Question No.  4170 :
I am in the fifth grade and I would like to have some information on archer fish. Could you please help?

There are two commonly seen archerfishes. Toxotes jaculatrix is known as the common archer. This is a deep bodied fish, bright silver in colour with bold black bands along the side and dark edges to the anal and dorsal fins. Toxotes chartreus is similar but has smaller spots between the black bands along the body. Both species grow to about 25 to 30 cm, so a large tank (over 100 cm) is needed. In the wild these are schooling fishes. Opinion is divided as to the behaviour of these fishes in captivity, but as a rule it is best to keep either a single specimen or a school of similar sized individuals. They can be aggressive to one another but are totally benign toward their tankmates. Archers specialise in catching aerial insects. They sometimes leap (like salmon), but are best known for spitting at insects, with a range of up to 150 cm. In captivity they can be 'trained' to do this quite easily. Begin by setting the tank up so that about 10 to 15 cm of glass is above the waterline. Once the fishes have settled in, feed them on small crushed prawn chunks. They will happily take these midwater. Then stick them to the glass at the waterline. The archers will pick them off. Gradually place the food a little higher each time. Eventually the fish will jump against the glass to get the food. Once the food reaches a certain height they give up jumping and start spitting. Archers will adapt to almost all water conditions from medium hard freshwater to full strength seawater. They do well in planted tanks. A specific gravity of 1.005 is fine for long term health. All archers appreciate warmth, from 25 to 30 degrees-C (77 to 86 F). They dislike 'new' water and do best in a mature tank. Archerfish are known to breed in both freshwater streams and brackish estuaries. However, despite this adaptation, none was being bred in aquariums. Specimens as large as 40 cm have been recorded, nevertheless 15 to 20 cm seems to be most common. Archerfishes are mostly seen around submerged mangrove roots, sunken debris or overhanging tree branches where they feed on a variety of insects, both aquatic and terrestrial. Please refer to the following URLs for further information: http://www.users.bigpond.com/rjeb/archer.html http://www.thekrib.com/Fish/archerfish.html#0 http://www.univie.ac.at/zoologie/theo/Archer.html The feat of shooting a stream of water to knock the prey off a branch is remarkable. The fact that the Archer fish can do this time and again with pin-point accuracy is even more remarkable. But most remarkable of all is that the Archer fish can accomplish this trick despite the fact that light from the target to its eye undergoes refraction at the air-water boundary. Please refer to the following URL to find out the secret of the archer fish: http://www.glenbrook.k12.il.us/gbssci/phys/Class/refrn/u14l1f.html Question Asked By:

Name: Zach Reeves

Age Group: 6 to 12

Occupation Type: Student

Education Level: Primary