# Bamboo sharks



## CraigStables (Oct 5, 2003)

Have been thinking of a few different ideas for some of my tanks and have always loved the look of Bamboo sharks.

Was wondering if anyone has or has had one in the past? Are they fairly active in the tank? etc...


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## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

As i see them at a lfs all the time and the ones i have seen are so a large tank is a must 8 ft long by 3 ft wide would be the best tank for them. Or a 300 gallon rubbermaid feed tub. I know a couple people going that route with rays and small sharks. You would need one hell of a skimmer. Like a huge deltec, or comparable beckett skimmer.


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## Guest (Feb 25, 2006)

They are not active! I would go for a SW ray if I were to invest ina tank that size.


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## bmpower007 (Feb 11, 2005)

They are *not active*! I would go for a SW ray if I were to invest ina tank that size.


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## 00nothing (Mar 26, 2004)

okay so who has owned one ????

well I have and the statement they are not active is false they are not active during the day but during the evening they become very active. Mine was a baby 7 inches or so inches in a 55 gallon tank and he made the 55 gallon look small with the amount of swimming he did especially at feeeding time (he was hand fed btw which i always found very kewl), he was to move into a 120 gallon and then later into a pond but one thing i didnt consider when i purchased this fish is how strong it was, at some point he swam into a rock pile and got himself stuck well now my rock work was really stable but he somehow pushed hard enuff to cause a collpase and trapping himself in the process


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## Guest (Feb 25, 2006)

00nothing said:


> okay so who has owned one ????
> 
> well I have and the statement they are not active is false they are not active during the day but during the evening they become very active. Mine was a baby 7 inches or so inches in a 55 gallon tank and he made the 55 gallon look small with the amount of swimming he did especially at feeeding time (he was hand fed btw which i always found very kewl), he was to move into a 120 gallon and then later into a pond but one thing i didnt consider when i purchased this fish is how strong it was, at some point he swam into a rock pile and got himself stuck well now my rock work was really stable but he somehow pushed hard enuff to cause a collpase and trapping himself in the process


Ive cared for several while working for Big Als. They are ambush/scavenger type predators, who hunt mainly at night in aquariums. We had some from 5''-15'' and they all showed the same type of behavoir. Smaller the tank, the less activity.


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## 00nothing (Mar 26, 2004)

FullyCompletely said:


> Smaller the tank, the less activity.


Yeah well thats obvious wouldnt u think my guess is if i locked u in a closet u would be less active too but that doesnt make it right, given the space bamboos are swimmers they jsut dont do it when most people are watching. As far as there being ambush type predators u are basing this on fish that are being kept in tanks that are entirly way to small they appear to be ambushing cause they dont eat until they see the food and only then come out of hiding mine would constantly swim the tank in search of food and when he smelt it would actively come to the top to take it from my hands far from an ambush

we cannot base what a shark is like on what kind of behavior we have seen in a tank that is to small, given the proper space bamboos can be varacious predators


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## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

00nothing said:


> Smaller the tank, the less activity.


Yeah well thats obvious wouldnt u think my guess is if i locked u in a closet u would be less active too but that doesnt make it right, given the space bamboos are swimmers they jsut dont do it when most people are watching. As far as there being ambush type predators u are basing this on fish that are being kept in tanks that are entirly way to small they appear to be ambushing cause they dont eat until they see the food and only then come out of hiding mine would constantly swim the tank in search of food and when he smelt it would actively come to the top to take it from my hands far from an ambush

we cannot base what a shark is like on what kind of behavior we have seen in a tank that is to small, given the proper space bamboos can be varacious predators
[/quote]

I agree theres a 4 ft bamboo shark at an lfs near me. Its in a 1500 gallon tank and is always swimming every time i am there.


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## Guest (Feb 26, 2006)

Raptor said:


> Smaller the tank, the less activity.


Yeah well thats obvious wouldnt u think my guess is if i locked u in a closet u would be less active too but that doesnt make it right, given the space bamboos are swimmers they jsut dont do it when most people are watching. As far as there being ambush type predators u are basing this on fish that are being kept in tanks that are entirly way to small they appear to be ambushing cause they dont eat until they see the food and only then come out of hiding mine would constantly swim the tank in search of food and when he smelt it would actively come to the top to take it from my hands far from an ambush

we cannot base what a shark is like on what kind of behavior we have seen in a tank that is to small, given the proper space bamboos can be varacious predators
[/quote]

I agree theres a 4 ft bamboo shark at an lfs near me. Its in a 1500 gallon tank and is always swimming every time i am there.
[/quote]

Maybe, but I was under the impression that CraigStables was not planning on keeping it in a 1500g tank?


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## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

Didnt say that, I just believe you cant generalize a species in an undersized tank. The tanks i mentioned are not small tanks either.


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## Guest (Feb 26, 2006)

Raptor said:


> Didnt say that, I just believe you cant generalize a species in an undersized tank. The tanks i mentioned are not small tanks either.


Ok, we agree there. But I believe what I said was true in this context. Now if he were sayin he was setting up a small zoo in his home, I would have suggested a Bamboo shark. But in a home aquarium, even in the 265-300g range, these fish will become inactive


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## 00nothing (Mar 26, 2004)

craig basically the smallest i have ever seeen recommended for a bamboo through to adulthood is 180 gallons i personally feel even that is to small but not to say i would not try it. I plan on purchasing another small bamboo for my 135 and moving him into my friends pond when the time comes

keep in mind if u place it into a 180 that it does not need to be the only fish in the tank there are many fish that can be kept succesfully with bamboo sharks but one thing i would reccomend is to try and keep as much of the LR in the sump as possible to give the shark maximum swimming space

In short a 180 gallon would be a sufficient home for a bamboo for quite some time and if u consider some of the other catshark species such as the marbled catshark could be sufficient for life


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## Guest (Feb 26, 2006)

Also, remember that it may be tough/impossible to get rid of and can live a long time. So, secure the tank space early, then buy. There was a guy here in Oakville trying to sell a giant one, no one would take. I think he ended up euthanizing it.


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## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

Thats sad, Theres a local guy here and he's trying to sell his. He has 3, a 2 ft male and 1.5 ft females. I dont think anyone wll take them.
Sad really. People need to understand that once they are not cool and a manageable size theres not much of a market for them.
The lfs i talked about also had cuda's in there. The funny thing is that a powder blue tang killed all three they had. LOL


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## Guest (Feb 27, 2006)

Raptor said:


> Thats sad, Theres a local guy here and he's trying to sell his. He has 3, a 2 ft male and 1.5 ft females. I dont think anyone wll take them.
> Sad really. People need to understand that once they are not cool and a manageable size theres not much of a market for them.
> The lfs i talked about also had cuda's in there. The funny thing is that a powder blue tang killed all three they had. LOL


They are just lucky they didnt throw a Damsel in there :laugh:


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## CraigStables (Oct 5, 2003)

cheers for the advice guys, still considering my options. Tank would be a 150Gal at first, then moved into a 275 Gal (7ft x 2.5ft) in the future - have both tanks already.

Whats the growth rate like if I had one from 7-12"?


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## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

I dont have any experience with it, Butthe one at the lfs is close to 4 feet, and it was 18 inches a year ago.


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