Jau catfish Zungaro zungaro at Fish Story Aquarium and Rescue
- Thread starter thebiggerthebetter
- Start date
They are oddly available, sometimes, some places. You can try Raymond Chan, Predatoryfins, Aquabid, and Ebay. Sometimes LFS carry them too, some better ones.
They are often marketed as "Amazon catfish" but the babies are hard to confuse with any other fish.
There will be some jaus arriving at lfs here next week or end of the month. Hoping they'll survive the shipping, already booked 2 pieces.
QUESTION, are Jaus predator or scavengers? I feed my smaller catfish feeders, idk if the jaus will be able to catch em if they're anything similar to a sluggish rtc.
What can I expect their growth rate per month? 1"?
QUESTION, are Jaus predator or scavengers? I feed my smaller catfish feeders, idk if the jaus will be able to catch em if they're anything similar to a sluggish rtc.
What can I expect their growth rate per month? 1"?
Quick question, how do you clean these tanks? Do you get in there and clean the bottom or do you have some way that makes this mostly automatic?
Also, how often do you do water changes?
Also, how often do you do water changes?
There will be some jaus arriving at lfs here next week or end of the month. Hoping they'll survive the shipping, already booked 2 pieces.
*****Is your focus of steel and will power already eroding? Haha... You said wels and piraiba and nothings else. But I know a true hoarder when I meet one. They fall easy to temptation.
QUESTION, are Jaus predator or scavengers? I feed my smaller catfish feeders, idk if the jaus will be able to catch em if they're anything similar to a sluggish rtc.
*****Good question. I'd need to read up. They are surely not built like RTC, in that their body shape is a lot more hydrodynamic. Which means they are faster. If I had to guess they are opportunistic, just like RTC but with the hunting side having a larger representation in their wild dietary habits.
What can I expect their growth rate per month? 1"?
*****I think so. More or less. IME they grow 2x-3x slower than RTC. YMMV.
*****Is your focus of steel and will power already eroding? Haha... You said wels and piraiba and nothings else. But I know a true hoarder when I meet one. They fall easy to temptation.
QUESTION, are Jaus predator or scavengers? I feed my smaller catfish feeders, idk if the jaus will be able to catch em if they're anything similar to a sluggish rtc.
*****Good question. I'd need to read up. They are surely not built like RTC, in that their body shape is a lot more hydrodynamic. Which means they are faster. If I had to guess they are opportunistic, just like RTC but with the hunting side having a larger representation in their wild dietary habits.
What can I expect their growth rate per month? 1"?
*****I think so. More or less. IME they grow 2x-3x slower than RTC. YMMV.
I've long wanted the Jaus but they are much rarer than Lince here. I thought I'm never gonna get them after 2 years of searching but then, one of the lfs text me they have some shipment will be arriving soon. 
I can't pass up on that. I'm pretty sure, after the Jaus, the only bucket list left are Suriname piraiba. Then that's it. If I'm ever gonna get a new fish, it would be another Suriname piraiba lol
I can't pass up on that. I'm pretty sure, after the Jaus, the only bucket list left are Suriname piraiba. Then that's it. If I'm ever gonna get a new fish, it would be another Suriname piraiba lol
Impressive jau viktor, one off only a handful I’ve seen on captivty. There hasn’t been any in the uk for some years. I will admit, if any do enter. I will buy one on impulse, the usually turn up as giant bumble bee. So I won’t hold my hopes up. One I’ve longed after for many years.
I'd say predatory for sure, they will have no trouble catching feeders. I've only kept a small one for a brief time in the past at a very small size but it was without question the most aggressive catfish and possibly the most aggressive fish overall that I've ever kept. It would frequently pick fights with fish more than twice its size and beat them up. I ultimately lost it due to forced separation in a quarantine setup because it was damaging way more expensive growout fish. Ironically enough in a very odd predation incident involving a Juruense.
All that said it's high on my list to get another one at some point because it was super cool! Had a couple friends that have kept them with the same result, just wicked aggression. Cliff @necrocanis used to have an 18" or so Jau that bit a 12" Channel Catfish in half and would bully TSN's over 2ft in his big tank. Another friend ended up with a specimen only tank when his 20" Jau killed everything else in the 240g it was sharing.
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Cute little button, ain't it? Haha
My experience is not as severe but qualitatively matches that described by Trent in smallish tanks of up to a several hundred gallons, including the killing of the tank mates, especially other catfish - Aluminum catfish, Pimelodus albicans, etc.
In 4500 gal, the aggression subsided 10x becoming tolerable but has never gone away. But I have two jau in there and their simmering, never ending rivalry appears to be the main driving force behind most of the attacks or rather occasional bites of their tank mates. When they engage in an occasional short squirmish and swim away from it loudly snapping their jaws and lounging at everyone, everyone scatters out of their way.
Nothing much to update on the Jau pair. Still rule the tank, still competitive with each other.
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