Our sources

Every number on this site comes from somewhere, and every page lists its sources at the bottom. These are the people and places behind them.

We go to science first, then official records, then keepers who have kept redtails for years and shown their work. Scientists almost never study redtails in tanks, so for anything about keeping one, a keeper with a long public record is the best evidence there is. We name them, and when only one keeper has seen something, we say so.

Fish Story Aquarium & Rescue

Fish Story is a public aquarium and fish rescue in Naples, Florida, built and run by Viktor Jarikov. People give up redtails when they outgrow their tanks, and Fish Story has taken in close to 200 of them and their hybrids. Many lived there for years in a 4,500 gallon tank, 13 by 13 feet, and the big fish now share a 25,000 gallon one.

Viktor has written about his redtails since 2016 and filmed them the whole way: feeding, courtship, sickness, recovery, and the measurements of the three that died at nine. Much of what this site says about keeping a redtail comes from that record, and we use it with his permission.

fish-story.com · YouTube · Redtail logUsed on Size, Growth rate, Lifespan, Myths, Keeper journals, Tank size, Water, Health, Feeding, Behavior, Breeding, Hybrids, Morphs, Buying, Vitamin B1, Rehoming, Male or female

Science and records

1. FishBase. The standard scientific database of the world's fish. Size, range, habitat and water values, each traced to published papers. Species pageUsed on Size, Myths, Growth rate, World record, Water, Health, In the wild, Breeding
2. International Game Fish Association. The body that keeps official angling world records, including the redtail all-tackle record. igfa.orgUsed on Size, World record, Myths
3. Grand View Outdoors. The IGFA's 2010 roundup of new records, including a redtail line-class record from the Amazon. ArticleUsed on World record
4. Freitas & Montag, 2019, Neotropical Ichthyology 17(2). A study of 154 wild redtails from the Xingu River in Brazil, 2012 to 2014: size at maturity, spawning season, and how males and females differ. PaperUsed on In the wild, Breeding, Growth rate, Male or female
5. Journal of Fish Biology, 2023. A study of feeding rhythm in juvenile redtails: they fed themselves only at night. PaperUsed on Feeding
6. MSD Veterinary Manual. The veterinary reference on feeding fish-eating animals in captivity, including thiaminase and vitamin B1. ArticleUsed on Hybrids, Vitamin B1, Health
7. ARTIS Royal Zoo, Amsterdam. A 2007 email from the ARTIS curator of lower vertebrates describing the zoo's biggest redtail. The only surviving copy was shared by Viktor Jarikov in 2019. We have written to ARTIS to confirm it. The email, as sharedUsed on Size
8. Rancho do Matuto, Rio Araguaia, Brazil. A fishing lodge on the Rio Araguaia that posted the 'Pirarara Black', a wild all-black redtail living near the lodge. Facebook post, 2018Used on Morphs
9. Penn Raíba, Brazil. A Brazilian fishing tackle shop that posted a daylight photo of the Pirarara Black and a short write-up on melanism in redtails. Facebook post, 2023Used on Morphs
10. Fengshui Aquatic, Bangkok, Thailand. A Thai ornamental fish exporter that has sold all-black 'black panda' redtail juveniles since at least 2019. YouTube, 2019Used on Morphs
11. Zak CatchEm, Instagram, Florida. An angler who posted a redtail he caught in Florida and measured at 52.5 inches. Instagram reel, March 2026 · Full video, YouTube · Cold kill video, YouTube, Feb 2026Used on Size, In Florida
12. USGS Nonindigenous Aquatic Species, U.S. Geological Survey. The federal database of non-native fish sightings in the US, with each redtail report by place and date. Redtail fact sheetUsed on In the wild, In Florida
13. Florida rules on non-native species, Florida Administrative Code, chapter 68-5. Florida's lists of restricted and banned non-native animals, and the pet amnesty rule. Prohibited list, 68-5.006 · Conditional list, 68-5.004Used on In Florida
14. Florida Statutes 379.231, Florida Legislature. The Florida law that makes it illegal to release any non-native animal. StatuteUsed on In Florida
15. FWC Exotic Pet Amnesty Program, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Florida's program for giving up a non-native pet with no penalty. Amnesty programUsed on In Florida
16. News4JAX, 2014, Jacksonville, Florida. Two boys catch a redtail in a Clay County pond. ArticleUsed on In Florida
17. ARTIS Royal Zoo, Amsterdam (2026 reply), Amsterdam, Netherlands. ARTIS's reply to our 2026 email about their 1972 redtail, passing on what their keepers remember and what their records hold. artis.nlUsed on Size

Care guides and references

1. Seriously Fish. A long-running species reference written by experienced keepers. Species pageUsed on Size, Myths, Tank size, Water, Health, Feeding, Behavior, Hybrids, Breeding, Lifespan, Buying, Rehoming, In the wild
2. Wikipedia. The encyclopedia entry on the redtail catfish. ArticleUsed on Size, Myths, World record, Tank size, Feeding, Hybrids, Breeding, In the wild, Morphs
3. Lichtenberger, Conscientious Aquarist. A review of the research on thiaminase for aquarists: which fish carry it, what it does, and what freezing and cooking change. ArticleUsed on Hybrids, Vitamin B1, Health, Feeding

Other keepers

Single reports from other keepers. We use them only where they agree with better evidence.

1. Keepers' growth reports. Growth numbers posted by keepers raising young redtails. ReportsUsed on Growth rate, Myths, Keeper journals
2. fishdance, MonsterFishKeepers. A big-catfish keeper and breeder who has kept redtails in tanks of 15,000 liters and up, posting in Fish Story's redtail log. Their postsUsed on Water, Health, Behavior, Breeding, In Florida

If we got something wrong

Tell us, with a source. Corrections are the most useful thing this site can get.