Synodontis macrops • Mochokidae • Cat-eLog

Cat-eLog Data Sheet
Scientific Name	**Synodontis macrops** Greenwood, 1963
Common Name(s)	Apple Syno
Type Locality	A trib. stream of Aswa R., Teso dist., Uganda.
Pronunciation	sin oh don tiss - mah crops
Etymology	Synodontis: From the Greek syn, meaning together, and odontos, meaning tooth; in reference to the closely-spaced lower jaw teeth. macrops = large eyes
Species Information
Size	200mm (7.9") SL. Find near, nearer or same sized spp.
Identification	All species in the genus Synodontis have a hardened head cap that has attached a process (humeral process) which is situated behind the gill opening and pointed towards the posterior. The dorsal fin and pectoral fins have a hardened first ray which is serrated. Caudal fin is always forked. There is one pair of maxillary barbels, sometimes having membranes and occasionally branched. The two pairs of mandibular barbels are often branched and can have nodes attached. The cone-shaped teeth in the upper jaw are short. S-shaped and movable in the lower jaw. These fish produce audible sounds when disturbed rubbing the base of the pectoral spine against the pectoral girdle. Most easily distinguished by its distinct yellow colour. Spotted pattern especially marked in juveniles, but tends to fade with age.
Sexing	First lay the fish in your hand with its head toward your palm and the tail toward your fingers. Hold the dorsal spine between your middle and ring finger so the fish is belly up and you won't get stuck (Which by the way, hurts like crazy!). The genital pore is in a small furrow of tissue (in healthy fish) and will be obstructed by the pelvic fins. Pull down on the tail gently to arch the fishes spine and the pelvic fins will stand and the furrow open to display the genital pore and the anus of the fish. The male has a somewhat ridged genital papillae on which the spermatoduct is on the back side, facing the tail fin. A gravid female will also show an extended papillae but the oviduct is on the ventral side of the papillae (And may also show a little redness if really gravid). A thin or emaciated female will have just two pink pores, the oviduct and the anus.
Habitat Information
Distribution	Upper Nile. Distribution largely overlaps that of S. schall. African Waters, Nile, Upper Nile (click on these areas to find other species found there) (Click the map-icon to show/hide map of species distribution)
pH	6.5 - 8.5
Temperature	20.0-26.0°C or 68-78.8°F (Show others within this range)
Other Parameters	pH is best kept at a slightly alkaline level around 7.5, with kH and GH of above 3-4. At lower levels, fin membranes start to deteriorate. Fish seems to do fine at pH and hardness typical of Lake Malawi conditions.
Husbandry Information
Feeding	A hungry, fast growing fish that will eat practically anything but is more carnivorous than most Synodontis species.
Furniture	Caves, driftwood, plants like Vallisneria.
Compatibility	Similar to S. schall. Like S. schall, S. macrops grows quite large and can be an aggressive, boisterous fish. Small fish up to 2 cm may be at risk. Keep with other similarly sized fish. Can be kept in a Rift Lake cichlid tank.
Breeding	Unreported.
Further Information
References	Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond.v. 140 (pt 1) - pp66
Registered Keepers	(1) Birger. Click on a username above to see all that persons registered catfish species. You can also view all "my cats" data for this species.
Breeding Reports	None.
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Last Update	2012 Aug 10 04:01 (species record created: 2003 Nov 15 00:00)

Cat-eLog Data Sheet

Scientific Name

Synodontis macrops Greenwood, 1963

Common Name(s)

Apple Syno

Type Locality

A trib. stream of Aswa R., Teso dist., Uganda.

Pronunciation

sin oh don tiss - mah crops

Etymology

Synodontis: From the Greek syn, meaning together, and odontos, meaning tooth; in reference to the closely-spaced lower jaw teeth. macrops = large eyes

Species Information

Size

200mm (7.9") SL. Find near, nearer or same sized spp.

Identification

All species in the genus Synodontis have a hardened head cap that has attached a process (humeral process) which is situated behind the gill opening and pointed towards the posterior. The dorsal fin and pectoral fins have a hardened first ray which is serrated. Caudal fin is always forked. There is one pair of maxillary barbels, sometimes having membranes and occasionally branched. The two pairs of mandibular barbels are often branched and can have nodes attached. The cone-shaped teeth in the upper jaw are short. S-shaped and movable in the lower jaw. These fish produce audible sounds when disturbed rubbing the base of the pectoral spine against the pectoral girdle.

Most easily distinguished by its distinct yellow colour. Spotted pattern especially marked in juveniles, but tends to fade with age.

Sexing

First lay the fish in your hand with its head toward your palm and the tail toward your fingers. Hold the dorsal spine between your middle and ring finger so the fish is belly up and you won't get stuck (Which by the way, hurts like crazy!). The genital pore is in a small furrow of tissue (in healthy fish) and will be obstructed by the pelvic fins. Pull down on the tail gently to arch the fishes spine and the pelvic fins will stand and the furrow open to display the genital pore and the anus of the fish. The male has a somewhat ridged genital papillae on which the spermatoduct is on the back side, facing the tail fin. A gravid female will also show an extended papillae but the oviduct is on the ventral side of the papillae (And may also show a little redness if really gravid). A thin or emaciated female will have just two pink pores, the oviduct and the anus.

Habitat Information

Distribution

Upper Nile. Distribution largely overlaps that of S. schall.
African Waters, Nile, Upper Nile (click on these areas to find other species found there)

(Click the map-icon to show/hide map of species distribution)

6.5 - 8.5

Temperature

20.0-26.0°C or 68-78.8°F (Show others within this range)

Other Parameters

pH is best kept at a slightly alkaline level around 7.5, with kH and GH of above 3-4. At lower levels, fin membranes start to deteriorate. Fish seems to do fine at pH and hardness typical of Lake Malawi conditions.

Husbandry Information

Feeding

A hungry, fast growing fish that will eat practically anything but is more carnivorous than most Synodontis species.

Furniture

Caves, driftwood, plants like Vallisneria.

Compatibility

Similar to S. schall. Like S. schall, S. macrops grows quite large and can be an aggressive, boisterous fish. Small fish up to 2 cm may be at risk. Keep with other similarly sized fish. Can be kept in a Rift Lake cichlid tank.

Breeding

Unreported.

Further Information

References

Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond.v. 140 (pt 1) - pp66

Registered Keepers

(1) Birger.

Click on a username above to see all that persons registered catfish species. You can also view all "my cats" data for this species.

Breeding Reports

None.