Piranha Fish

It may seem hard to believe that piranhas should be related to the gentle little fishes that make up the majority of the characin group, but it is true. At up to 30cm (12in) long, piranhas are very much larger than tetras, but do not deserve the nasty reputation they have acquired over the years. In the aquarium, at least, the piranha is a relatively shy, retiring creature. Stories of piranhas in the dark Amazonian rainforests reducing cattle to skeletons in minutes are true, but this occurs in a river system where piranhas live in great shoals of 300 fishes or more and become very hungry. Many people keep piranhas with a sort of morbid fascination for what might happen, and give the impression that they would be quite pleased if the fish bit them as evidence of their macho capabilities! Keep young piranhas in a tank at least 120cm (48in) long, but provide a larger aquarium as they grow. Similar in shape to piranhas and also from northern South America, the Pac us can also be kept in a large tank.

The red pa cu (Parapets brachyurous) from northern South America, is a real giant that grows to over 45cm (18in). It is a fruit-eater, enjoying any fruit or vegetable, but it is not a vegetarian; Pac us will eat virtually anything that is put into the tank. They are large, laterally compressed fish, with a black back, gray belly and red-orange throat .Aquarium water should be soft and acidic and kept very clean. Pac us are shoaling fish in their natural habitat, but a group in captivity will need a very large tank. A single fish kept Gina 'pet aquarium' often becomes quite friendly towards its owners.

The shoaling rosy barbs (Bar bus conchoids) are excellent community fishes. Their coloration is best seen in reflected light. Dult males are gold to olive-green along the back with pink flanks, their fins are tinged with pink and the dorsal fin has a deep black tip. Adult females are gold to olive-green all over, withal very slight flush of pink on the flanks. When breeding, the males take on a deep recolor as they chase the egg-scattering females through thickets of plants. The fish are sexually mature at about 6cm (2.4in) and do not usually exceed 10cm (4in) in the aquarium. Provide plenty of fine-leaved plants and ample swimming space.

Temperature requirement of the aquarium is 24°C to 28°C. The aquarium should have places so that Piranha fish can hide itself, there should be small caves in the aquarium and there should be lots of plants in the aquarium. For that reason they need quite large aquarium. There are 70 kinds of piranha fish found yet till now, some of them are peaceful in nature and some of them are violent in nature. Most of the piranha fishes are aggressive and if you will mix them with other fishes they will eat up other fishes in the aquarium.