Black Knife Ghost Fish

Common Name:
Black Knife Ghost Fish
Scientific Name:
Apteronotus albifrons
Scientific Class:
Actinopterygii
Conservation Status:
Not evaluated by the iucn redlist
Habitat:
Northern, South America in the Amazon river basin. Found in fast flowing waters of rivers and streams with a sandy bottom
Life Expectancy:
Average of 10 years but reports of longer in well maintained aquariums.
Diet:
Carnivore pellets, bloodworms and feeder fish. They will also eat peas, earthworms and frozen community fish foods.
Maximum Size:
50cm
Tank Breeding:
Commercial breeding in various parts of the world. Some reports of private breeding but no confirmed information about how.
Interesting facts:
Fish generates a weak electric field which can help navigation and hunting.
Private UK Aquarium:
Yes Regularly
These fish require a minimum tank size of 75 US gallons (280 litres) once full grown, due to their large size. They will eat other very small fish in the aquarium. This shy fish needs a hiding place such as a cave if keeping more then one in the same tank a separate hiding place for each fish should be provided.
Blue Planet Aquarium Tank
This fish is usually best kept alone as bullying can occur otherwise at least 6 are recommended for a group, this spreads the aggression out evenly stopping one fish from being harassed to death. Worryingly the Blue Planet Aquarium is housing two together. These fish always appear very shy and I have observed little interaction between them during the day but I am concerned the smaller fish may start to be bullied.