Asian arowana
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An illustration based on the real animal.
A little discovery to share.
The Asian arowana lives in slow-flowing tropical fresh water with aquatic plants.
THE REAL WORLD
The real Asian arowana
- Scientific name
- Scleropages formosus
- Japanese name
- アジアアロワナ
- Group
- Freshwater animals
- Order
- Osteoglossiformes
- Family
- Osteoglossidae
- Genus
- Scleropages
A freshwater fish thought to have barely changed in shape since very ancient times; it is sometimes called a “living fossil.”
It eats insects, small fish, and other prey near the water surface, and can even leap to catch prey above the water.
After the female lays eggs, the male is known to hold them in his mouth and care for the young without eating until they have grown somewhat.
Basic data
- Size
- Total length: 60–90 cm
- Diet
- Small fish, crustaceans, insects, and sometimes small amphibians and animals
- Range
- Southeast Asia, including Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam
Where the Asian arowana has been recorded
Records: GBIF.org (CC0 and CC BY 4.0 records, retrieved 2026-11-07). Map: Natural EarthSee the records on GBIF
Watch wild animals from a distance. Do not touch or feed them, and take care of the places where they live.
Names around the world
- 日本語
- アジアアロワナ
- 简体中文
- 亚洲龙鱼
- 繁體中文
- 亞洲龍魚
- 한국어
- 아시아아로와나
- Español
- Arowana o arawana asiática
- Français
- Scléropage D'Asie
- Deutsch
- Asiatischer Gabelbart
- Português (Brasil)
- Aruanã-dourado
- Italiano
- Arowana asiatico
- العربية
- أروانا آسيوية
- Bahasa Indonesia
- Siluk kalimantan
- Tiếng Việt
- Cá rồng châu Á
- Русский
- Малайзийский склеропагес
- Türkçe
- Aravona
- ไทย
- ปลาตะพัด
Names come from Wikidata and iNaturalist records. Where a language has no recorded name, we use the scientific name.
Sources and how we check
- 上野動物園 — アジアアロワナChecked: 2026-11-03
We check each fact against its source. The illustrations simplify how the real animal looks.
The classification (class, order, family, genus) follows Wikidata records, checked against GBIF. Classifications can change as research goes on.
The basic data are the values given in each source. They vary with how the animal is measured, whether it is male or female, and whether it lives in the wild or in captivity.
This page was translated from the original Japanese with the help of AI.
Report a mistakeEXHIBIT INFORMATION
Places that keep or show the Asian arowana
Zoos, aquariums and other places whose official websites say they keep or show this animal.
Displays can change with the animals’ health and the seasons. Check each facility’s official website before you go.
RELATIVES
Others in Osteoglossidae
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