Re: [APD] bala sharks and plants

["S. Hieber" <shieber at yahoo_com>]

Whe full grown at about a foot in length or longer, a large
tank and lots of free swimmng room is important for the
kind and healthy care of these fish.  They aren't
especially fond of plants as food and seem to appreciate
the ability to duck into a thick of plants whenver they
feel threatened, which, as Dan points out, can be often. I
think you will find them apparently more at ease with their
surroundings in a well planted very large aquarium.

I belive they also do better in groups and you can tell by
the body shape that they developed where the currents are
relatively strong.

They tend to be very hardy. They might seem to be rather
dimwitted for fish but he behavior is a bit more complex if
not kept singly in a tank.

They are egg scatters so you probably won't be breeding
them in a community tank, if at all -- and probably not in
any tank without lots of plants or other material rich with
hiding places for fry.

Good luck, good fun,
Scott H.

--- Dan Dixon <dandixon at mac_com> wrote:
> Alan and Kim Van Nevel at van_nevel at verizon.net wrote:
> 
> > Has anyone had experience keeping bala sharks in a
> planted tank? I am
> > getting ready to redo my 250 gallon, and like the idea
> of large schooling
> > fish like these guys, but cant find info in the
> archives regarding previous
> > experience.
> 
> 
> I put two 5 inch bala sharks that my neighbor gave me in
> a tank with some
> large swords, a dense stand of crypts, a few apons, java
> ferns, ludwegia,
> and one or two other kinds of plants. The balas have been
> in there about 4
> months and so far they haven't bothered any of the plants
> that I've seen. I
> did have small amount of ambulia disappear while I was
> gone on vacation for
> a week. I never saw the balas eating on it, but I can't
> rule it out. I will
> also note that when I first got them, the balas were very
> skittish and
> spooked easily, at which point they ricochet chaotically
> through the tank.
> They soon settled down, but I'm guessing this could have
> damaged or uprooted
> more delicate plants, had there been any in the tank.
> 
> Dan Dixon
> 
> 
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