African pike characin

Hepsetus odoe

Also known as African pike, Kafue pike

FreshwaterFish

Care at a glance

Temperature: 72–81°F (22–27°C)
pH: 6.0–7.5
Adult size: 19.7 in (50 cm)
Minimum tank: 396 gal (1,500 L)
Temperament: Aggressive
Social behavior: Solitary
Tankmates: Tankmates with caution
Swim level: Middle
Difficulty: Difficult
Breeding: No record
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Southern and central African rivers and floodplains
Family: Hepsetidae

Overview

This is a genuine ambush predator, so treat it as a hunter and keep it alone. It hangs almost motionless in open or planted water and strikes at anything it can fit in its jaws, which means tankmates are food unless they are far too large to swallow, and even then it is risky. It is aggressive and best given a species tank with cover to hide among. Choose any companions with extreme caution. Feed meaty foods such as earthworms, prawn, mussel, and strips of fish, and avoid a steady diet of live feeder fish. It reaches around 50 cm, so plan on a very large tank of at least 1500 litres.

In the wild

It hunts from the cover of vegetated margins in African rivers and floodplains, lying in wait among reeds and submerged plants in warm, slow, often tannin-stained water. Recreate that with warm water of 22 to 27 degrees Celsius, a soft to neutral pH of 6.0 to 7.5, gentle flow, and plenty of tall plants, wood, and surface cover it can lurk beneath.

Good to know

It belongs to the family Hepsetidae, the African pike characins, and reaches around 50 cm, a slender, big-jawed ambush hunter. Unusually for such a predator, it is a bubble-nest breeder: in the wild, pairs build a raft of foam among surface plants and guard the eggs laid in it. It is rarely if ever bred in home aquaria.

Did you know

For a fish shaped like a spear, it is a surprisingly careful parent. Breeding pairs whip up a floating foam nest among surface plants, lay their eggs into it, and stand guard, more the habit of a gourami than of a lurking pike.