All fish / Datnioididae

Siamese Tigerfish

Datnioides pulcher

Also known as siamese tiger fish, siamese tiger perch, indochinese tigerfish, four barred tigerfish, datnoid, tiger datnoid, siamese datnoid, golden datnoid, ปลาเสือตอ, ปลาเสือตอลายใหญ่, ikan harimau siam, シャムタイガー

A deep-bodied, high-backed predator with a golden yellow to orange body crossed by a few broad black bars. It is one of the most prized and expensive of the tigerfish, kept as a showpiece monster fish, often alongside arowana.

Care at a glance

Care level

Hard

Temperament

Semi

Adult size

40 cm

Temperature

24 to 30 °C

pH

6.5 to 7.8

Smallest tank

800 litres

Keep as

Singly or in a group of 3 or more in a very large tank

Diet

Carnivore: live and frozen fish, prawns, earthworms, crickets; can be weaned onto meaty sinking foods

Swims

Middle of the tank

Lifespan

10 to 20 years

Water

Freshwater

Wild range

Mekong and Chao Phraya basins (Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam); possibly Indonesia

Breeding

Not bred in home aquariums; wild fish are thought to spawn in brackish or estuarine conditions, and nearly all trade stock comes from the wild or from limited commercial farming.

Good to know

Listed as Critically Endangered by the IUCN and heavily collected, so wild stock is scarce and costly; often confused with the cheaper Datnioides microlepis, which has more, thinner bars. It will eat any tankmate small enough to swallow.