Pirarucu characteristics and how to keep it

The pirarucu is a tropical fish of the family Arapaimaidae of the order Arowana, native to the Amazon River in Brazil, located in South America. It is a tropical fish with a long, flat face and a flat tail fin. The pirarucu is famous as a "living fossil" because it has hardly changed its appearance for about 100 million years. In this article, we would like to explain in detail the characteristics of the pirarucu and how to keep it.

What is a pirarucu?

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The pirarucu is a tropical fish in the family Arapaimaidae of the order Arowana. The pirarucu originates from the Amazon River in Brazil, located in South America. The pirarucu is the only species of the genus Arapaima still in existence. The pirarucu is also famous as a "living fossil" because it has remained virtually unchanged for about 100 million years.Pirarucu are sometimes displayed in aquariums because of their ecology and history. The pirarucu is characterized by its long, flat face and flat tail fins. Pirarucu are able to take in oxygen from the air by using their floating pouches as lungs. Depending on the aquarium or specialty store, the pirarucu may be described by other names such as "pirarucu," "arapaima," or "paiche. This website uses the commonly used (and recognized) "pirarucu".

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How to keep pirarucu

The lifespan of a pirarucu is about 15 to 20 years. Its body size is approximately 200 to 300 cm. However, both lifespan and body size vary depending on the environment in which they are kept and the food they are fed. The pirarucu prefers slightly acidic to neutral water, and especially prefers a pH of 5.5 to 7.0. Pirarucu are classified as a tropical fish, so if you keep them in Japan, you will need a heater in winter.

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Points to keep in mind when mixing swimmers

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Regarding mixed swimming, first of all, pirarucu have a docile disposition. However, since the pirarucu itself grows to a large size, it is difficult to mix them with small to medium sized fish because they will be preyed upon. In addition, large-sized fish may cause stress when mixed swimming due to the aquarium environment, so basically, we recommend that pirarucu be mixed with other pirarucu species.

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Points about spawning

Many people who keep pirarucu want to breed them. However, breeding pirarucu is not very difficult, but there are only a few breeding cases, so the difficulty level is higher in that aspect when breeding them.

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What to look for when keeping a pirarucu

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The pirarucu is the largest species of freshwater fish. It is also a very popular species because it has hardly changed its appearance since about 100 million years ago. However, the pirarucu is a very difficult species to keep in the home because of its fast growth rate and the fact that it can grow up to 2~3 meters in length. Therefore, it is very costly and time-consuming to keep them in an aquarium at least 3 meters long and filled with several tons of water.It is also better to have a powerful filtration system. So, in general, they are mostly kept in large facilities such as aquariums. Pirarucu will be a protected species under the Washington Convention, so most of those distributed in Japan are fry born in Japan. Pirarucu have large scales and powerful bodies. If you are interested in pirarucu, we recommend that you visit an aquarium or a specialty store to see them.

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