Longhorn Cowfish – Lactoria cornuta

 Minimum Tank Size – The minimum tank size for a Longhorn cowfish would be a 135 gallon tank. They will most likely be more comfortable in a larger aquarium. Young cowfish can be kept in smaller aquariums for short periods of time. But eventually you will need to meet the requirements of the minimum tank size stated above.

Habitat Distribution - Indo-Pacific region

Diet – A recommended diet for a Longhorn cowfish would be frozen foods such as,

-        Brine Shrimp (feed sparingly)

-        Mysis Shrimp

-        Clam or Mussel on the half shell

-        Blood Worms

Live foods such as,

-        Shrimp (some shrimp need to be gut loaded as they are mostly water)

Other Foods such as,

-        Squid

-        Octopus

-        Cuttlefish

-        Small Fish

Remember to keep you cowfish’s diet varied. Longhorn cowfish will also spend their time blowing jets of water into the sand in search of prey.

Max Size – At the most your Longhorn cowfish will achieve a size of 18 inches. This is the size they grow to in the wild. It is possible to have one that will not get as big.

Tank Environment – Longhorn cowfish can be found in coral reefs or swimming around areas of sea grass. They tend to be a solitary species as they mature so make sure to only have one Longhorn cowfish per tank. Be sure to include some live rock in the tank also as it helps preserve water quality and your cowfish will enjoy searching for food on it. Make sure not to have boisterous or aggressive tank mates that could irritate your cowfish and possibly make him release poisonous ostracitoxin. Be sure to make your cowfish’s tank entertaining so he will not get bored. A sign of boredom may be swimming up and down the sides of the aquarium.

Other – Your Longhorn cowfish may or may not go after corals or other inverts, if you value your precious inverts you may want to test them out with an inexpensive coral or other invert.

The Cowfish Forum