bala sharks? destroyers of all things green?

[firsttenor]

Okay so I am looking for a good schooling fish for my 140g long. Bala sharks may be the perfect fish. I asked a local pet store about this and they told me that they can grow 3 feet long and destroy fresh water plants.

Is this true?
The biggest shark I have seen is 2ft. I have seen them in planted tanks before. (temp situation?)

[anessa]

I don't really think of Bala's as schooling fish because they get so big, but I guess they are. We've never had ours destroy plants. I'm not sure about max size but if you want schooling fish, you'll probably want several and that seems like a big schooling fish for a 140g.

[King-eL]

Balas are schooling fish. Does not mean they get big means they don't school. Many cyprinids schools regardlesa if the size. Max size in aquaria is 14-16". But may take 2-3 years to get to that size as they slow down at 10-12" in a year.

As for the plants.... They do eat plants but prefer the softer leaves. However if regular feeding then they don't seems to bother plants. Mine will eat zuccini too. Used to have 7 of them at 14-16". All died during transport when I moved to Surrey on 2008.

[monkE]

I've had balas in a 55 gal.. (i didn't realize how big they get) It was a planted tank and they never seemed to eat plants. that may change when they grow though...

It was a couple years before the shark hit 6" in my 55 so if you get them young you could probably keep a school for quite some time before they grow too large.

They definitely are a social fish and like to be kept in groups