I am not much of a fish eater, but the pacu was really quite tasty. White meat with a buttery flavor. I read some where that they were difficult to market as filets because of a y shaped bone along the back that was difficult to remove. I over pick at my fish anyway so didn't notice any extra. Couple of interesting things, I can feed them any where in the pond other than the normal feeding site and they will show up, it may take a couple of extra minutes for them to arrive, but they show up. None of my other fish do this, even when all of the pacu are eating. I have never caught more than two at any one time. If I catch any other fish first they will usually not bite. I am not sure if they communicate, but it looks that way. If I were tank raising them I might condition them to eat vegetation before introducing them into the pond. Probably won't make a difference, they chew on every thing, but it might be fun to observe their eating habits. It's fun to watch them attack a half head of cabbage. They surface all day,allover the pond, some times three or four at a time. The frequency increases as it gets closer to feeding time. They are real spooky and several times during the feeding they will panic and fish will fly in all directions, some times traveling 10 to 12 feet in the air. Fun to watch, their colors flash brighter when fighting or flighting, though mine are mostly silver, some have a lot of red, others orange, some have a horizonal black band on their tail, maybe different sexes I don't know. I mentioned before that I gave one to another pond owner and it turned black within a week in his pond. It is a small pond with a fountain and filtration. The fact that they don't breed in a pond and die off in cold water should simplify their management.
