Freshwater stingrays

[papastew]

Hey I was curious if anyone has experience with FW stingrays and might have some advice for a soon to be newbie stingray owner.

 

[William]

Stingrays require a special tank that is extremly large and shallow.

I believe it is unadvisable to keep them with other fish of any type, and IIRC even the " teacup " sized ones get very alrge in the end.

 

[deli_conker]

There are a few people on this board that keep them. I thought about keeping them at one time but changed my mind after I found out that even the small ones get about 18 inches across. Somebody recently posted about rays that he keeps in a 220 gal tank.

 

[Toirtis]

Yes, ponds or custom tanks are best for rays, as you want a fair amount of square footage for the bottom. A sand substrate is a must (although some keepers have success with bare-bottomed tanks), and a very stable, seasoned tank with a very stable pH is esential. A few rays (such as the reticulated ray that are most often sold as 'teacups') stay relatively small (about 10"-12" disc diameter), but many, like motoros, can exceed 24" in disc size and will eventually need huge aquaria.

 

[Atlarge]

I keep a teacup with discus in a 125 without any problems, he's around 8' and doing fine.

 

[dr.diggler]

one thing make sure they will eat for you when you go to buy the ray.... I took the owners word and I ended up losing my ray because he would not eat.