Help me decide?

[grokefish]

Hello my good chums.
I have cleared my tank out completely of fish and am looking for suggestions.
I have been thinking of a tank with just one specimen fish in it, something interesting and catfishy but alternative 'oddballs' could be considered.
Feel free to post suggestions.
The tank is 4ft long 2ft wide and 18" water depth.
The filter is a fluval FX5 with the outlet coming out a drilled socket creating much current (but poxy compared to a real flowing river)
So suggest away please! No doradids I am bored of them for a bit.
Thanks
Matt



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

[magdalo]

How about some L. Heterodons? Rare and interesting. Good luck.

[Viktor Jarikov]

Good to see you are not "cold out".

How about 20 Pimelodus pictus, peruvian variety (better spots)? If you like cute and moving...

[racoll]

Pufferfish and snakeheads are always great character fish.

[Syno12]

Try some Rineloricaria spp., love current and rocks, or if you can get your hands on one of the rarest loricariidae genus, Ixinandria steinbachi, so rare you almost always have to go to northern Argentina to get some as almost all sold in trade are illegally caught. Great tank!!!

[Richard B]

Lots to suggest here but if you are after a single cat, for starters...

Cephalosilurus nigricaudus

Aguarunichthys tocantinsensis

Goeldiella eques

Bagroides melapterus

or have a go at breeding

Planiloricaria cryptodon

or

Platystacus cotylephorus

or a group of

Eremophilus mutisii

or

Exallodontus aguanai

There are also, on occasion, interesting silurids & plotosids available if they take your fancy.

[DBam]

A single black ghost knife with a few crenicichla regani and a group of L128 (or any larger, more voracious pleco you enjoy). Could always add schools of any tetra or hatchetfish. I love the dimensions of your tank!

[grokefish]

Hmmmmm.... all interesting ideas.
I had thought of a snakehead or a puffer as it goes Racoll.

I have also thought of

Batrochoglanis raninus

but trying to find one would probs be hard judgeing by my previous efforts.
All efforts to find

Parancistrus nudiventris

have evaded me

where does one find rare loricarids these days?

[Richard B]

I saw a whole tank of b.raninus this year. Can't remember if I posted where it was

As for rare loricarids, Pier aquatics or speak to some of our German colleagues to find where they get some of their fish

[DutchFry]

Devoting a tank to a single fish (or species) is something i have been thinking about for a while as well, and when i came across this vid i knew i want one at some point in my life! maybe you like it as well:

just make sure you have a proper lid on the tank if you choose to go for a fire eel!

[Shovelnose]

snakeheads are always great character fish.

I second that!!!! A group of Channa bleheri will fit right in.

[grokefish]

30" fire eel is too big enough I think!

[grokefish]

Maybe a tigrinum or a juruense......

[Viktor Jarikov]

Devoting a tank to a single fish (or species) is something i have been thinking about for a while as well, and when i came across this vid i knew i want one at some point in my life!

I saw that a while ago and I totally loved it too!

Maybe a tigrinum or a juruense......

You perhaps meant Brachyplatystoma tigrinus (2' max), not Pseudoplatystoma tigrinum (4' max)?

I thought you were looking to house that fish for life in that tank, no? If yes and you are pondering medium Pims then I'd mention Aguarunichthys, of course.

[racoll]

Saw a dozen or so very nice looking

Lamontichthys llanero

in the LFS today. They'd be a great little breeding project in that tank ...

[grokefish]

cool, where did you see them rupert old bean?

viktor I meant

Brachyplatystoma tigrinum

I would love one of these but its just a pipe dream:

Pseudopimelodus mangurus

when I was a kid and I had microglanis I always thought it would be cool if they grew bigger.

Now I am thinking:

Pseudopimelodus bufonius

anyone bought anything from rareaquatics.co.uk by courier?

[Viktor Jarikov]

viktor I meant

Brachyplatystoma tigrinum

Right. My bad. I got Merodontotus tigrinus tangled up with Brachyplatystoma tigrinum - old and new name for the same fish.

[grokefish]

So fate dealt it's hand for me today, simplifying things considerably.



and they were labelled up as chaetostoma so they were a Bargain Bonus buy!

[racoll]

cool, where did you see them rupert old bean?

World of Water in Bicester.

and they were labelled up as chaetostoma

What are they?

[grokefish]

See if you can guess?



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

[racoll]

Parancistrus aurantiacus

would be my first guess ...

[Richard B]

Amazing you've finally got them grokefish! I'm really pleased for you

[grokefish]

Indeed and thank you.

You absolutely never see these round here. I have only ever seen single specimens and only then every few years, I bought them all.
Had a wacky dream last night about parancistrus, (sad I know) got up at 3am couldn't sleep, went downstairs and watched David Attenboruough DVDs to send me to sleep, didn't work.
When everyone else got up I said "c'mon lets go to the fish shop"
I said to the OH, 'I am not coming out with anything unless it's parancistrus'
Didn't hold much hope, the local maidenhead has gone garbage the last couple of years since the manager moved to the Morganstown one. Anyway walked down the tanks, garbage, rubbish, dead fish, garbage, dead fish, Psuedoplatystoma?..........
What is this I see, chaetostoma, oh no I don't think so............A bloody tankfull of Parancistrus!!!!

A tank full mind!

[racoll]

Well done. Bet you couldn't believe your luck!

A bloody tankfull of Parancistrus ... A tank full mind!

How come you only bought three then? ;)

[Martin S]

And you best get back and get some more before someone who works there figures out they didn't charge enough! Great you've finally found some, funny how you find stuff when you least expect it!
Martin

[grokefish]

Well done. Bet you couldn't believe your luck!

A bloody tankfull of Parancistrus ... A tank full mind!

How come you only bought three then? ;)

Dude I was tempted believe me, some of them looked not so well and I think three of these in this size tank as adults is enough, they can be right noidy gits when they all want the same cave!
Now I have to start making the tank more to their liking.
Anyone been to locations where this species is found?

[DutchFry]

I am happy for you! nice find

it would be extremely cool if they would turn golden/yellow in your tank!! let us know if they do, please

[racoll]

Parancistrus aurantiacus would be my first guess ...

Been thinking about this, and I don't think they are

Parancistrus aurantiacus

. I checked the Wels Atlas II, and your fish are a perfect match to their picture of

Parancistrus sp(lda046)

. The colour and pattern are consistent, especially the large spots on the caudal fin.

Did you manage to get a sexed group?

[grokefish]

Good spotting dude!

No idea if it is a sexed group, I wouldn't be able to tell at this size and the dude in the shop could hardly identify them as fish not chips.