Columbian Sharks/white Tip Shark Cats

[soundey]

Hi all,

I was wondering if this fish can go straight into brackish/marine conditions while young, or do they need to go from fw, to saltwater first?

I have read they dont do well in freshwater, is this true? i have a freshwater aquarium at the moment, and am looking to go saltwater in the future. Would it be a good idea for me to add them to the freshwater and then move them to brackish/marine in the future (my plans were to go salt in maybe 1 year), is this time scale too much, too little?

Should i scrap the idea of adding them to the freshwater and be patient and wait for the saltwater setup?

Id hate to know that my actions killed a perfectly healthy fish, so id rather get as much info now before i go and buy some.. pets shops are telling me they are fine for freshwater but after some research online im not sure if they are just looking for a sale?

Thanks in advance

 

[nmonks]

How big are the shark catfish in question? Once they're above about 15 cm, they should be fine in marine conditions, but very young fishes may need to be adapted more slowly, if at all. Personally, I'd set the tank to SG 1.012 now (50% seawater) and keep the sharks there. The filter bacteria will be exactly the same as those in a marine tank, so if you slowly adjust the salinity as the fish grow, you won't have to worry about cycling the tank. At SG 1.012 you can keep pretty much anything brackish that eventually needs marine -- morays, monos, scats, etc., -- so you aren't limiting yourself for when you want to add some marine fish later on.

Shark cats are lovely fish, and well worth the effort. They look just like sharks, and are totally peaceful (except to small fish they can eat).

Cheers,

Neale

 

[kanzaris]

Hi

I bought my Shark Cats at about 3-4 inch. They started in my low end Brackish Tank at about 1.004. My biggest Shark Cat I had for about 18 month he has grown to about 11 inch in that time and I keep him at 1.010 - 1.012.

Sabby

 

[soundey]

i havent actually bought anything yet, but the ones i have seen in the shop are small, maybe 8 - 10cm max - lovely looking creatures!

Altho after Sabby's comment of how quickly they grow, i think i might look into a bigger tank first. I didnt expect them to grow so quickly! The tank i have would be fine, but id only have to expand in a year or so once they have grown so im probably best doing it now rather then later.

Many thanks for your advice sabby, nmonks.. i have a much clearer picture now of what these fish require.

Appreciated!