Note: Our website is reader-supported. We earn commissions when you buy through our links.
Alright, so you have a big Arowana tank. But you are missing something or maybe bored just to see the Arowana moving around. So you are wondering about adding a few angelfish into the Arowana tank.
Although it might seem intimidating to keep the angelfish with Arowana, as a general rule, they both can go well. However, it is important to monitor their combination and separate them if you notice aggression.
Read on to learn the temperament of Arowana and angelfish, the top 3 things to keep in mind while keeping them together, and more.
In terms of temperament, angelfish are usually peaceful fish. However, remember they are cichlids (and most of the time, cichlids are very aggressive). So the angelfish may become aggressive towards one another, specifically when pairing and spawning.
And if you keep smaller fish, they might feel free to eat it too. With that being said, this doesn’t mean that they are very aggressive. Actually, the more appropriate word to describe their behavior is that they are “opportunistic.”
Your angelfish can eat anything that will fit in their mouth. I hope you got the idea. In short, their temperament can be highlighted as:
Generally peaceful
Aggressive eaters
Territorial while breeding
Temperament of Arowana
Contrary to what you may think because of the size of Arowana, they are usually tolerant to other tank mates, provided they can’t eat them. If you feed your Arowana properly, they will most likely ignore the other tank mates you might consider in danger, size-wise.
In terms of my personal experience, I kept a silver Arowana for just a few days. And even in that short period of keeping and observing the silver Arowana, I realized that Silver Arowana is calmer and more peaceful than I thought.
Most of the time, you could find him patrolling the water’s surface. It seemed like the silver Arowana didn’t care about others in the tank. He mainly kept moving on the upper surface of the tank from one side to another. It was a delightful experience to enjoy seeing him moving in the tank.
Unfortunately, my tank requirements were not enough to keep him, so I gave him back to my pet store friend.
Having said that, you still need to be cautious whenever you choose a tank mate for a predatory fish like Arowana.
Generally speaking, you can expect your Arowana to safely ignore other tank mates as long as they are appropriately fed.
They are a good option as tank mates for other predatory fish. And because the Arowana have tough scales, they can easily handle aggressive attacks from other tank mates.
Can Angelfish And Arowana Live Together? (Video)
While researching for this article, I came across this nice video by Ryo Watanabe. Watching it, you can learn about the video creator’s thoughts on keeping Angelfish with Asian Arowana.
What To Keep In Mind While Keeping Angelfish With Arowana?
#1. Make Sure Your Angels Are Big Enough
The larger the Angelfish you put with Arowana, the better it will be. When choosing the tank mates for Arowana, you should always try to avoid any fish that can easily fit into the mouth of the Arowana, as a rule of thumb.
A fully-grown adult angelfish can reach a body length of 3 to 4 inches. And its height can be up to 6 inches.
#2. Keep Your Arowana Well-Fed
The next thing you need to consider while keeping Arowana and angelfish together is to feed your Arowana adequately.
If your Arowana is well fed, and the angelfish is big, it should do fine in most cases. (A hungry Arowana might get triggered easily compared to an Arowana that is well-fed)
One cool hack you can try out is to addict your Arowana with one specific type of food so that it doesn’t look towards other smaller fish.
The diet of Arowana includes things like pellets that are designed specifically for surface-feeding carnivorous fish, frozen or freeze-dried fish and insects, worms, etc.
As juveniles, they can readily accept small live fish and other small insects. However, as they grow, you can wean them slowly to accept non-live frozen foods like market shrimps, prawns, etc.
#3. Add More Angelfish If The Tank Permits
Generally speaking, you should keep about 5 or more angelfish in a tank. This ensures that your angelfish will have less trouble with the aggressive tank mates.
Obviously, if you are trying the combination of angelfish and Arowana for the first time, then risking that many angelfish from the start may not be a good decision.
So start slowly with a few angelfish (maybe you can start 2 or 3 angelfish) and keep them in the Arowana tank for a few weeks or months. See how it goes, and check if they go well with each other.
After that, if everything looks good, if you feel confident enough, and if the tank size is big enough to handle more angles, gradually start increasing the number of angelfish until the tank size permits.
Angelfish Tank Mates:
Usually, angelfish are relatively peaceful, so the tank mates you chose for them should have a similar type of temperament. The ideal tank mates for angelfish are the ones that are non-aggressive, peaceful, and the ones that can live in harmony with your angels.
Here’s a list of some of the best tank mates for angelfish:
If you can feed your Arowanas appropriately, they will most likely not be the bullies in a community tank. They become mildly aggressive only when it is time for feeding. But rest, they will ignore other tank mates and be busy patrolling the tank surface 🙂
Here are some of the best tank mates for Arowana:
Clown Loaches
Parrot Cichlids
Knife Fish
Bala Shark
Bichir Fish
Oscar Fish
Common Pleco
Freshwater Stingray
Tiger Datnoid
Conclusion
When it comes to keeping Arowana and angelfish together, it seems like trying, and testing is the only way to go. On the one hand, Arowana is a predatory fish of relatively big size. And on the other hand, angelfish are usually peaceful and relatively smaller.
So, in theory, it may not be a good idea to keep them together. But practically speaking, you might have a good chance of keeping them together. Just try, test, and consider the things I shared with you in this article. I hope that helps. Good Luck & Happy Fishkeeping!
Hi! I’m Praveen Ghoshal, the founder of eFishkeeping.com. Inspired by my Dad, I got interested in fishkeeping when I was a kid. Since then, I have been involved with this hobby. Currently, I have 3 fish tanks at our home, and I enjoy this hobby with my full family. Read more about me here.
