Yellow-tail barracuda
Acestrorhynchus falcirostris
Also known as Freshwater yellow tail barracuda
Care at a glance
- Temperature
- 73–82°F (23–28°C)
- pH
- 5.5–7.2
- Adult size
- 17.7 in (45 cm)
- Minimum tank
- 264 gal (1,000 L)
- Temperament
- Aggressive
- Social behavior
- Social
- Tankmates
- Tankmates with caution
- Swim level
- Middle
- Difficulty
- Difficult
- Breeding
- No record
- Rarity
- Rare
- Origin
- Amazon and Orinoco basins
- Family
- Acestrorhynchidae
Overview
The yellow-tail barracuda is a fast, slender pursuit predator that needs a very large tank and careful stocking. It is a social hunter that does best in a group of its own kind, ideally three or more, which settles its nerves and lets it school as it does in the wild. It is not a community fish, and it will chase and eat anything slim enough to swallow, so any tankmates must be large, robust, and quick. It is skittish and can injure itself bolting, so give it length, open swimming water, and a secure lid. Feed meaty foods, weaning it from live fish onto frozen and prepared items over time. A group needs a tank of around 1000 liters or more.
In the wild
The yellow-tail barracuda ranges through open water in the Amazon and Orinoco basins, hunting smaller fish in loose packs. A tank for it needs great length and open swimming room, with soft to neutral water and steady flow. Keep it warm, from about 23 to 28 C, with a pH between 5.5 and 7.2. Strong filtration and clean water suit an active, large predator that produces plenty of waste.
Good to know
Acestrorhynchus falcirostris is the largest of the freshwater barracuda characins, reaching around 40 to 45 centimeters. Despite the name and the lance-shaped, silver body, it is not a true barracuda but a characin, a relative of the tetras and piranhas that arrived at the same predatory shape. It belongs to the family Acestrorhynchidae, and its breeding is not recorded in aquaria.
Did you know
It looks and hunts like a barracuda, but it is really a characin, a cousin of the tetras and piranhas. The resemblance is convergence: two unrelated fish shaped by the same job of chasing down prey in open water.
Common questions
What size tank does a Yellow-tail barracuda need?
A Yellow-tail barracuda needs at least 264 gal (1,000 L). It spends most of its time in the middle.
What temperature and pH do Yellow-tail barracuda need?
Yellow-tail barracuda are comfortable at 73–82°F (23–28°C) with a pH of 5.5–7.2.
How big do Yellow-tail barracuda get?
An adult Yellow-tail barracuda reaches about 17.7 in (45 cm).
Where to buy
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Keeping Yellow-tail barracuda?
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Related species
Red tail barracuda
Acestrorhynchus falcatusFreshwater11.8 in (30 cm)100 gal (380 L)72–82°F (22–28°C)
Azure tetra
Heterocharax virgulatusFreshwater1.6 in (4 cm)14 gal (54 L)73–82°F (23–28°C)Arowana tetra
Gnathocharax steindachneriFreshwater2 in (5 cm)21 gal (80 L)73–82°F (23–28°C)African pike characin
Hepsetus odoeFreshwater19.7 in (50 cm)396 gal (1,500 L)72–81°F (22–27°C)
Six-banded distichodus
Distichodus sexfasciatusFreshwater15.7 in (40 cm)143 gal (540 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)
Bluegill Sunfish
Lepomis macrochirusFreshwater13.8 in (35 cm)70 gal (265 L)41–73°F (5–23°C)