Silver Arowana — printable fact sheet
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Silver Arowana
Osteoglossum bicirrhosum
The silver arowana (Osteoglossum bicirrhosum) is a metre-long, ribbon-flat predator of Amazonian floodplains, and it is a member of the bony-tongue fishes, an ancient lineage whose fossil record runs back well past the breakup of Gondwana. Its name refers to a toothed, bony stru…
Did you know?
- Silver Arowanas can jump up to 2 meters (over 6 feet) out of the water to catch insects and even small birds from overhanging branches.
- Silver arowana leap over a metre out of the water to take prey off branches, which is why Amazonians call them water monkeys. The male broods the eggs and then the fry in his mouth for up to two months, going largely without food. Their "bony tongue" bites upward against teeth on the palate, an ancient jaw arrangement predating most modern fish. Arowana are obligate surface hunters and their eyes and mouth are both angled upward, giving them a permanently disgruntled expression.
What I learned
Draw the silver arowana
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