Piranha
The Piranha is an infamous fish known for its meat eating capabilities and although it is an extremely interesting fish, we do not recommend them for the beginner. They can get quite large and expensive to feed. I also wouldn't want to put my hand in a tank full of piranhas while performing tank maintenance. Yikes!Use caution if you plan to feed your Piranha a steady diet of feeder guppies or feeder goldfish since these may introduce many different diseases to your tank. Try to get them on flakes or pellets as soon as possible and only give them live foods as a supplement to their diet.
Pictures
Pictures courtesy of Andreas Sunarso
Common Names : Red Belly Piranha, Red Piranha, Red Bellied Piranha
Care Level : Moderate
Size : Up to 12 inches (30 cm)
pH : 6 - 7.5
Temperature : 73°F - 82°F (23°C - 28°C)
Water Hardness : 10° to 20° dH,
Lifespan : 8 - 10 years
Origin / Habitat : South America
Temperament / Behavior : A very peaceful fish - just kidding. This is a very aggressive and a very dangerous fish. You need a larger tank for them. They will eat your smaller fish.
Breeding / Mating / Reproduction : Extremely difficult.
Tank Size : 55 gallon minimum, even though you see them (juveniles) in 10 gallon pet shop tanks. If you keep them in a smaller tank be prepared to perform more frequent aquarium maintenance.
Compatible Tank Mates : Not many - mainly other Piranhas
Fish Disease : Freshwater Fish Disease - Diagnose, Symptoms and Treatment
Diet / Fish Food : Omnivore - feeding them can become fairly expensive because they prefer live foods. Try to give them flakes and pellet food for their primary nutritional needs and supplement with live foods.
Tank Region : Middle
Gender : Difficult to determine but the female may be larger and have more yellow in them. We've also read reports that suggest that the female may become darker around spawning time.
Gallery Photos : Piranha Photos
Similar Species : Characins
Fish Lore Forum : Piranha Forum Posts
Buy Online :
Tips
| From: Keiland I think I have five of these and I want to be sure. What is the easiest way to tell if they are piranha or Pacu? They are rather small, about two inches. |
| They do look very similar to the pacu at a young age. The easiest way to tell would be the shape of the lower jaw. On the piranha the lower jaw sticks out more. You should also be able to see the teeth better on piranhas at the size you have. |
| From: Joe I have 6 piranha in a species only 55 gallon tank. They are getting very big and it is getting expensive to feed these fish! |
| Yeah, it can get expensive. Are you only feeding them live foods (feeder goldfish)? You could try to give them mostly pellet or flake foods and just supplement their diet with the feeder fish. |
| From: James Please don't crowd piranhas into small tanks. These guys can get extremely messy and need larger tanks with frequent water changes. |
| From: Sandy Live food can intoduce disease especially if you just buy and feed it to the fish. My husband breeds his own. |
| From: Jim I had 4 red bellies in a 75 gallon tank. I'm no expert and don't know if it's healthy, but I was feeding them jumbo shrimp that I bought in the frozen food section. A big bag for around 5 dollars and they love them. |
| From: Iwan I have 10 red belly piranha, give them pellets and sometimes goldfish. In Indonesia they are only 40 cents for 1, 5 inch piranha. They seem to be growing 1 inch every few weeks. |
| From: Joshy Red Belly Piranhas need 20 gallons each - Minimum! And no less than 4 should be housed together, as they school and take agression out on each other. Do lots of research before buying! |
| From: Mark Kubal I have had 5 red bellies in a 90 gallon tank for 11 years now. They are very easy to take care of but a tad messy at dinner time which requires more intervals of clean-up time. I find them extremely loyal when I clean the tank. They like to eat when the room is empty without distraction. |
| From: Soopamegan This says that piranhas are carnivores, but they are actually omnivores. In fact, the Indians in the Amazon know when it is safe to bathe in the river when fruits are falling from the trees into the water. They just go up river and swim because piranhas actually prefer the fruit to meat. My piranhas (and pacus, and oscars, though I keep none of these in the same tanks) all seem to like citrus fruits and squash really well as a supplement to their diet. |
More Piranha Tips and comments.
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