Bala Shark (Balantiocheilos melanopterus)

The Bala Shark is also known as Silver Shark because of its appearance as well as due to its dorsal fin. It has a metallic silver body and a yellow-black caudal and dorsal fin. It is not considered as a shark; it belongs to the Cyprinidae family. An adult Bala Shark has a length of approximately 13 inches. You should be careful when handling them in an aquarium since they are excellent jumpers and swim extremely fast. They live in fresh water and thrive on most of fish food like pellets, live, and frozen foods. They are always active and are visible during daytime.

Aquarium

You should have a large aquarium with driftwood, spots of dense vegetation, and rocks before thinking of rearing this kind of fish. A large aquarium help maintain the shark at a comfortable position since it has a large body size. Its aquarium should have beautiful decorations in order to make it interesting and vibrant. Decorations also act as hiding spots for fish in the aquarium. When juvenile you should keep your Bala Shark in at least 208.19 liters and at 473.176 liters when it becomes an adult.

Temperature

You should maintain the aquarium temperature at 71 to 80 degree Fahrenheit since they thrive well in tropical climate.

Gender

It is hard to determine the gender of this kind of fish; however, a female one has a high likelihood of being smaller than a male one of the same age.

Behavior

They are always peaceful and cohabit with other smaller fish. However, you should keep them with small tropical fish that can fit in their mouth.

Acclimation

Anytime you acquire a Bala Shark you should not forget to do acclimation, which should take approximately 15 to 30 minutes. Upon the completion of the 15 to 30 minutes, you should remove your fish from the bag.