Black Shark

[angel]

Not positive, but I think they're in the loach family. That or catfish! This guy's huge. Got him in a trade.

Attachments:

[jgentry]

Hope you know what your getting into!! That is one unfriendly fish.

They are a member of the carp family like the other so called freshwater sharks. These get huge (over 2'), yours looks like a baby but it's hard to tell size by the photo. They are easily one of the most aggressive fish in the hobby. They probably need an 8' X 2.5' tank as adults. They are a huge fish and extremely aggresive.

[angel]

He's probably 8 or 9 inches. Still nowhere near what he can get to. He's more than welcome to find another home that's more suited, but he needed somewhere to go. His owner was switching to cichlids and got Dennis' red devil, among others

[angel]

So where do we move this post? What family are carp in? Besides the garbage pail kids family!

[jgentry]

Just leave it here. Most people that keep them actually keep them in huge tanks with fish on the same aggression level as red devils or other really big aggressive CA. That is if the black shark will get a long with anything.

8-9" is still a baby. It will be over 24" in 2 years easily. I saw one once that had to have been 30".

[angel]

Well hopefully if anyone has the space for something that large and wants one they'll take him/her in before it gets that big.

[ree123]

An old post worth reading again.
Does anyone know the tolerable temp. range for the freshwater black shark ?
I have one I was considering placing in a pond. Will it survive in winter here ?

[jgentry]

They are tropical. They could live outside in the summer but would need heat in the winter.

[ree123]

Thanks JD. I have placed Pleco's outside and found they are tropical for sure. They do great all summer and grow in leaps and bounds, but then are almost impossible to find come fall. They yurn up about Thanksgiving or so on the surface if not found before then.
I would have thought the same of the black shark and have one to place in my pond, but the above thread mentioned they are in the carp family,and goldfish and koi are in the carp family and do tolerate our winters. Thus the question.