new to fishkeeping, wondering what catfish I can get

A members area where you can introduce yourself, discuss anything outwith catfish and generally get to know each other.
Post Reply
Gingerbread_Gem
Posts: 5
Joined: 16 Jun 2011, 15:05
Location 2: UK, Midlands

new to fishkeeping, wondering what catfish I can get

Post by Gingerbread_Gem »

Hi! I'm Gem :)

Since this is my first post i'll explain how I got here...

I've only been keeping tropical fish for about 6 months and I've just bought my second tank. my first tank is a community tank with dwarf gouramis, synodontis nigriventris, lemon tetra, ghost shrimp and guppies. I bought the tank because I fell for the upside down catfish and since then i think catfish have been slowly becoming my favourite type of fish.
I've been on here looking through the catalogue - I cant beleive how many types of catfish there are. I've been looking for one which is suitable for my new tank but while I've found a couple I like I'm not sure there wouldn't be something better, which is why I decided to join the forums. So hello!

my new tank is only about 60 litres, and has been bought to house just a betta and a nice catfish. Preferably just the one - so not cories. Also preferably something a little larger than that. It needs to not require much water flow as the betta requires slow moving water. Currently the substrate is gravel, and I wouldn't want to change all of the substrate to sand but if a species requires sand I would (if even possible) section off an area for sand. decor is still to come depending on what the fish needs. temp will be up somewhere between 26 and 28 degrees c. PH is about 7.5. I've been looking at Banjo catfish(Bunocephalus coracoideus), as they grow quite big but apparently are fairly inactive and don't need a large tank. I've also been looking at red lizard catfish (Rineloricaria sp.) but have heard more mixed information about these. Would either be suitable for my tank? I'm a fan of twig catfish and whiptail catfish but I'm getting really confused by all the different kinds of whiptail - some seem completely unsuited to my tank but I really wouldn't know what I was buying. I'd also really like one which will come out and see me during the day, I rarely see my synos so a catfish thats not nocturnal or not skittish about open space would be nice.

So there are my tank specs plus some catfish that I like the shapes of and stuff like that... does anybody have any suggestions? hopefully its not just an impossible challenge :P I can get a little pedantic (and long winded) about my fishes lol. Thanks for any help!

Gem
User avatar
MatsP
Posts: 21038
Joined: 06 Oct 2004, 13:58
My articles: 4
My images: 28
My cats species list: 117 (i:33, k:0)
My aquaria list: 10 (i:8)
My BLogs: 4 (i:0, p:164)
Spotted: 187
Location 1: North of Cambridge
Location 2: England.

Re: new to fishkeeping, wondering what catfish I can get

Post by MatsP »

There aren't that many smallish catfish that prefer still water and doesn't prefer flowing water and don't hide much and are not corys [what's wrong with corys - a small group of corys would be great in that tank].

Banjo would work - as long as you either have sand or plenty of leaf-litter for it to hide in. Don't expect to see much of it tho'.

--
Mats
Gingerbread_Gem
Posts: 5
Joined: 16 Jun 2011, 15:05
Location 2: UK, Midlands

Re: new to fishkeeping, wondering what catfish I can get

Post by Gingerbread_Gem »

hiya thanks for the reply :)

nothing wrong with corys, I just felt like having one larger one rather than lots of small ones. I suppose theres a lot of different corys though so maybe one would catch my eye.

the tank has no light and doesn't get much light from anywhere else, would this make a banjo catfish more likely to be seen? or are they just nocturnal/constantly hiding anyway?
User avatar
MatsP
Posts: 21038
Joined: 06 Oct 2004, 13:58
My articles: 4
My images: 28
My cats species list: 117 (i:33, k:0)
My aquaria list: 10 (i:8)
My BLogs: 4 (i:0, p:164)
Spotted: 187
Location 1: North of Cambridge
Location 2: England.

Re: new to fishkeeping, wondering what catfish I can get

Post by MatsP »

I had three banjo fish in a tank, and aside from using a flashlight/torch to see in the tank when in complete darkness, I would say I saw the Banjos maybe once a month after feeding. Of course, they are not easy to see even when they are out, since they "play dead" most of the time.

Having very low lighting will certainly help, but I wouldn't promise you that you will see much of them even then.

Whiptails or twigs may be a better choice - but ideally you'd have a slightly bigger tank for them. They may not be very active, but nearly all (and certainly the common ones) grow to about 8-10"/20-25cm.

does stay fairly small - just over 4"/10cm.

--
Mats
Gingerbread_Gem
Posts: 5
Joined: 16 Jun 2011, 15:05
Location 2: UK, Midlands

Re: new to fishkeeping, wondering what catfish I can get

Post by Gingerbread_Gem »

I've done some more research and I've decided to go with the red lizard catfish

I have a couple of questions about their care - hoping someone on here might have experience with them.

I've read in one place that they prefer a moderate to high current but I've not read this anywhere else... could someone help me with this? the filter says it has an output of 53 gallons/hour but because of the betta needing to have a very low current i'm thinking of blocking up the output tube thingy (if thats the technical term) with sponge. will this low current be a problem for the catfish?

it'll almost definatly need more oxygen in the water than there will be so I'd be getting an airstone. i've never used those before though, so can someone tell me whether one of these is all I need to keep oxygen levels comfortable for the catfish?

Can these live alone? a couple of websites say they prefer to live in groups. I dont really want more than one or two.

Last question - I've read a couple of places that these can grow up to 7 inches, somewhere even said up to 10. most places say 4 inches but i'd like to hear it from a 'real person' :)

Thank you catfish people!
Gingerbread_Gem
Posts: 5
Joined: 16 Jun 2011, 15:05
Location 2: UK, Midlands

Re: new to fishkeeping, wondering what catfish I can get

Post by Gingerbread_Gem »

Oh, and can they have salt in the tank? I dont put salt in my other tank because I read the syno's have no scales and that salt would burn them - is it the same for the red lizards?

Thanks!
User avatar
MatsP
Posts: 21038
Joined: 06 Oct 2004, 13:58
My articles: 4
My images: 28
My cats species list: 117 (i:33, k:0)
My aquaria list: 10 (i:8)
My BLogs: 4 (i:0, p:164)
Spotted: 187
Location 1: North of Cambridge
Location 2: England.

Re: new to fishkeeping, wondering what catfish I can get

Post by MatsP »

I would not recommend adding salt to ANY freshwater tank. If you try to keep mollies (particularly black/lyre-fin ones and colour varieties of these) in soft water, then perhaps yes, but other than that, salt should not be added to a freshwater tank.

I suspect "midlands" isn't soft water, so I expect you don't actually need salt in your tank.

I'm sure that the red lizard whiptail can tolerate some salt over some time - but just like humans don't die immediately from eating a bit more salt than daily recommended intake, the long term effects on fish when they are kept in saline water is much harder to to determine. They don't live in saline water in nature...

--
Mats
User avatar
Richard B
Posts: 6952
Joined: 11 Aug 2006, 13:19
I've donated: $20.00!
My articles: 9
My images: 11
My cats species list: 37 (i:0, k:0)
My aquaria list: 4 (i:0)
My BLogs: 2 (i:0, p:29)
Spotted: 10
Location 1: on the sofa, or maybe at work?
Location 2: Warwickshire: UK
Interests: Tanganyika Catfish, African catfish, Non-loricariid sucker-catfish.
Running, drinking, eating, sci-fi, stapelids

Re: new to fishkeeping, wondering what catfish I can get

Post by Richard B »

Salt will not 'burn' the syno. a healthy syno can tolerate salt fairly well in small doses if you are using it to treat things but as Mats says -it is not something they are used to encountering. They are scaleless and as such react badly to some aquatic medicines, really badly to some in fact but they are generally a really tough fish and it takes a lot for them to start to suffer (some species of syno are a little more "delicate" or react to poor water much more than others - like Lucipinnis don't like nitrate build up more than other synos).

In answer to your other question - i've not seen Red Lizard cats L010a bigger than 4"SL - i dont think they can get too much bigger than that. They are however relatively easy to find here in the UK and can be bred without too much difficuly. They could be kept as a lone individual or in a pair, trio etc.

P.S. - welcome to the site fellow Midlander! :-BD
Lou: Every young man's fantasy is to have a three-way.
Jacob: Yeah not with another fu**!ng guy!
Lou: It's still a three-way!

Hot Tub Time Machine: 2010
Gingerbread_Gem
Posts: 5
Joined: 16 Jun 2011, 15:05
Location 2: UK, Midlands

Re: new to fishkeeping, wondering what catfish I can get

Post by Gingerbread_Gem »

it's been a little while since I visited but hello again!

Just wanted to say thanks for all the advice, I've decided I will get the red lizards, asked my LFS about them a few days ago, they said they were easy for them to get hold of so they're gonna order me some in. tips on selecting healthy fish/what sort of price range to expect would be welcome :)


I may even (well...probably will) end up with the other catfish we've been talking about (banjo, whiptail, twig...) in the end because I'm now playing with the idea of upgrading my main tank :d

and lol. fellow midlander :-p hi :d and my fish say hi to your fish (because I'm a bit sad like that)
Post Reply

Return to “Speak Easy”