Indonesian Tigerfish

1 Species Overview

The Indonesian tigerfish’s biggest trait is that it is nocturnal—resting by day and only feeding and moving at night. Because it is a nocturnal animal, its ornamental appeal is rather low and not many hobbyists keep it. Its black stripes can darken unpredictably, and in extreme cases the fish can turn so black that the stripes disappear.

Chinese name: Indonesian tigerfish (印尼虎鱼)

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Subphylum: Vertebrata

2 Appearance

Many hobbyists only discover the fish is nocturnal after keeping it—by day it likes to hide, losing its display value. In fact the Indonesian tigerfish’s body color is camouflage; its black stripes can darken unpredictably.

The Indonesian tigerfish has an elongated body; its length-to-height ratio is very different from the Thai tigerfish. Most Indonesian individuals have fairly straight mid-stripes running from the dorsal fin down to the belly, though a few odd ‘scimitar’ Indonesian tigerfish have curved ones. Most Indonesian tigerfish are unstable in coloration and can darken so much you lose the stripes; the tail’s mid-stripe forms a ring (connected). The tail pattern is three stripes (multi-striped, with three tail stripes).

3 Tank & Habitat

Because the Indonesian tigerfish is nocturnal, its ornamental value drops a lot. But there are small tricks to train it out of the nocturnal habit and stabilize its color—starting from when you first keep it, if you let the fish get used to the environment, you can break the night-active habit.

1. Keep it in a bare tank with no hiding places. It is scared at first but gradually gets used to it.

2. Feed with the light on, standing there watching them eat; don’t overfeed—give only what they finish. Some tigerfish wait until you leave and the light is off before coming out to eat. Not allowed: make them learn that hiding means going hungry, so they must come out boldly to compete for food. Don’t put black objects in the tank—the camouflage mimics nearby colors, and over time the habit forms naturally.

4 Feeding

The Indonesian tigerfish does best at 28 °C; in captivity its appetite is better at this temperature. Because it has a large mouth, its hunting is quite a spectacle.

The Indonesian tigerfish is a large, purely predatory fish that loves live food—fish, shrimp and loaches are all favorites. With training it can accept some prepared foods such as beef, mealworms, insects, fish chunks and ‘fish burgers’. If feeding live food, wash and inspect it first to check for contamination.