Ossa / Trumpet Knifefish – Rhamphichthys rostratus

Description

 

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One might ask, what is this unique and beautifully patterned dolphin nosed looking fish swimming at me? And I would answer, that my friend, is a trumpet knifefish, also known as an ossa knifefish. Typically exported from Colombia, but it actually has a wide distribution across South America. Obviously named for its unusually shaped trumpet-like snout, which it uses to search and root out worms, small crustaceans, and insect larvae.

In the aquarium, they will typically accept live black and tubaflex worms, and frozen foods such as bloodworms, brine shrimp, mysis, and more. But keep in mind, while they are peaceful, they are definitely a shy fish as well, and because of this, they can easily be outcompeted for food. Like most knife fish, these trumpet knives have the ability to generate and receive electrical discharges which they use for navigation, communication, and locating their prey.

And it’s because of this, they don’t always do well with other types of electrical discharging fish, such as other knifefish, or moray mids, such as elephythus. However, they do get along with each other, and can commonly be found laying on top of one another in large groups on the ground, among leaf litter, or in soft sand beds. So you can definitely keep them in groups in an adequately sized aquarium. This fish can live over 15 years, and some fish in this species can reach sizes of over 40 inches in the wild, though I’ve never seen them over 28 inches in an aquarium.