Plecolover12

Hi everyone! I know there is a type of pacu called a blood red pacu, but are there any other types? Just curious.

Shawnie

there are a few different species but way too agressive and to huge for your 10 gal

sirdarksol

Pacu grow something like an inch a month for the first year of their life (I'm probably off here, but I know it's extremely rapid growth for the first foot of growth). I don't know what the different breeds are, but I know that none of them should be sold in the aquarium industry except as special order for people with tanks that are multiple-hundred-gallons.

Plecolover12

I am not getting a pacu. I just wondered what it was.

-pinky-

Different Pacu Species:

Red-belly pacu
Black pacu
Black-finned pacu
Wild pacu
Pacu
Blood red pacu (rare)

About Pacu's

A pacu, is related to a piranha. It has human-like teeth, unlike the piranha which has pointed teeth. It uses its flat edged teeth to grind vegetation and seeds, but it also eats small fish, insects, and meat on fishing lures, which is why it is often caught with a fishing rod on its native rivers. Full-grown pacu, are much larger than piranha, reaching up to 60 pounds in the wild. There are a few varieties of pacu, including the red-belly pacu and black pacu. Here are some pictures of pacu's...

Pictures

The top left picture is a pacu's teeth, the top right is a wild caught pacu, the bottom left is another wild caught pacu, and the bottom right is a red-belly pacu...

Attached Images

	pacu.jpg (10.3 KB, 67 views)
	pacu2.jpg (73.7 KB, 65 views)
	pacu3.jpg (96.0 KB, 68 views)
	pacu 4.jpg (67.8 KB, 64 views)

Plecolover12

WOW! That is so huge!

-pinky-

I Know! I think that top right one ate too many mince pies

Pacman

Pacu is a name given to a group of over 200 different species of fish. They range in size from 4" to over 40". People associate the Pacu name generally with just the large Colossoma/Piaractus most often Piaractus brachypomum
(red belly: Although you will also see the fish sometimes called C. brachyponum due to the fish receiving the different names from the same scientist in the same year it was first named.) or the Colossoma macropomum (black). Serious hobbyists will normally identify the fish by its scientific name to avoid confusion.

The max size for P. brachypomum is over 36" and a weight of around 55 lbs.
Arapaimag has 3 in his big tank approx this size.

The max size for C. macropomum is over 40" and a weight of 88 lbs.
The picture of the world record is the fish shown in the post earlier being held out of water (top right).

Fishlore might want to update their profile of both of these fish in regards to size.

sirdarksol

Pacman, it's great to help out, but this thread was started over four months ago, and was answered a few days after it was started. Please try not to necro threads like this.

navyscuba

Yeap they grow big. I have a pic of a couple on the Local ZOO next to one of my girls. Check it out.

Attached Images

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aquarist48

They are a beautiful fish. My brother had two to get to 26". I wonder if that one in the above pics is one of his LOL (I feel sure they went into the waterway where he lives) (too don't judge me by my brothers actions ) They were in a 125g tank and had no room to turn around.
Too, I've seen them tagged as Silver Dollars (juvies) in some pet stores. You have to look closely and compare.

x leper x

i think he was a new york rapper/songwriter ! lol