Central American Catfish

Ladybugzcrunch · Post by **Ladybugzcrunch** » 17 Dec 2009, 19:55

Are there any Central American scavenger type catfish suitable for a 75g? Tank mates would include 1 servum, 1 jack dempsey, and 1 firemouth.

MatsP · Post by **MatsP** » 17 Dec 2009, 22:29

If you want something that can live in the tank with Central American cichlids and can be found in your LFS, then there is quite a few choices.

If you want something that comes from Central America, and also fulfills the above, then I would say it's much more difficult. Catfish from Central America is very rarely available in shops.

Now comes a bit of a sensitive point: Catfish are not scavengers by definition - or at least very few are. They need to be fed and looked after, just like any other tank inhabitants. If you want the tank to look cleaner, then you may want to consider a gravel vac rather than a catfish - they are a lot less expensive/difficult to take care of...

As to suggestions, assuming that you do not agree with the above statement, I'd say common Ancistrus, , or a common pleco - this will outgrow the size of your tank eventually, but most shops will take them back at that point.

--
Mats

Ladybugzcrunch · Post by **Ladybugzcrunch** » 18 Dec 2009, 21:13

Thanks for the reply. I was looking for something that would collect missed food off the bottom, I guess I worded that wrong. Basically something that likes to eat off the bottom! What about South American catfish that can tolerate large tankmates?

Bas Pels · Post by **Bas Pels** » 19 Dec 2009, 09:28

For precisely that purpose I got Platydoras (now) armetulus in 1988. They are still thriving, and have always accompanied large cichlids

But, as you see, they will life quite long - which might be something to think over

sidguppy · Post by **sidguppy** » 19 Dec 2009, 10:00

recently there have been imports of Hypostomus robini

this particular species originates in Trinidad and can handle a lot more salt and hardiness than Amazonian pleco's.

it doesn't get big, but it does get larger (about twice as big) as common Ancistrus

maybe they're also available in the US.

this fish adds algae eating to scavenging and is a perfect fit for a 75G tank.

DJ-don · Post by **DJ-don** » 26 Dec 2009, 13:13

i would have to agree with matsp
the common bn is a very hardy fish that can be kept with cichlids while the common pleco is big and it of course can handle the jack dempsey etc.

Central American Catfish

Central American Catfish

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Re: Central American Catfish

Re: Central American Catfish

Re: Central American Catfish

Re: Central American Catfish