The True Diet of African Arowana (Heterotis niloticus)

[Josh's Fish]

Anyone that has kept African Arowana (H. niloticus), have been aware of the difficulty that comes with keeping them.
Is it a filter feeder?
Does it eat fish?
Why do they keep dying prematurely?

This article I wrote for Life: Nature Magazine aims to answer any troubles you might have with them; followed by a complete care video, which also explains how they are different from true Arowana.

Hopefully these resources help you

 

[dnz03dw]

awesome write up!

 

[thebiggerthebetter]

Wonderful job. That's some serious, serious effort. Everyone thinking of keeping an African aro must read the article and watch the video.

Thank you so very much.

 

[Sasha Isles]

The write-up by Josh's Fish is very accurate, I have successfully reared African Arowana from just over 1 inch long to full-grown (over 1m) for many years now.. ....they are especially vulnerable when under 6 - 8 inches and need regular around the clock, feeding (every 5 - 6 hrs is ideal).

For the first 4 months you will find yourself getting up in the middle of the night to feed them.. starting them off on blood worm and then gradually introducing ground up pellets works well.. they do not have the throat capacity to be able to sallow large foods, grains of chopped up pellet can gradually increase in size as they grow.. chopped up prawn is a nice treat and this helps boost their growth rate.. eventually, when they are fully grown they can eat 16mm halibut pellets,, they seem to love these..

They do not do very well living together, they are very territorial and the stronger fish will bully or kill the smaller ones.. I have never managed to keep a pair or larger numbers together in the same tank without problems,, I would be very interested if anyone else has been able to do this and how?

I have always had to separate them... If you buy a few together and you do not have many tanks to separate them with be prepared to lose a few. The strongest will always survive,, This does not mean that they cannot have other tank mates though.. but this too can cause problems......

Here is an African Arowana which has now reached over 12 inches and is now quite easy to look after ..

 

[Sasha Isles]

Once they get to this size I normally only have one or 2 carefully selected tank mates, the main reason for this is due to the arowana's huge appetite the rest of the fish never get to feed properly... .... once 18 months have passed I then reluctantly transfer them over into our stock ponds.. they will stay there for another year until they are then big enough to go into our main lake (3.5 acre)

You will notice they look a lot different in colour when fully grown..

 

[Josh's Fish]

Once they get to this size I normally only have one or 2 carefully selected tank mates, the main reason for this is due to the arowana's huge appetite the rest of the fish never get to feed properly... .... once 18 months have passed I then reluctantly transfer them over into our stock ponds.. they will stay there for another year until they are then big enough to go into our main lake (3.5 acre)

You will notice they look a lot different in colour when fully grown..

View attachment 1422587

Fantastic information Sasha, and I love the photos too! I'm not sure if I've covered this in the video, but I remember reading a study which said they grow rapidly on grains and other foods you find in fillers too, one of the reasons they're loved by rearing farms, as they don't stunt easily. What do you feed yours? Love to see some photos of the lake too!

Hope you're keeping well, and happy birthday!

 

[Sasha Isles]

A few more pictures showing the different colors of the African Arowana when fully grown... if anyone would like any advise on these magnificent fish please feel free to message me, I also raise over 55 other exiting exotics... please feel free to ask about any of them

 

[Sasha Isles]

Fantastic information Sasha, and I love the photos too! I'm not sure if I've covered this in the video, but I remember reading a study which said they grow rapidly on grains and other foods you find in fillers too, one of the reasons they're loved by rearing farms, as they don't stunt easily. What do you feed yours? Love to see some photos of the lake too!

Hope you're keeping well, and happy birthday!

Thank you for the birthday wishes! we feed our fully grown ones on 16mm halibut pellets,, in fact most of our fish both predator and nonpredator seem to end up on these, and they love them.. the growth rate is considerable..

I would class the African Arowana as one of the hardest fish I have reared,, it all started off bad but eventually through trial and error came good.. once they get over that 6 - 8 inch stage everything becomes a lot easier....

Here is a picture of our lake, we have a bottom and top aeration system on timer switches...

 

[Josh's Fish]

Thank you for the birthday wishes! we feed our fully grown ones on 16mm halibut pellets,, in fact most of our fish both predator and nonpredator seem to end up on these, and they love them.. the growth rate is considerable..

I would class the African Arowana as one of the hardest fish I have reared,, it all started off bad but eventually through trial and error came good.. once they get over that 6 - 8 inch stage everything becomes a lot easier....

Here is a picture of our lake, we have a bottom and top aeration system on timer switches...

View attachment 1422591

Thanks again for sharing, some stunning examples of African Arowana, you've done a fantastic job at raising them! That's one of the nicest lakes I've ever seen. I could sit by the bank all day every day with a cool cider if I lived there haha. What other fish do you stock? Any Polypterus or Channidae?

 

[Hendre]

Thanks again for sharing, some stunning examples of African Arowana, you've done a fantastic job at raising them! That's one of the nicest lakes I've ever seen. I could sit by the bank all day every day with a cool cider if I lived there haha. What other fish do you stock? Any Polypterus or Channidae?

They have Emperor and Cobra snakehead on their site. Quite a mix of creatures honestly