# Serrasalmus elongatus questions



## CyberGenetics (Mar 29, 2009)

Hey all i just got my new Serrasalmus elongatus, hes about 4 1/2 - 5 inches.

How old is he at this current size?

I cant seem to find info on there growth rate, how long will it take till he hits 12" and do they grow 1" per year like im thinking they do?

Also what is the life span of this species? i understand most P's are 10-12 years is this true for this guy?

I would love to see pics of all ur Serrasalmus elongatus if u got em! thanks all


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## lo4life (Aug 12, 2008)

I dont mean to burst ur bubble but you Elong will only hit about 8-10 inches in the home aquarium. Witch decnt care yea they can live that long. But if ur one of those ppl who feed feeders and all the crappy stuff then his life span will be less. Talipia, shrimp, cod, silversides, pellets, smelt etc are all good for fish (white meat). Stay away from the red meat it is fatty and not that great for them. 
As far as age I really dont know how to tell how old they are. I figure it varies.. BTW Welcome to the site!!

Here is some pics of my Elong


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## Gerrad (Jan 5, 2008)

VinceC_69 said:


> Hey all i just got my new Serrasalmus elongatus, hes about 4 1/2 - 5 inches.
> 
> How old is he at this current size?
> 
> ...


I read somewhere, that in captivity. Elong's only get up to 8 inch's. I have a blk mask elong. He's sweet! I'm going to sell him though. Looking to buy a gold rhom. They grow slow, like rhom's. I've had mine, since last oct. He look's like maybe a half inch bigger, then when i first got him. 
Enjoy him. Is he a black mask?


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## db04ph (Jan 27, 2009)

nice elong
tons of pictures in the picture forum


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## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

VinceC_69 said:


> Hey all i just got my new Serrasalmus elongatus, hes about 4 1/2 - 5 inches.
> 
> How old is he at this current size? * probably a year or two*
> 
> ...


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## CyberGenetics (Mar 29, 2009)

Hey all, Thanx so much for the info. I thought they would grow very slow







but that's OK that just means his 60g tank will last him longer









I'm not new to piranhas in general, i had RBP's for 1 year and got sick of never seeing them, they were so skittish and would not eat in front of me. I always wanted a elong but couldnt ever find 1 in my area so i switched to cichlids for the past 2 years, I had the most amazing collection of africans about 300$ worth and this weakend i finally found a elong and he came right home with me on the spot!! hahaha







( sold all the cichlids to my freind )

And im not the kind of person that feeds feeders, I usally liked to feed my old RBP uncooked shrimp and different types of uncooked fish. I heard that elongs are harder to get off live foods so hes gonna have to starve for a bit till he learns lol.

And i was not aware that the black mask was different from the "normal elong"? what is the difference so i can tell if mine is or not? I thought it was just another name for them.

And 10-20 years??? that's the best news i ever heard!!!


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## db04ph (Jan 27, 2009)

too early to tell if its black mask
usualy ppl dont keep em long tho, they get boored with a single serra, i just got mine about 2 months ago, nothing exciting but i am keeping him for a while. u can check out my videos in the picture forum


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## gtc (Nov 5, 2008)

The way i see it, it depends.I was told an elong can obtain 5" in the wild in a year, but if an elong was wild caught at around 3" then it would take a year or two to reach 5". If he was caught at 5", it's possible that he's around a year or a little over.


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