Red Fire Eel

The fire eel (Mastacembelus erythrotaenia) is the largest spiny eel commonly seen in the hobby, and despite the name it is not an eel at all. It comes from Southeast Asia, and mature fish carry bright red-orange stripes over a dark brown body — markings that are muted in juveniles and intensify with age. It spends the day buried in sand with only its snout showing.

Aquarium care

• Grows very large, well beyond 70 cm, and is long-lived.
• Needs a deep bed of soft sand for burrowing; coarse gravel will damage the skin.
• An exceptional escape artist. Every gap around the lid, pipes and cables must be sealed.
• Nocturnal — provide caves, pipe and shaded cover so it feels secure enough to come out.
• Takes earthworms and meaty frozen foods; many individuals never accept dry food.
• Scaleless, so it is sensitive to copper and to some medications. Ask before dosing the tank.

It suits a large tank with big, calm, robust fish. It will eat anything small enough to swallow, so a community of tetras is not an option. Fire eels are shy for the first few weeks and need patience before they feed openly.

Stock rotates with each shipment, and livestock is available for local pickup at our Lethbridge store. See the assorted and interesting collection.