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Black Pacu

Pacu ~ Tambaqui ~ Black-finned Pacu Family: Characidae

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Colossoma macropomum Photo © Animal-World: Courtesy Ken Childs

   Although the Black Pacu is a member of the Characin family, which includes such favorites as the Neon Tetra and the Glolight Tetra, is nothing like the average tetra!

   The Black Pacu, also known as the Tambaqui, is interesting, personable, very hardy and is easy to feed. This makes it sound like the perfect aquarium fish. Unfortunately there is one big problem in keeping these as a pet, they grow fast and they get huge.

   Reaching an impressive size of 3½ feet and weighing over 60 pounds, this is definitely a specialty fish. To keep one you will need an aquarium upwards of a 1000 gallons to house an adult. The tank should also have extra thick glass. Black Pacus have been known to literally swim through the sides of an aquarium when spooked.

  As their home must be so large, it limits the people who should keep one. Some people have kept Black Pacus in heated, indoor ponds. But due to their dark color they really can’t be appreciated when housed this way. However, if you have the space to provide for a huge tank, they are easy to keep!

For more Information on keeping this fish see:
Guide to a Happy, Healthy Freshwater Aquarium

Distribution:
   TheTambaqui, also known as the Black Pacu or Black-finned Pacu, was described by Cuvier in 1816. They are found throughout much of the Amazon and Orinoco River basins in South America. They are solitary, and as juveniles live in the black waters of flood plains, feeding on insects, snails, and decaying plant matter. Adults move to the flooded forest areas for the initial few months of the flood season, and feed on fruits and grains.

Status:
   The species is not listed on the IUCN Red List.

Description:
   The body of the adult Black Pacu is very deep and laterally compressed with a slight arch to the back. It is gray to black, sometimes with spotting in its mid section, and its fins are black. It is often confused with the Piranha when small, as juveniles they are almost identical in appearance. As the Black Pacu matures it becomes more rounded and wider than the Piranha. They can live 20 to 25 years in the aquarium.

Size - Weight:
   The maximum length is reported as 3½ feet (108 cm) and the weight as 66 pounds (30 kg).

Care and feeding:
   The Black Pacus are omnivores and in the wild they will consume fruits, grains, insects, snails, detritus and plant matter. In the aquarium they will readily eat most anything and can be offered frozen foods as well as a pellet diet. Aquarium kept specimens may also eat fish so if you plan on having any other fish living with your Black Pacu, make sure that they are considerably larger than its mouth
   Because of their large adult size, they need a very large aquarium. If you have a 1000+ gallon tank at you disposal, they are easy to keep. They need a spacious open area for swimming, but also a decor of plants, roots, and driftwood to provide them with hiding places. They are hardy and quite disease resistant, so can handle a variety of water conditions.

Water Region: Top, Middle, Bottom:
   These fish will swim in the middle of their home.

Acceptable Water Conditions:
   Temp: 72 - 82° F (22 - 28° C)
   Ph: 5.0 to 7.8
   Hardness: 20° dGH

Social Behaviors:
   They are solitary fish but not aggressive, however they may eat anything that’s small enough to fit into their mouths. This fish will do best kept in its own tank or with other similar sized non-territorial species.

Sexual Differences:
   Males have a sharper extension on the dorsal fin, their anal fin is toothed, and they can be brighter colored than the female.

Breeding/Reproduction:
   The Black Pacu has not been bred in captivity. Presumably it would be very difficult due to their large size and space needs. See the general description of how to breed Characins in Breeding Freshwater Fish.

Availability:
   The Black Pacu or Tambaqui are commonly available. Be sure of what you are getting thouygh, as they are often confused with the almost identical looking Piranha when small.

Author: Ken Childs
Additional Information: Clarice Brough, CFS

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Latest Comments
My auntie has 2 pacus, 1 is about 1ft and sum inches and da other is about 5 or 6 inches. The bigger pacu has its on tank because it killed the oscar and the other fishes. The small one is in a tank with a black shark, both tanks are about 75 to a hundred gallons, between those two numbers. The big pacu will not allow any other fish to be in his tank and if you were to put another fish in there it wuld kill it, even if it was its own kind. dont trip 2009-07-16
Comments Dr Jungle REALLY Likes to Hear!
I misjudged this fish! When I read about it I find it so cool. I am so happy I read about it. Celine 2009-06-23

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