What’s the smallest shark?

[fishywishy]

What’s the smallest shark you can keep in a aquarium and how big of a aquarium do you need for it?

 

[i cant think]

What’s the smallest shark you can keep in a aquarium and how big of a aquarium do you need for it?

To my knowledge it’s the Epaulette Shark, I believe some people keep them in 6’ tanks but the recommended is 7 or 8’ for an adult.
For most sharks the minimum is an 8’ tank due to how much they swim along with their max size being 2’ or bigger.

 

[Enderg60]

99% of the "hobby level" sharks are bottom dwellers that hide under rocks, and even those require a 180g minimum. I find these extremely boring. You go "I Have a SHARK", you feed it on a stick and it goes back under a rock.

If you want a free swimming shark, as in a typical shark, you literally need a public aquarium of swimming pool size or larger.

I honestly cant think of anyone Ive even heard of providing a good home for a shark. They usually end up with an Epaulette and an eel in a 75g and then get rid of it within a year as the novelty wears off.

 

[AydenLincoln]

I’d say none for a beginner because they need really big specialized tanks and this hobby is expensive keeping a shark is even more expensive and very few places sells them. So for most people with no experience keeping a saltwater tank, no marine biology background, and can’t provide a really big tank it’s a bad idea. There also are only juvenile sharks and they will still grow and in terms of tank size eventually like 300+ gallons in their own specialized predatory tank. https://be.chewy.com/7-ideal-sharks-for-the-saltwater-aquarium/

 

[i cant think]

99% of the "hobby level" sharks are bottom dwellers that hide under rocks, and even those require a 180g minimum. I find these extremely boring. You go "I Have a SHARK", you feed it on a stick and it goes back under a rock.

If you want a free swimming shark, as in a typical shark, you literally need a public aquarium of swimming pool size or larger.

I honestly cant think of anyone Ive even heard of providing a good home for a shark. They usually end up with an Epaulette and an eel in a 75g and then get rid of it within a year as the novelty wears off.

There’s a tank on here that has a couple of sharks in the perfect environment but I can’t remember the name of it.
However with sharks it is an opinion on if they’re a good idea to own or not (Obviously they won’t be if it’s a beginner). Personally I don’t find them boring as it’s more like the fish you get that’ll hide for long periods of time then re-emerge every so often and be a beauty when they do.

 

[Enderg60]

There’s a tank on here that has a couple of sharks in the perfect environment but I can’t remember the name of it.
However with sharks it is an opinion on if they’re a good idea to own or not (Obviously they won’t be if it’s a beginner). Personally I don’t find them boring as it’s more like the fish you get that’ll hide for long periods of time then re-emerge every so often and be a beauty when they do.

Ok....thats just mean! Someone tell me what tank hes talking about so I can see it!

 

[i cant think]

Ok....thats just mean! Someone tell me what tank hes talking about so I can see it!

I now remember what I was looking for earlier, give me a minute and I can grab the thread

 

[i cant think]

I now remember what I was looking for earlier, give me a minute and I can grab the thread

I found it
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/shark-tank-complete.892147/page-2

 

[adsf430]

Coral cat shark I believe is smallest. Smallest that isn't benthic is a smooth hound but requires colder water.

 

[Krj-2501]

Okay the smallest sharks are the true Catsharks (Family- Scyliorhinidae) most of which cool water (water temps under 65 F/18.3 C) species . As there a few species which only grow 16-20 inches/41-51 cm in length.

The best Catsharks are the species of the Genus - Atelomycterus (Marbled & Coral Catsharks) which grow to 18-28 inches/46-71cm. They tend to prefer normal aquarium temps (72-82 F/22.2-27.6 C), and are often found in reefs, and tidal ponds. It is possible to keep them in a standard 180-gallon aquarium (6 ft. long x 2 ft. wide x 2ft. tall) as a single species only tank. Although a 300-gallon aquarium(8 ft. long x 2.5 ft. wide x 2 ft. tall) or saltwater pond(6 ft. diameter) would be a much better option.

Now the sharks which are sometimes called Cat sharks are actually the Bamboo sharks (genus -Chiloscyllium) and will get between 30-54 inches/76-137 cm in length. These species are also tropical species - but actually need very large Aquariums or better yet saltwater ponds of 500-2,000 gallons.

The Epaulette sharks are in the same family (Hemiscyllidae) as the Bamboo sharks, but of the genus - Hemiscyllium. Like the Bamboo sharks they will also usually get 30-42 inches/76-106 cm. So, they need a very large aquarium or saltwater pond of 500-1,000 gallons.