Indian / Banded Spiny Eel

Indian / Banded Spiny Eel (Macrognathus aral / Macrognathus pancalus)
A fascinating, snake-like oddball fish with bold banding and tons of personality

The Indian or Banded Spiny Eel is a beautiful, slender freshwater eel known for its alternating light and dark bands and curious, intelligent behavior. Despite the name, these eels are generally peaceful and spend much of their time exploring the substrate, hiding in plants, or peeking out from driftwood. They thrive in soft sand substrates where they can safely burrow and appreciate dim lighting and plenty of hiding spots. While hardy, they are escape artists — so a tight lid is essential.

Need to Know:

• Recommended For: Oddball, semi-aggressive, and peaceful community aquariums

• Minimum Tank Size: 150 litres

• Temperature Range: 24–28°C

• pH Range: 6.5–7.5

• Recommended School Size: Can be kept singly or in groups with space

• Compatibility: Peaceful to semi-aggressive; best with medium, calm fish (avoid small fish that may be eaten)

• Max Size: 20–25 cm

Shipping Disclaimer:

All fish are shipped on Monday or Tuesday mornings via an overnight courier (Sometimes same day, location dependant). We use NZ Couriers for all livestock shipping, we find they handle your fish with the best possible care.

Special Requests:

If you have any requests for gender/colour etc we will do our best to accomodate them. Please note we can not always accomodate every request due to high stock turnover and what is available at the time. We move all fish sold online into seperate holding tanks while they wait to be shipped.

Rural Shipping:

Good news! If you are a rural customer, we can still ship fish to you. Fish will be shipped to your nearest agent and they will call you when they arrive. Please ensure you provide your mobile number when ordering.