information on these very lovely fish, please e-mail me at
SGTGonzalez@Military.com
Sincerely Yours
Tiburon72
