Hey =)
Can any one help with with Arowana advice? I currently have two however one is extremely aggressive towards the other. It used to attack the second Arowana however now it just seems they "shake" at one an other. Any idea what this is? Thanks

Oscars do a similar thing, open mouth shake, its a threat before fighting breaks out. Or its most likely this should i say. sharks do the same too.

i am not sure about the arowana behavior.
but i was advised they needed be alone or
not to mixed with another arowana. they will
try to kill each other. better to have another
specie of the same size as tankmates. if smaller,
they will end up as meal.

i know nothing about arowanas, but this may be something to look into. if they were cichlids, id say it sounds like they are breeding. when breeding they could be very aggressive towards each other, especially the male. he'll color up really nice and come over and kinda wag his tail at her side("dance"). and maybe thats what ur calling a shake. im not going to guarantee anything, i dont even know if arowanas breed in aquarium. but id definitely look into that

I have been researching arowana for my tank recently so I THINK I can help.
First of all it could be one of two things, aggression or mating dance.
If both Arowana are swimming close to eachother and the thrashing you mentioned does not seem violent ( thery are just wiggling a little) than they are most likely going to mate.
If the thrashing is violent and the fish ram eachother than you may want to seperate the two, as it is most likely aggression.



Amazing what you can learn in two weeks.

( quote PAUL)
i was advised they needed be alone or
not to mixed with another arowana. they will
try to kill each other

This actually is incorrect.
Arowana are, for the most part, peaceful fish.
When multiple arowana are put in a tank together they are usually fine, but many people dont realize how much space thay need.
So two arowana in a 200 GAL aquarium dont have enough room.

A general rule-of-thumb is 120 GAL for 1 arowana and 100 more for every fish after that up to 5 when filtration limitations may apply.
Tank layout also affect how many arowana you can put in your tank.
EX: I could put 1 arowana in a regular rectangular 120 GAL, but I could put quite a few in a tank that was 1 foot deep 6 feet wide and six feet long.
Arowana are mostly surface fish and usually disregard anything below them.

i think you will find paul is absoloutley right in what he says ...arowanas are world renowned for being probably one of the most agressive fish kept by hobyist fishkeepers!!!!!!and i wouldnt fancy 2 4ft arowanas in a 220 gal tank !!!thats 8ft x 1ft of fish in a 7ft x 2ft tank????? that simply doesnt equate to me ????????t

That's propably true but I was simply stating what I read.

or maybe its not, but its common knowlege amongst fishkeepers,,,,i mean would you put an arowana in with your O ?????or your acara? or any of your fish for that matter ???? as i certainly wouldnt..i value my fish to much to do that..but thats just my opinion tho..... and we are all entitled to our own opinion..

actually i think the aro is overrated when it comes to aggression. imho the most aggressive fish in the hobby is probably the dovii then umbee,jag, midas, then red devil .i dont think an aro would even crack the top ten but thinking of aggressive imagine what an 18 inch convict would be like......yikes:woohoo:

My friend put an umbii in his aquarium, now it's all he has.

Anonymous wrote:


thank for the additional info. as i have said..."i was told".
i do not have first hand caring for arowana but i do maintain
4 different client having arowanas. my role is just to keep the
water crystal clear (more on filtering system). i am applying
combination of priciple in filtration of: swimming pool, sewer
treatment plant, brewery, and cooking oil.

now that i know the concept of arowana keeping, i could help
my client further, by increasing the lateral surface of their
tank, they could add more arowana.