Deccan mahseer

Tor khudree

Also known as Black mahseer, Khudree mahseer

FreshwaterFish

Deccan mahseer (Tor khudree) — (c) dhfischer, some rights reserved (CC BY) · cc-by

Care at a glance

Temperature: 64–79°F (18–26°C)
pH: 6.5–7.8
Adult size: 39.4 in (100 cm)
Minimum tank: 502 gal (1,900 L)
Temperament: Mostly peaceful
Social behavior: Schooling
Swim level: Middle
Difficulty: Difficult
Breeding: No record
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Peninsular Indian rivers including the Krishna and Cauvery
Family: Cyprinidae

Overview

This is a river giant that can exceed a meter, so realistically it is a fish for public aquariums or large estate ponds, kept in a group where space allows. It is a strong, active open-water swimmer, mostly peaceful for its size but able to eat anything small, so any tankmates must be large and sturdy. Feed a varied diet of large sinking pellets, prawn and mussel, plus greens and fruit. Plan for at least 1,900 liters as a bare starting point, with heavy-duty filtration, strong flow and cool, highly oxygenated water.

In the wild

The Deccan mahseer holds the pools and fast runs of peninsular India's big rivers, including the Krishna and Cauvery, over rock and gravel in cool, clear, oxygen-rich water. In captivity that means pond-scale volume, strong current and cooler temperatures than most tropical fish, around 18 to 26 degrees Celsius, at pH 6.5 to 7.8, with relentless filtration.

Good to know

Tor khudree is a heavy-bodied, large-scaled cyprinid that reaches around a meter and can weigh tens of kilograms. Assessed as endangered, it has been the focus of long-running conservation breeding, most famously at the Tata Power hatchery at Lonavla, which has propagated the species for decades. It is a large-river spawner, not something bred in normal fishkeeping.

Did you know

The Tata Power hydro station at Lonavla in Maharashtra has run a mahseer hatchery for decades, breeding and releasing Deccan mahseer, an unusual case of an electricity company becoming a mainstay of a fish's survival.

Tank mates

Deccan mahseer is a mostly peaceful, schooling species that keeps to the middle. These picks match on water type, temperature, pH, size and temperament.