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Will a Columbian Shark be ok in a marine tank?


dasstheboss

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Well i am going to set up a 300G FOWLR soon.. soon as in im doing the research right now and trying to check my options.

 

firstly, it will be FOWLR and mostly aggressive fish. the tank will be the MarineLand 36" deep 300G .. i really liked those tanks and thats why im thinking of setting one up. However, although it will have most of the characteristics of a traditional FOWLR, i will have a few colorful anemones and maybe some xenia, GSP, and other easy-spreading corals, no SPS though.

 

Here is my question now that i have gotten through the background:

 

I want some kind of shark in the tank that swims freely; therefore, the banded shark and epaulette (spelling) will not work out since they are not that active and pretty lazy actually. So i looked into Columbian sharks and i heard they can tolerate ( actuallly thrive would be a better word) full marine conditions as "adults". Considering this, does this mean that if i slowly acclimate a baby Columbian shark into marine conditions it would die? Im asking because most of the fish stores only sell freshwater ( not even brackish) baby Columbian sharks.

 

Also, as per feeding, i plan to put in a bag of the marine feeder shrimp that liveaquaria.com has. As per feeding freshwater feeders to saltwater fish (like goldifsh to lionfish) people say its not good for the healt. Would this apply the other way too as in if the Columbian shark eats the shrimp will it have negative effects?

 

another thing, does anybody know of the characteristics of these fish? Do they act liek a shark. i want to stimulate a real shark setting with a shark like fish that swims actively. Pretty much i want a smaller version of a white-tip of black-tip shark. these look pretty but i dont want ot get a huge aquarium the size of my basement!

 

Also, if the other fish in the tank will be of question, then they will be a snowflake eel, volitian lionfish, a small ray, blue girdled angelfish, and some tangs, and other aggressive fish. However, they will all be added as babys so they wont be able ot eat the small Columbian sharks.

 

Any suggestions and input is welcome.

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I do understand the "if you acclimate it" now. How about the shrimp?

Also, will they get stung by the anemones or eat zoos? LOL.. cus they dont know the ocean right.

 

Also, is there a gradual scale that i have to put them through.. meaning only increase the salinity as they get older. Or can i just acclimate them by adding more saltwater on a weekly basis?

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Also, lakshwadeep the article says they need marine water conditions when they reach adult size, how large is "adult size"? what i am thinking of doing is adding the babies to a freshwater tank first and within a month of so convert it full saltwater and then raise them in the main tank ( which is full saltwater) Will this work?

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You should be fine feeding freshwater crustaceans to these fish. As with any fish you should definitely vary the diet and include a variety of different seafoods and formula diets.

 

Below is a comparison of nutrition of FW vs SW animals, courtesy Rob Toonen. Note the difference in fat content. This is what is such a premature killer of marine predators that are fed goldfish and guppies in captivity--they build up fatty deposits that literally crush their organs.

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You do understand that this is not a shark at all, right? It is a catfish, more similar to a freshwater catfish than a shark. If you are picturing anything like a black or white-tip reef shark, you are going to be really disappointed.

 

I'm not saying this to be a jerk, I just don't want you to set up a large expensive tank around this fish, then be totally disappointed.

 

Good luck.

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the catfish howeever behaves liek a shark right? and it does look like one somewhat. If not, are there any other show fish that look liek sharks and can be kept in this small a tank?

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looks like you need to do more research. columbian sharks will do quite well in full marine, the smallest i've seen in SW was about 4" iirc. columbian sharks are a bit shark like in their swimming behaviors.

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get a banded or spotted bamboo shark and be happy they take FOREVER to grow once they hit a foot we've had one at 20" in our 500 at my old work for over 2 years and he's maybe grown 2 inches. Plus if you buy the eggs theyre real cheap and theyre fun as hell to hand feed and you can teach them to be hand fed so as an adult u don't have to worry about getting bit. With a flashlight you should be able to tell if the shark in an egg is a banded or a spotted. Definately fun guys once I get my new house I'm getting a kiddy pool just for one.

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yes i know i need ot do research.. thats why im doing it now. in responce to b c fisher.. i really dont want the bamboo not because of their looks or anything but cus they dont really swim liek the ideal shark.. you know the swimming motion of the hammerhead, great white, or white-tip shark and i think the columbian mimics it the best.

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The Propagator

Columbian cats / sharks are usually easy to find already acclimated to full marine.

I see them all the time here in town at various shops. Keep in mind that they have a venomous spine in their dorsal fin. SO if you get one be aware of where it is in your aquarium when your hands are in the tank or you may get a nasty sting. If its in brackish water when you purchase it place it in a rubber made tub and drip full marine water into the tub removing water as you go over a few hours so as to replace the brackish water with full marine water.

Its not really a "delicate" fish so a few hours ( say 3-4 ) with a heater and a small power head should be perfect to acclimate it to full marine.

 

Its a predator that will eat anything it can fit in its mouth that it deems a food source so keep that in mind.

That's why you normally only see them in tanks with large mono's, large scats, or porcupine puffers. They are also heavy poopers so you will need a good filtration system.

Max size is around 24" maybe a little longer.

 

 

If you want something that actually looks more like a shark and acts more like as hark then get an Australian marbled cat shark. They are also bottom feeders and stay near the bottom though.

Like most cat's, and cat sharks they will be the most active at night and hide or lay around when the lights are on save for feeding times. Its a very hardy critter and in my personal opinion more striking in appearance over a Columbian cat any day of the week.

Edited by The Propagator
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  • 11 years later...

I have 4 of these in my marine tank. No, they don't eat coral. Mine don't bother the fish, either, yet. They are 5  1/2 to 7 1/2 inches.  They do look like sharks in their appearance and manners. They even get in circles and swim in circles like real sharks!  So far, mine only eat food that is already dead.  They are getting too big for my 150 gallon. They don't swim around the coral the way true reef fish do, and I don't glue my coral down until I'm sure of placement--so sometimes they knock coral down.  They want to swim long lengths. They would do better in a larger tank. I know this was an old post but I'm replying for other interested parties. 

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  • 3 weeks later...
On 2/12/2009 at 6:57 PM, dasstheboss said:

i looked into Columbian sharks and i heard they can tolerate ( actuallly thrive would be a better word) full marine conditions as "adults".

I had one in a freshwater planted tank for a few years....30 Long.   Didn't know about their anadromous habit of being born in fresh and migrating to salt, so I always presumed that's why he died for no apparent reason when he did.  Seemed happy and healthy all the way to the end....just wasn't swimming anymore when I came home from work one day.

 

With a little consideration for the fact that it MIGHT grow up to 1 meter in length "someday" I would actually say to go for it.   

 

You might have to keep it in freshwater for a year or so though.....try to find out what it's natural habits are like as it grows up if you can.

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I'm not 100% sure that Colombians and Silver Sharks are the same speices....seems like I remember the same store carrying both of then back in the day....and Silver Shark is what I had.

 

Those are old memories now tho....

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On 2/19/2020 at 11:26 AM, Gobygirl1 said:

I have 4 of these in my marine tank. No, they don't eat coral. Mine don't bother the fish, either, yet. They are 5  1/2 to 7 1/2 inches.  They do look like sharks in their appearance and manners. They even get in circles and swim in circles like real sharks!  So far, mine only eat food that is already dead.  They are getting too big for my 150 gallon. They don't swim around the coral the way true reef fish do, and I don't glue my coral down until I'm sure of placement--so sometimes they knock coral down.  They want to swim long lengths. They would do better in a larger tank. I know this was an old post but I'm replying for other interested parties. 

Pic please!!!!

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