Oscar - Aquarium Fish

I have written several aquarium-related posts/articles on here, and this is the only one that involves a fish, plant or aspect of this aquatic hobby that I actually have no experience in. I've never owned an Oscar. I've never wanted one, and will most likely never buy one. However, this is a very popular fish for home aquariums.
Please Note: The Oscar that is depicted in this post is a little baby one, as they get much bigger than that!

Personally, I don't like them for community tanks because they will literally eat almost any fish that they can get inside their greedy mouth. I have talked to some experienced tank owners in the past that had them before, and about the only good thing I've heard was about how they are one of the smartest aquarium fish you will commonly see.  I think they mainly say that because they often stare at the owners in anticipation of food, but does that really signify intelligence? Then again, I suppose that awareness is a sign of intelligence albeit when related to hunger, it's not a very keen marker for such things. Speaking of that, they can grow quite large, as well. I just read that they can get up to 3.5 pounds. Hell, they are often sold as a food fish in South America, where they naturally reside.

The Oscar is a species from the Cichlid family. If you'd rather read about African Cichlids (I've actually owned several of those before), feel free to visit my recent post, here: http://exotic-life-creatures.blogspot.com/2015/02/african-cichlids-aquarium-fish.html

Anyway, many people are proud of their Oscars. It must be a macho guy thing or something, you know, to hear stuff like: "Man, I got the baddest Oscar in the world. Dude, it like totally ate my Betta fish the other day. It is so cool; I'm going to drop some crawdads in there today and watch him tear them to pieces." LOL! I've heard stuff like that before. It reminds me of the guys that brag about how tough their dog is, blah, blah! Maybe there is some compensation going on, not sure... Ha!

At any aquatic rate, if you'd prefer a large rocky tank with just a couple big Oscars and perhaps a big scavenger fish like a Pleco to accompany them, then this may be the best choice for you. If you'd rather read about a Pleco, go here: http://exotic-life-creatures.blogspot.com/2015/02/plecostomus-aquarium-fish-giant-algae.html
I would much rather have a tank full of variety and fish with tropical colors, than a small group of hungry swimming pigs. Hey, if I resort to that, I'll just get a pond out back and stock it with bass and catfish, as I'll be eating those!

Image Credit: It is in the Public Domain and is not under copyright protection.

---End of Post "Oscar - Aquarium Fish"