| Red Fin Shark | Aquarium Fish Care |
| Size | Up to 6 inches or 15 cm |
| Fish Hardiness | Relatively easy to care for |
| Water Temperature | 71 - 81 ºF or 22 - 27 ºC |
| Water pH | 6.0 - 8.0 pH |
| Water Hardness | 2 - 15 dH |
| Peaceful or Aggressive | Aggressive |
| Number of same species in one aquarium | Only one, otherwise six or more if you have a large enough aquarium |
| Community Fish | Ii is possible when carefully choosing tank mates |
| Sexes | Males are smaller with brighter colors and has black coloration on the anal fin |
| Strata | Lower to middle |
| Food | Flake food, algae and supplement with bloodworms |
| Breeding | Difficult to breed |
| Other names | Rainbow Shark, Red Finned Shark, Ruby Shark |
| Scientific name | Epalzeorhynchos frenatum |
| Lifespan | 6 - 8 years |
Ideal Red Fin Shark Conditions
Appearance
- This Shark has an elongated body with a pointed snout and a forked tail. The main body color is a dark grey to black with a green tint. All the fins are as the name suggests reddish to orange in color. The base of the caudal fin has a black marking on both sides. A short black stripe runs from the point of the snout through the eye and ends on the gill cover.
Aggressive
- This is a territorial and aggressive fish especially towards its own specie and also towards the very closely related Red Tail Shark and the not so closely related Bala Shark. Either keep one in a aquarium or if you have a large enough aquarium you can keep them in a shoal of six or more. Even in a shoal they will show aggression amongst each other but it is better managed.
Community Species
- They can be kept in a community aquarium with certain fish species. Species that can be kept with them include Barbs, Danios, Rainbows and of course Loaches, Plecos and Corys.
Strata
- They will dwell mostly in the lower to middle regions of the aquarium. They do best in a setup where they have hiding place in the form of plants and caves.
Feeding
- Feed them a staple food of plant based flake food and supplement with freeze dried or frozen brine shrimp and bloodworms. They will also appreciate live foods.
Breeding
- Breeding this Shark successfully is not very commonly known. In a very large aquarium with one male and one female, regular water changes, enough plant cover and hiding places, spawning might be possible.
Other names and Lifespan
- The Red Fin Shark is commonly known by a couple of names which includes Red Finned Shark, Rainbow Shark, Ruby Shark and Rainbow Shark Minnow. They can reach a age of six to eight years.