“Three-eyed” fish are added to the Aquarium’s collection.
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Five silver Asian arowanas have arrived to the Primorsky Aquarium. The fish are very young: their body length does not exceed 10 cm, and they have not lost their juvenile coloration. At the beginning of its life the arowana has a spot resembling a third eye that distorts its body proportions. While hunting, predators choose their prey assessing the size of its head from the tip of the snout to the eyes, and the spot makes them think that the fish is larger than they can eat.
“We have intentionally brought such young arowanas, our purpose is to control their growth,” said Aleksey Mikhailov, Head of the Tropical Freshwater Fish Department. “Now we are intensively feeding them; the menu includes fish and dried and live foods enriched with vitamins and immunomodulatory agents. As a result of this diet, the growth rates of the fish are higher than ones in the wild. In 5 months the arowanas will be placed to the largest tank of the “Tropical Rain Forest” exhibit as by then they will have reached a length of 40 to 50 cm, which is optimal for this exhibit. At this age arowanas usually change their food preferences shifting from juvenile fishes to shrimps, insects and frogs. It is noteworthy that the fish can catch croaking amphibians above the water surface leaping up to 2 meters from it; because of this behavior they are also called “water monkeys” or “monkey fish”. The adult arowanas living in the exhibit at the main building of the Aquarium are mainly fed with shrimps and whole fish”.
The silver Asian arowana reaches a length of 1 meter. The most rapid growth takes place during the first two years of life before the fish matures. Then the growth rate slows down but the arowana keeps on increasing in size throughout its life. The fish belongs to the group of animals, which have not almost changed since the Jurassic period: the modern arowana, like its remote ancestors, has a bony tongue covered with sharp teeth.
Asian arowanas are native to Southeast Asia. In China they are considered sacred creatures and guardians of a family. According to feng shui, the arowana brings prosperity to a home and protects it. The fish is believed to sense evil people, and to get anxious when such a person enters the house.