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Cyprinds
/ Red-Tailed Black Shark
Red-Tailed Black Shark; Red-Tailed Labeo
Epalzeorhynchus bicolor | Pictures
Synonyms: Labeo
bicolor
Physical description: Elongated fish with slight lateral compression.
The mouth faces downward and two pairs
of barbels are present.
The main body color is black which provides an impressive contrast with the striking bright
red tail.
Specimens kept in unsuitable conditions are paler.
Size/Length: To 6" (15 cm)
Similar species: None
Habitat: Clear and muddy rivers with wood and stones.
Southeast Asia in the Me Nam Chao Playa
basin to the Paknampo region in Central Thailand.
S: bottom, middle
Aquarium: A tank measuring 36" (91 cm) with a capacity of 35 gallons (132 L) is sufficient.
Provide
multiple hiding places with caves, wood, roots, and rocks.
Use a fine gravel or sand substrate for this
species will burrow.
The tank should be well-planted with robust plants and have dim lighting.
Water chemistry: pH 6-7.7 (7.2); 5-18 dH (10); 73-82°F (23-28°C)
Social behavior: Can be kept in a community tank.
Keep only one specimen to a tank, because this
species is very aggressive to their own and other similar looking species.
Keep more than one individual in large
tanks (i.e. tanks over 50 gallons).
The Red-tailed Shark establishes a territory to defend aggressively.
Older
fish may become aggressive towards all other fish.
Suggested companions: Gouramis, Barbs, Danios, Bala Shark, Loaches, Acaras, Eartheaters, Angelfish, hatchetfish,
Characins.
FOOD: Algae; flakes; tablets; vegetables; lettuce, spinach; live; insect larvae,
Tubifex,
crustaceans, aquatic insects.
SEX: The female is less colorful and larger.
The male is slimmer and has an elongated
dorsal fin.
Breeding techniques: Difficult because of their aggressive behavior towards their own species.
They
are not bred often, although it has been in accomplished in peat filtered water with a pH of 6.8.
Use dim light or no light.
They
spawn in rocky caves and fry hatch after 30 to 60 hours.
The fry are free swimming after four days.
Start
feeding with small live foods.
Their colors change from silvery to silvery brown, to brown and finally to black.
The
red tail develops after 7 to 10 weeks.
Breeding potential: 9.
Breeding is very difficult and rare in captivity.
Remarks: Many natives make a living catching Red-Tailed Black Sharks in their native countries.
They
are caught in a similar manner to the Clown Loach.
These fish are actually not related to the shark family as their misleading
name suggests.
Difficulty of care: 4.
The Red-tailed Shark is a species that is a bit aggressive and requires a diet that includes
live foods.
Recent articles about fish
Overfishing may hurt Amazon forest trees
(2/5/2008) Overfishing is reducing the effectiveness of seed dispersal by fish in the Brazilian Pantanal, reports Nature. The research suggests that fishing practices can affect forest health.
Scientists find fish that literally lives in trees
(10/17/2007) Scientists have found a fish that literally lives in trees, according to research published in The American Naturalist and highlighted in New Scientist Magazine.
Piranhas originated when Amazon was flooded by seawater
(12/4/2007) South America's piranha family of fish -- notorious as eaters of flesh -- can be traced back to a single ancestor which dispersed when the Amazon was flooded by seawater some five million years ago, report researchers from the Institut de Recherche Pour le Developpement (IRD). Today piranhas are exclusively freshwater fish found from the Orinoco River basin in Venezuela to the Parana in Argentina.
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