CichlidFish.com - Fish That Think.

Hello, I just purchased a irredescent shark. I have searched the net for info. but cant seem to find any. Please help any info?

I think you're talking about Pangasius sutchi, which is a catfish from SE Asia. I hope you have a very big tank, since these fish get BIG. They should always be kept in groups, so it would be better to give him some mates. Sometimes they play dead when they are frightened, and they are known to have personality. They eat most of the available fish food if used to, but prefer live food as insects, worms etc., also eat plants when they get older.

You should get lots of results when searching for Pangasius sutchi or iridescent shark with google.

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Gisela
moppel@gismo.owl.de

these suckers get huge and i doubt anyone can keep them if you dont have a large pond. they can get around 40" and they need room to cruise around..

people usually buy these fish as a compulsive buy with out any research and they usually either end up dead or the owener wonders what happened to all of his neons..

you should really research b4 you buy
sorry for the lecture tho

in my personal, humble opinion irridescent sharks should NOT be sold at all. only tanks over 1000 gallons would suit ID sharks properly. http://www.aquariacentral.com/species/db.cgi?db=fresh&uid=default&ID=0207&view_records=1 this is a profile of the ID shark, now pangasius hypopthalmus (formerly sutchi). they are schooling fish, need lots of swimming space and grow to 3 1/2 feet in length. lfs commonly tell you what you want to hear. "fish will grow to the size of the tank" and other nonsense just to make a buck. fish stop growing, or die, because their body is stunted, but often internal organs keep growing, causing major internal, and often external, deformities.

Unfortuneatle i have 2 of these fish that i bought with my original tetra tank (46 gallon) about a year ago, lfs told me they are good bottom feeders to keep tank clean, .. I also did the research..too late and found out they are very fast swimmers..the most common cause of death is when they are frightened they swim speedily into the side of the tank killing themselves..I have plans to move them into my 100 gallon oscar tank that i just set up..waiting until its cycle is over though they are also very sensitive to changes water conditions.

[This message has been edited by SSN23 (edited 06-01-2002).]