A common freshwater food fish of south east asia and now also cultured in India and several other countries. The fish is also regarded as ornamental due to its swift shoaling movement and also because of body shape resembling to marine shark. They live in a tropical climate and prefer water of 6.5 - 7.5 pH, hardness of 2.0 to 29.0 dGH, and a temperature range of 22 to 26 °C. The fish grows to 130 cm (4 ft) in length and can weigh 44.0 kg. They are omnivorous and their diet consists of crustaceans, small fishes and plant matter. Iridescent sharks are schooling fish that prefer to be kept in groups of 5 or more. They have very poor eyesight. There is also an albino morph available. It is a migratory fish that moves upstream for spawning during flood season. The fish is bred in captive conditions through induced breeding