# Gambian Congo River Tiger Fish..very scary looking!!



## Ted (Sep 14, 2007)

*don't think i''ll be swimming in there, anytime soon.* 



http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m148/neptunewaffle/43327.jpg
http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m148/neptunewaffle/hyd-gol.jpg
http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m148/neptunewaffle/Tiger_fish_sur_le_pont.gif
http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m148/neptunewaffle/Tigerfish35Kgs.jpg
http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m148/neptunewaffle/Hygol_u2.jpg
http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m148/neptunewaffle/1.jpg
http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m148/neptunewaffle/47430.jpg
http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m148/neptunewaffle/tiger-fish-congo-river.jpg
http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m148/neptunewaffle/Tiger_fish_36_kg.gif


----------



## froggyman (Sep 14, 2007)

oh i love those fishes!
Wonder how they taste??


----------



## Ted (Sep 14, 2007)

froggyman said:


> oh i love those fishes!
> Wonder how they taste??


probably great.
the area they live in is almost pristine.


----------



## beetleman (Sep 14, 2007)

yeah, they are awesome!! they sell the babies here and there,they do well in aquariums,but they need ALOT....i mean ALOT of room,and great filtration,those teeth on them are sick looking! i wish i had the room for them,but honestly they are better off in the wild where they belong,i cannot believe the size on some of them:clap: beautiful fish


----------



## Ted (Sep 14, 2007)

beetleman said:


> yeah, they are awesome!! they sell the babies here and there,they do well in aquariums,but they need ALOT....i mean ALOT of room,and great filtration,those teeth on them are sick looking! i wish i had the room for them,but honestly they are better off in the wild where they belong,i cannot believe the size on some of them:clap: beautiful fish


would they be legal in america?
i would be surprised, as they look as mean and adaptable as piranahs.
they are incredible, indeed!!


----------



## mitchrobot (Sep 15, 2007)

hydrocynus vittatus and goliath, two of my favorite tankbusters  

they are awsome aquarium pets (for those who have a tank big enough to keep then in atleast). i had a smallish one for a while, they are very intertaining, but nevous fish. 
good find on the pics BTW

they are legal. they are pretty delicate IME and do not handle stress very well.


----------



## Ted (Sep 15, 2007)

mitchrobot said:


> hydrocynus vittatus and goliath, two of my favorite tankbusters
> 
> they are awsome aquarium pets (for those who have a tank big enough to keep then in atleast). i had a smallish one for a while, they are very intertaining, but nevous fish.
> good find on the pics BTW
> ...


cool!
thanks for the insight, guys!
when i first saw the pics i thought they had been faked..but no!!:worship:


----------



## Crotalus (Sep 15, 2007)

IMO they are not suitable as aquarium fish, unless you provide them a massive tank from the start with lots of hideouts etc. Most that are sold dont eat well, and die shortly after
Wolf fish, Hoplias sp., are a better alternative if you like big ferocius fish. They are usually problem free from the start - need a BIG tank though.
Legal or not depend from state to state.

Hoplias sp. (probably H. lacerdae)


----------



## Ted (Sep 15, 2007)

Crotalus said:


> IMO they are not suitable as aquarium fish, unless you provide them a massive tank from the start with lots of hideouts etc. Most that are sold dont eat well, and die shortly after
> Wolf fish, Hoplias sp., are a better alternative if you like big ferocius fish. They are usually problem free from the start - need a BIG tank though.
> Legal or not depend from state to state.
> 
> ...


----------



## Crotalus (Sep 15, 2007)

Smaller tools but they hit hard


----------



## Ted (Sep 15, 2007)

Crotalus said:


> Smaller tools but they hit hard


cool..i heard of those, actually.


----------



## P. Novak (Sep 15, 2007)

Piranha move over! Awesome looking fish, straight out of the dinosaur age!


----------



## Selenops (Sep 15, 2007)

Those are impressive, post those pics on most forums on the net and the general response that those are the latest movie props for the next sci-fi channel original. 

Those perhaps live outside the States, sci-fi cable channel put out alot of generic original horror/sci-fi flicks usually dealing with monsterous aberrations.


----------



## Gigas (Sep 15, 2007)

I've fish for the non goliath species in Lake kariba on the Zambezi, an amazing sport fish but not very good eating, very very boney.


----------



## bugmankeith (Sep 15, 2007)

They are cool looking but being so big having one in captivity would be expensive.


----------



## Arachnotized (Sep 16, 2007)

I definantly would faint dead away if I chose to dive under a few yards from shore and saw that staring back at me...


----------



## Tim Benzedrine (Sep 16, 2007)

The first thing that jumped to my mind when I saw the very first picture was the Predator from the film of the same name. I'm not sure why, the resemblance isn't that close. It might be the eyes and the colouration.


----------



## nickbachman (Sep 16, 2007)

Good god!  They look like a carp with a bear trap for a mouth!


----------



## P. Novak (Sep 16, 2007)

Has there ever been a recorded bite or attack from these on humans?


----------



## Crotalus (Sep 16, 2007)

P. Novak said:


> Has there ever been a recorded bite or attack from these on humans?


Yes theres been bites, but more then that I cant say - the paper i read it in is packed somewhere
Non fatal but serious flesh wounds.


----------



## dtknow (Sep 16, 2007)

Wonder if the non goliath species possess the same dentition.

If a shark had teeth like that...we'd be in serious trouble. Nickbachman's description is perfect!

Also, I wonder what kind of line/shock tippets they need for those guys! The teeth look more adapted to puncturing stuff than actual cutting though.


----------



## Crotalus (Sep 16, 2007)

dtknow said:


> Wonder if the non goliath species possess the same dentition.
> 
> If a shark had teeth like that...we'd be in serious trouble. Nickbachman's description is perfect!
> 
> Also, I wonder what kind of line/shock tippets they need for those guys! The teeth look more adapted to puncturing stuff than actual cutting though.


The teeth is impressive but they are "only" for impaling fish - same type of teeth youll find on sandtiger sharks (not the real tiger sharks)

Great whites and piranha teeth are serrated for slicing chunks out of prey so id go for the steakknife type any day


----------



## P. Novak (Sep 17, 2007)

dtknow said:


> Wonder if the non goliath species possess the same dentition.
> 
> If a shark had teeth like that...we'd be in serious trouble. Nickbachman's description is perfect!
> 
> Also, I wonder what kind of line/shock tippets they need for those guys! The teeth look more adapted to puncturing stuff than actual cutting though.





Crotalus said:


> The teeth is impressive but they are "only" for impaling fish - same type of teeth youll find on sandtiger sharks (not the real tiger sharks)
> 
> Great whites and piranha teeth are serrated for slicing chunks out of prey so id go for the steakknife type any day


Yea I'd agree. I'd rather take a bite from that then any shark.


----------



## RoachGirlRen (Sep 17, 2007)

I find it very tragic that those are available in the aquarium fish trade; let's face it, very few people can afford the housing needs of that species, but just like arowana, alligator gars, pacu, giant gouramis, and koi, idiots will impulse-purchase them then get rid of them (often by releasing into a non-native habitat!) rather than foot the bill of being responsible pet owners. Some things really should demand licensure for keeping so that they are only available serious enthusiasts. It's a shame really; they are stunning, awe-inspiring animals. I wish people could enjoy them in nature where they belong.


----------



## beetleman (Sep 17, 2007)

RoachGirlRen said:


> I find it very tragic that those are available in the aquarium fish trade; let's face it, very few people can afford the housing needs of that species, but just like arowana, alligator gars, pacu, giant gouramis, and koi, idiots will impulse-purchase them then get rid of them (often by releasing into a non-native habitat!) rather than foot the bill of being responsible pet owners. Some things really should demand licensure for keeping so that they are only available serious enthusiasts. It's a shame really; they are stunning, awe-inspiring animals. I wish people could enjoy them in nature where they belong.


yup, and you should see the non native fish we have swimming down here in fla. it's a shmorgisboard(spelling) of every kind of predatory and non predatory fish you can imagine.


----------



## sidguppy (Sep 18, 2007)

> The teeth is impressive but they are "only" for impaling fish - same type of teeth youll find on sandtiger sharks (not the real tiger sharks)
> 
> Great whites and piranha teeth are serrated for slicing chunks out of prey so id go for the steakknife type any day


actually, no. the Hydrocynus just bites a big chuck straight out of anything that moves, exactly like a Barracuda. 
Barracuda's have razorsharp teeth that interlock and "slice" a targetfish clear in 2. this Characin has the same predatory habit as a Barracuda.
it also goes after fish that are hooked, uncluding speciesmembers.

it can and does tear a chuck of meat out of a human with terrifying speed; there are documented cases where someone misses an entire calf; according to the documentary it was ripped off with a single bite.....

I'll take a similar sized shark anytime over 1 of these. 
ofcourse there's no comparison between these and 5 meter Tigersharks or Great Whites.


----------



## Snakefox (Sep 21, 2007)

heheh nice pictures lol I would hate to try to take a hook out of that mouth!!


----------

