Arapaima

Arapaima gigas

One of the world's largest freshwater fish, an air-breathing Amazon giant that sucks in food like a vacuum.

Checking teacher reviews…

Teacher? Sign in to review this page →Report a mistake

About the Arapaima

Arapaima may be the largest freshwater fish in the world, growing up to 10 feet long and 440 pounds, though 7 to 8 feet and 200 pounds is more common. They live in slow, low-oxygen rivers of the Amazon basin in Brazil, Peru and Guyana. Because they can breathe air, they survive in shallow pools with little oxygen. They eat mostly fish, plus fruit, seeds, insects, birds and mammals at the surface.^[1]

Quick facts

Scientific name: Arapaima gigas^[1]
Size: Usually 7 to 8 feet; up to 10 feet long.^[1]
Weight: Usually about 200 pounds; up to 440.^[1]
Lifespan: Up to 20 years.^[1]
Diet: Mostly fish, plus fruit, seeds, insects, birds and mammals.^[1]
Habitat: Slow-moving, low-oxygen rivers of the Amazon floodplain.^[1]
Where it lives: Brazil, Peru and Guyana.^[1]
Babies: Thousands of eggs laid in sand nests; the male guards the young.^[1]
Conservation status: Data Deficient (IUCN Red List, assessed 1996).^[2]

Fun facts

Arapaima breathe air and must come up to the surface.^[1]
An arapaima can survive up to 24 hours out of water.^[1]
Fathers may carry their babies in their mouths to keep them safe.^[1]

Vocabulary

fish: A cold-blooded animal that lives in water, breathes with gills and usually has fins and scales.
freshwater: Water that is not salty, like most rivers and lakes.
fry: Baby fish.
floodplain: Flat land next to a river that floods when the river rises.
data deficient: A conservation label meaning scientists don't have enough information to judge the risk.

See it in person

Smithsonian's National ZooWashington, D.C. · AmazoniaSee this animal on the zoo's website ↗

These zoos had this animal when we gathered our information, but animals sometimes move. Check the zoo's website or contact the zoo before you visit.

Sources

[1] Smithsonian's National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute. “Arapaima.” https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/arapaima (accessed 2026-10-08)
[2] IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. “Arapaima gigas (Arapaima).” https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/1991/9110195 (accessed 2026-10-08)

Facts last checked 2026-10-08.

More Fish

Banded LeporinusLeporinus affinisA torpedo-shaped yellow fish with bold black bands from fast Amazon streams that eats plants and fruit.Black PacuColossoma macropomumA big, gentle, fruit-eating Amazon fish related to piranhas, also called the tambaqui.Electric EelElectrophorus electricusA long South American fish, more closely related to catfish than eels, that can make up to 800 volts of electricity.Flagtail CharacinSemaprochilodus theraponuraA silvery Amazon fish with boldly striped black-and-orange tail fins that migrates upriver to spawn.KoiCyprinus carpio (domesticated)Colorful pond fish bred in Japan from common carp, with over 100 varieties of reds, whites, blacks and golds.Mexican Blind CavefishAstyanax mexicanusA small pale fish with no working eyes that lives in dark Mexican caves and finds its way by feeling vibrations.MummichogFundulus heteroclitusA tough little killifish of Atlantic marshes that handles pollution and salt changes, and was the first fish in space.PumpkinseedLepomis gibbosusA colorful, pumpkin-seed-shaped North American sunfish whose fathers guard the nest.Red-bellied PiranhaPygocentrus nattereriAn Amazon fish with a red belly and sharp teeth that often nips fins from bigger fish and helps clean up rivers.Suckermouth CatfishAncistrus cirrhosus and Baryancistrus xanthellusA bony-plated South American catfish, also called a plecostomus or 'janitor fish,' that scrapes algae with its sucker mouth.Twig CatfishFarlowella speciesA long, thin South American catfish that looks like a stick and is one of the only fish known to eat wood.