West African Lungfish
Protopterus annectens
(Owen, 1839)
What are they and how big do they get?
West African Lungfish are also known as Tana Lungfish and belong in the family of Protopteridae: the African lungfishes, and attain a size of around 39" (100cm)
They're an ancient fish that are believed to have existed for over 400 million years.
They naturally occur in freshwater habitats including backwaters, rivers and swamps in South and West Africa.
What temperature can they be kept at?
West African Lungfish are tropical and can be maintained at a temperature of around 24-30c.
How many should be kept together?
Due to their territorial and solitary nature, they are best maintained alone.
Water parameters?
A hardy fish that can acclimatise to a wide range of conditions and parameters.
What do they eat in captivity and how often should they be fed?
Being an omnivore, a varied diet should be offered to captive fish.
West African lungfish readily accept a good quality cichlid or catfish pellet. Algae wafers are equally enjoyed. Meaty items such as whitebait and mussel that have been sliced and diced are eagerly accepted.
Feed several times a week.
Which tankmates are recommended?
None.
Some aquarists have had varying degrees of success keeping them with tankmates in monster aquariums, whereas other aquarists have reported carnage!
As far as we're concerned, it simply isn't worth the risk. Therefore, we recommend keeping West African lungfish in a species-specific aquarium.
The aquarium?
The aquarium must be spacious and voluminous.
West African Lungfish have the potential to attain a size of 1mtr in length. They demand a monster-sized aquarium (or tropical pond).
Protopterus spp. are obligate air-breathers, meaning that they must periodically breathe air from the water's surface to survive. Therefore, it is imperative that there's a gap left between the surface of the water and lid of the aquarium to allow for breathing. If denied access, they'll drown.
Will they breed in captivity?
To our knowledge, this hasn't yet been achieved. If you believe otherwise, please let us know and we'll update this part right away!
Other notes
West African lungfish have the ability to aestivate, which is similar to hibernation, but instead of taking place during winter it takes place during the dry season. During this time the West African lungfish will burrow into drying mud and release copious amounts of mucus which is used to form a cocoon around itself. It can remain in this cocoon, dormant for months, or even years. During this period of dormancy its metabolism drastically slows, and it will remain in this state until the rain season arrives. The rain triggers the fish to emerge from its cocoon and resume its active stage of aquatic life.
Conclusion
This is a serious oddball for the serious oddball collector, and if you have the space to dedicate to such an fantastic fish, you're potentially going to have a pet for life.
How long do they really live? Probably a long long time!