| When you buy your bala sharks in the store they | | | | not sharp edges anywhere. As well as being fast |
| will be 1 to 2 inches (2.5 to 5 centimeters) in | | | | swimmers, they are great jumpers, so keep the |
| length. It is recommended that the minimum tank | | | | aquarium lid on tight. You don't want to come |
| size at this stage is 55 gallons. Once the bala | | | | home one day and find a bala shark on the floor |
| sharks are full grown (up to 12 inches or 30 | | | | in the your living room. |
| centimeters long) a tank of at least 125 gallons is | | | | When you get a new aquarium don't use bala |
| recommended. If you do not give the bala sharks | | | | sharks until the bio filter is set up and the nitrogen |
| their space you may risk them become | | | | cycle has run through. They are very susceptible |
| aggressive towards the other fishes in the | | | | to the toxicity of a new aquarium. |
| community. | | | | Bala sharks are omnivorous and they will eat |
| As for the water chemistry, keep the pH | | | | nearly anything you give them. They go crazy |
| between 5.7 and 7.9, the water hardness | | | | over brine shrimp, but they will eat flakes, pellets, |
| between 5 and 15, and the temperature between | | | | freeze-dried bloodworms, tubifex. Try to include |
| 72 and 84 degrees Fahrenheit (22 to 29 degrees | | | | plant matter in their diet. Variety is key when |
| Celsius). | | | | feeding bala sharks (or any aquarium fish that |
| A school of at least 5 bala sharks would be ideal | | | | matter). They will scavenge around eat any food |
| for a community aquarium. Having too few bala | | | | that drops to the bottom of the aquarium. They |
| sharks is another way to make them mad and | | | | also eat algae which goes a long way towards |
| cause them to be aggressive towards other fish. | | | | keeping the aquarium clean. In their natural habitat |
| The bala sharks are fast swimmers and they | | | | they eat phytoplankton, insects and tiny |
| sometimes rub themselves against rocks and | | | | crustaceans. |
| objects in your aquarium so make sure there are | | | | |