South American lungfish (Lepidosiren paradoxa) aquarium
Home > South American lungfish lungfish – Lepidosiren paradoxa
Aquarium fact sheet
- Origin: endemic to South America
- Lifespan: at least 8–20 years
- Adult size: 100 cm and above
- Native climatic conditions: tropical, subtropical
- Care Level: very easy
- Availability: no restrictions; not available readily with local pet shop; somewhat difficult to get young specimens; may require ordering and importing specimens
- Minimum tank size: 100 gallons
- Tank level: bottom dweller; however sufficient clearance must be available to reach the surface for breathing air
- Tank management: slow flow, filter to remove wastes
- Water temperature: 75-86° F (25-30° C)
- Water pH: around 7.0
- Temperament: semi-aggressive
- Substrate type: Sand with a few bog wood pieces for hiding
- Tank mates: better kept alone; generally peaceful with tank mates too large to be considered as food; large catfish, larger characins, cyprinids;
- Diet: omnivore; accepts frogs, earthworms, pieces of fish meat, and pelleted food; avoid feeding mammalian meat as it may interfere with metabolism
- Breeding: in nature breeds in rainy season; juvenile South American lungfish have external gills and feed on insects and insect larvae
These lungfish is very easy to keep in aquarium, provided the hobbyist moves to bigger tanks from time to time as the fish has a long life and grows big. As these fish are exotic and are brought from wild, they must be quarantined and treated for at least ten days so as not pass on any infection to the tank mates. The aquarium must be clean enough for not infecting these lungfish.
Image source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lepidosiren_paradoxa_
Aquarium_tropical_du_Palais_de_la_Porte_Dor%C3%A9e_10042016_1.jpg
Image author: Vassil | License: CC0 1.0
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