Ausyfish produce the Saratoga from the Fitzroy/Dawson River System. The other form of Saratoga found in Australia are only found in the far northern regions. The Fitzroy/Dawson system is in central Queensland. This is the only place in the world this particularly rare form or Saratoga occur naturally. They have been successfully stocked extensively in South East Queensland.

^{On the right a very rare picture shows the "naked ovary" of a female Saratoga with over 100 large eggs.  These fish were originally only found in the Fitzroy/Dawson river system of central Queensland. They have now been stocked in a number of systems and lakes in Queensland. They are also a popular aquarium species, sometimes known as the Australian "Dragon fish". They are mouth brooders, with up to 100 babies being raised by a female of this size.}  

Below: Back at the fish house baby Saratoga are keep at just the right density to suppress aggression.

Saratoga babies are available seasonally. It is possible to get Saratoga babies in December, but they are only about 5cm and are easily stressed. We prefer not to offer our Saratoga until January when they are about 8cm and much hardier. They grow very quickly in our ponds and soon reach an ideal size for a hardy interesting pet. Below are Saratoga babies at the typical size for January. Right is the size for Saratoga babies in mid to late February.

The pictures below are of the parents.

Saratoga of any size are difficult to keep together, or with other fish. We strongly recommend that Saratoga be kept in a tank of their own. It is possible to keep Saratoga with other fish under the right circumstances, however they may still turn against their tank mates without warning. We hold our Saratoga in large tanks in very shallow water. Just enough for them to swim but not jump. (YES, they will jump out of your tank if it is not covered.) We add a large amount of aquatic weed giving individuals plenty of hiding places. When this is not done we have been able to hold Saratoga for some time, then without warning one individual will be picked on until it is eventually killed. The bullying will continue until only one fish is left alive. Using very shallow water with plenty of weed has solved this problem for us.

Large individual fish can be difficult to transport. They have protruding teeth which can puncture the bag during shipping. Another problem with the transporting of large Saratoga  is when they arrive up-side-down. They have real problems righting themselves. Once placed in an aquarium most other fish will simply turn right side up, but Saratoga seem to become disorientated, and can't get back the right way. It is as if their balance mechanism has been re-set to up-side-down. Extreme steps need to be taken immediately to save the fish. If left unassisted they will usually die after a number of hours, even days. The fish need to be held in the upright position for as long as it take to correct the problem. This can take quite a few minutes, even hours.

Below: Large Saratoga are easy to move around our farm in our large tank on the back of our truck.

Below: Another inhabitant of the Dawson River, a large Salmon Catfish.