Species Profile

Elephant Nose Fish

Gnathonemus petersii

Oddballspeaceful

Adult size

10″

Minimum tank

75 gal

Temperature

75–82°F

6.5–7.2

Schooling

Solitary OK

Water level

bottom

Grows from juvenile

Typically sold at ~3″ and reaches 10″ over ~2 years. Plan tank size for the adult, not the fish at purchase.

Diet

Frozen bloodworms, live, sinking pellets

Notes

Uses weak electrical pulses to navigate via the trunk-like 'nose'. Surprisingly intelligent. Sensitive to water quality and chemical medications.

Photo: GnathoMichel / Wikimedia Commons · Source · CC-BY-SA-3.0