Albino Silver Arowana | 14 Brilliant Ways To Take Care |

Albino Silver Arowana (Osteoglossum bicirrhosum) is a predatory fish common in aquariums.

They originated in the Amazon river basin in South America. Because of their appealing appearance and size, many aquarists consider them a dream fish to own.

Although they are generally easy to care of, they are not recommended for beginner aquarists because they require a whole lot of money, time, and care.

However, keeping one of these magnificent fish can bring your house a luxurious look.

Therefore, if you are an experienced aquarist and have no barriers from the government to keep them, then give them a go. You wouldn’t be disappointed.

What is Albino Silver Arowana?

Albino Silver Arowana (Osteoglossum bicirrhosum) is a cross-bred silver Arowana species. This silver Arowana is also known as monster fish.

One of the largest carnivore fish in the Amazon Basin, Silver Arowana, is part of an ancient family known as bony tongues.

They are highly adapted to life on or near water’s surface and can leap several feet out into open waters when needed. 

The uncommon albino variety of silver Arowana is a natural fish that was originally bred in the wild.

But, the original fish is rare in the wild. Because of that, Arowana breeders have cross-bred different Arowana species to get the Albina color and now exclusively breed Albino Silver Arowanas in captivity by specialized breeders.

Appearance

Albino Silver Arowanas are basically Silver Arowanas that have “albino” color mutation. They are a cross-breed of different species to get Albina color.

Albino Silver Arowanas have silver scales with white color and red eyes, while the Albina type has a greenish-blue scale on its body.

Their shape remains similar to other types of silver Arowana, but albino variety can also be found with blue scales.

Albino Silver Arowanas have a long protruding mouth and a slightly different head than other varieties of silver Arowana, similar to an arrowhead.

Albino Silver Arowanas are the only type with red eyes instead of greenish-brown or black color commonly found on most types of silver Arowana. 

How much does an Albino Arowana cost?

You can buy anthis fish from $150 to $1000. Albino Silver Arowanas are the least expensive Arowana species available in the fish trade industry but, they require a huge expensive tank.

Is it illegal to own a silver Arowana?

Although keeping Arowanas in the USA is prohibited, Silver Arowanas have the least restrictions compared to Asian Arowana.

Silver Arowanas are legal at the federal level, but they may be restricted in some local areas. Therefore, checking with the local policies is important before buying an Arowana.

How big do they get?

Albino Silver Arowanas can reach up to 4 feet in the wild. However, they only can reach up to 36 inches in the aquarium.

They are one of the fastest-growing species among all other types of Arowanas.

Are they aggressive?

Comparing other Arowana species, Albino Silver Arowanas are less aggressive than other species like Australian and Asian Arowana.

They tend to attack and eat small fish but will do fine with slightly aggressive large fish species.

Albino Silver Arowana behavior

Arowanas are natural predators. If given a chance, they will predate on any fish you introduce to their tank.

Therefore, keeping these fish with small fish is not an ideal option unless you want them to eat small fish.

When these fish are not hunting for food, they are surprisingly skittish.

Albino Silver Arowanas get scared for even a small change in their surroundings, such as when you get close to the tank suddenly, they get afraid of and try to hide.

However, these fish get comfortable with you over time and start showing their natural behavior. But, still, it is better to keep these fish in a low-traffic area.

How long do Albino Silver Arowanas live?

Albino Silver Arowanas have a long life span of 20 years or more. However, these fish tend to live longer in the wild.

One look Care guide

Scientific name	Osteoglossum bicirrhosum ‘albino’
Common name	Albino Silver Arowana
Care level	Moderate
Native to	Captive-bred by cross-breeding Silver Arowana
Type	Freshwater Bony tongue fish
Color	Albino
Tank size	250 gallons
Preferred temperature	78-82F
Other water parameters (ammonia, etc.)	pH: 6.5-7.5soft to moderately hard waterAmmonia:0ppmNitrite:0ppmNitrate:<30ppm
Preferred salinity	No salinity
Size	3 feets
Life span	20 years
Temperament	Relatively aggressive
Recommended tank mates	Large, relatively aggressive fish
Preferred food	Live or dead, small fish
Feeding frequency	Four times per day
breeding	Egg-laying mouthbrooders, difficult

Care Guide

Caring for this fish is quite easy. But, because of their size, people find it difficult to care for.

Also, they can grow very fast in the aquarium, which demands a large tank size and filtration system.

Maximum Size

Albino Silver Arowana can grow up to 3 feet in aquariums. A healthy fish can grow fast and large. Therefore, they are not suitable for home aquariums.

Fish tank size

Albino Silver Arowanas require a large aquarium for their long life span and growth rate.

They need at least 250 gallons or more to provide them with enough space to thrive. However, if you can afford a larger tank, it is better because these fish prefer more room to explore. 

How many Albino Silver Arowana should be kept together?

Unlike other Arowana species, you can actually house more than one fish in one tank, provided the tank size is quite larger.

However, like any other Arowanas, these fish also prefer to live in solitary. Therefore, it is better to house only one fish in one tank. You can add only one fish to a 250-gallon tank.

Tank setup

Albino silver Arowanas require a minimum of 250-gallon tank to grow healthy. Otherwise, they will have health problems such as body deformation and reduced life span.

You can temporarily house juvenile fish in a 60-gallon tank, but you will have to transfer them into a larger tank within a month or two.

Setting up a tank for this fish is relatively easy. You can keep your tank at bare minimum equipment and decorations, and still, your fish will do fine without any problems.

Substrate

You do not need a substrate in the Arowana tank. Although you can use substrate, they will not care much about the bottom of your tank because they are surface dwellers.

Decorations

You need at least two pieces of driftwood in your Arowana tank as they are skittish fish that hides when disturbed.

Covering the tank with more decorations is also not recommended because these fish require vast space to swim around.

Filtration and other equipment

Since these fish are massive-sized, they also demand a powerful filtration system.

Albino Silver Arowanas are heavy eaters who produce more waste when compared to other fish in the aquarium.

Therefore, you should ensure that your tank has at least two power filters with a pump of 50-100 gallons per hour to take Care of their waste products every day.

Plants and Lighting

Albino Silver Arowanas prefer light over dark, and they like to stay near the top of their tank.

Albino Silver Arowana prefers planted tanks with bright lights located at 12-18 inches above water level.

If you add any plants to your Arowana tank, choose plants with strong roots. Otherwise, your fish will uproot them.

Tank Lid

This is the most crucial part when setting up your tank. Albino Silver Arowanas jump from the water surface, and you need to make sure that your tank has a lid.

Albino Silver Arowana is also an aggressive fish that can attack other pets when they are out of the water.

Therefore, ensure that your tank has a lid to protect fish from other pets and children who may disturb them when they are in their tanks.

Water quality condition

Albino Silver Arowanas are freshwater fish that require soft acidic water with a pH level between pH of range 6.5 and 7.5.

These fish cannot live in hard water as it damages their scales, skin, and gills. The water hardness should be soft to moderately hard, and the temperature should be around 78-82F.

Albino Silver Arowanas cannot tolerate water with high chlorine and ammonia levels. These fish tend to get sick when they come in contact with such toxic substances.

Recommended parameters for impurities are 

Ammonia: 0 ppm

Nitrite: 0 ppm

Nitrate:<30 ppm

Strong water filtration and a weekly 25% water change are necessary as these fish are susceptible to impurities.

Albino Silver Arowana breeding 

Silver Arowanas are not known for successfully breeding in the aquarium because they require a lot of space and an environment similar to their natural habitats.

Most fish that are available on the market are wild-caught ones or bred in massive Asian farms.

However, a few cases have been reported about the successful breeding of the fish in captivity. For this, they had tanks of more than 500 gallons.

You can try breeding these fish by adding a breeding pair into a 500+ gallon tank, but we can not guarantee success.

Albino Silver Arowanas are egg-laying mouthbrooders. In the wild, Silver Arowanas spawn at the start of the flood season, during December and January.

To prepare for spawning, these fish build a nest to lay their eggs.

The female fish lay eggs in this nest, and the male fish fertilize them. Then, the male fish take the fertilized eggs in his mouth and guard them against predators.

He takes Care of the eggs by fanning them with his fins and feeding the fry when they hatch out.

Arowana eggs are large in size and have a yellowish-orange color. They lay about 100 to 150 eggs at one breeding session.

The male mouth brood the eggs for about 50 days and fry for about a few weeks more until they get used to finding food themselves.

Special tips

Because Albino Silver Arowanas are timid, provide them with a quiet environment in which to thrive.

Even though you cover your tank with a lid, these fish sometimes manage to get out.

But, when they do, they can hold on without water a bit more than other fish because they can breathe using swim bladder for a while.

So, if you find an Arowana on the floor, do not assume it is dead already. Immediately put the fish back in the tank because it may still live.

How to feed them ?

Just like other types of Arowanas, Albino silver doesn’t eat flakes or pellets. Albino Silver Arowanas exclusively eat small fish, alive or dead.

In the wild, they prey on other smaller fishes, crabs, insects, small snakes, and birds in low-hanging branches.

In an aquarium environment, Albino Silver Arowanas need to be fed with live fish. Albino Silver Arowana owners usually buy small fishes like guppies and goldfish for this purpose.

If you don’t want the trouble of buying more fish, Albino silver will also eat dead fish. You can simply keep fresh or frozen fish in your tank.

Albino Silver will eat the fish within a day or two when it no longer sees any movement in dead fishes.

What fish can live with?

Albino Silver Arowana (Osteoglossum bicirrhosum) is not recommended with other species of silver, black or Asian Arowanas because they are incompatible with each other.

Albino Silver Arowanas are also incompatible with most kinds of fish that can be kept in a small tank because they outgrow the size quickly and end up eating smaller fishes, including Albino silver’s own species.

As mentioned above, Albino Silver Arowanas can be kept with large fish species that can defend themselves.

Still, this depends on the temperament of each individual fish because some fish tend to get along with other large fish while some do not.

Therefore, finding a compatible tankmate will consist of some trials and errors.

Some possible tank mates are,

• Large catfish
• Parrotfish
• Silver Dollar Fish
• Large Plecos
• Bichir
• Jaguar Cichlid
• Pacu 
• Black Ghost Knife Fish
• Green Terror Cichlid

Conclusion

Albino Silver Arowana (Osteoglossum bicirrhosum) is perhaps the easiest to keep in an aquarium because of their less aggressive temperament and their ability to breathe air.

Make sure that the seller provides a healthy Albino Silver with good body shape and not emaciated fish because it may die shortly after arriving at your home.

Acclimating your fish can be difficult, especially if it is a mature one, but they will light up your home like a dragon once they get comfortable with your tank.

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