Species Profile | Images | Breeding Report | Similar Species
(Other members of the genus Polypterus)
ADULT SIZE: 25 cm
WATER CONDITIONS: Not critical
TEMPERATURE RANGE: 24-28 C
FOOD: Feed Polypterus ornatipinnis live foods and small fish
DISTRIBUTION: This species comes from Angola, Cameroon, Congo (DRC), Lake Tanganyika
AQUARIUM CARE: The ornate bichir is an aggressive predator that can grow longer than half a metre (though usually less in captivity) and requires nourishing meat and live foods, such as shrimp, small fish, mussels etc. It does well in a larger tank, in subdued light. They can be kept with smaller fish if well fed, but similar sized species are more appropriate. This fish has a wide distribution in Africa, even venturing into lake Tanganyika, so it clearly enjoys a wide range of water conditions, from the soft acidic swamp water of the Congo, to the hard 'liquid rock' water of the great lakes.
BREEDING: This species has been bred in captivity, though not often. Males initiate spawning, and wrap their bodies around the female.
Have you bred Polypterus ornatipinnis? Why not fill in a breeding questionaire?, or examine existing Polypterus ornatipinnis breeding reports
Other members of the genus Polypterus
Other oddball species
Other species from Angola, Cameroon, Congo (DRC), Lake Tanganyika
The ornate bichir is a widely distributed African carnivore
BREEDING: This species has been bred in captivity, though not often. Males initiate spawning, and wrap their bodies around the female.
Have you bred Polypterus ornatipinnis? Why not fill in a breeding questionaire?
Sorry no records.
Give your fish a treat! Flaked fish foods are excellent nutritionally, but most fish really enjoy tucking into live, or frozen live foods. Insect larvae such as bloodworms can be collected in summertime from your water barrel, but it is also very worthwhile to attempt to culture Daphnia or white worms for a free food source absolutely relished by aquarium fish. Frozen bloodworm are almost as good and are widely available, though freeze dried live foods tend not to go down as well. See more on feeding fish
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