Can flowerhorns live with elephant nose fish?

Verdict

No. Flowerhorns and elephant nose fish should not share a tank. Flowerhorns are aggressive, and slow, long-finned elephant nose fish cannot escape them.

Flowerhorn80–89°F · pH 7–8

Elephant nose fish73–82°F · pH 6–7.5

What to watch

Deal breakerFlowerhorns are aggressive, and slow, long-finned elephant nose fish cannot escape them.

What works

Both are fine at 80–82°F.
pH 7–7.5 suits both.
They use different parts of the tank: flowerhorns the mid, elephant nose fish the bottom.

Water side by side

The green band is the temperature range both can live in.

The green band is the pH both tolerate.

Size to scale

Adult length in an aquarium. A fish can swallow anything that fits in its mouth, roughly a third to half its own length for predators.

Care at a glance

	Flowerhorn	Elephant nose fish
Temperature	80–89 °F	73–82 °F
pH	7–8	6–7.5
Adult size	12.0 in	9.0 in
Minimum tank	75 gal	55 gal
Temperament	Aggressive	Semi-aggressive
Swims at	Middle	Bottom
Group	One per tank	Alone or in pairs
Diet	Carnivore	Carnivore

Better tank mates for elephant nose fish

All elephant nose fish tank mates

Questions

Can flowerhorns live with elephant nose fish?

No. Flowerhorns and elephant nose fish should not share a tank. Flowerhorns are aggressive, and slow, long-finned elephant nose fish cannot escape them.

What temperature suits both flowerhorns and elephant nose fish?

80–82 °F. Flowerhorns need 80–89 °F, elephant nose fish need 73–82 °F.

What size tank do flowerhorns and elephant nose fish need together?

At least 75 gal, set by the flowerhorn. Add space for each extra fish.