Did you know fantastic help is an anagram of Planet Catfish? This forum is for those of you with pictures of your catfish who are looking for help identifying them. There are many here to help and a firm ID is the first step towards keeping your catfish in the best conditions.
Hi, I purchased these two lovely fish today but can anyone confirm what type of Synodontis they may be?
Also a little about them, what they like to eat, how large they grow, my fish shop said they only grow about 10cm long and eat anything esp live food...
They are Synodontis cf. petricola''dwarf''. Your lfs was correct, they will definitely not be a problem for you to feed, and even thrive on a veggie based diet. They tend to do well in larger groups, so you should consider buying at least a couple more. I currently have 24 of them. They are an excellent find you'll be very happy with. They grow very slowly, and are unaggressive. If you have a group of them, they will play like puppies at times. Congratulations!
Barbie, I currently have a Juwel Rekard 120 (120ltrs) and have a Ecco 2231 for additional filtration.
I currently have 2 baby Clown Loaches (Botia Macracanthus), 1 Chaetostoma Cf. Thomsoni, 2 Panaque Maccus, 2 Puntius Denisonii, 1 Male Krib (Pelvicachromise Pulcher), 2 pairs of Cherry Barbs (Puntius Titteya), 1 pair of Albino Cherry Barbs, 7 Green Fire Tetras (Aphyocharax Rathbuni), 1 Glow Light Tetra (Hemigrammus Erythrozonus), 2 Siamese Algea Eaters (Crossocheilos Siamensis), 9 Rummy Nose Tetras, 5 Red Phantom Tetras (Megalamphodus Sweglesi), 1 female Ram (Microgeophagus ramirezi) (will get male soon) and now these two lovely babies...
Could i really put two more into my tank or would that result in over crowding??
Geeze, your tank is already being overcrowded.... you fishes from different biotop each with specific needs...
You really should be "cleaning" this a bit, get rid of the fish that will eventually out grow the tank
So with that existing population, I would never add any more fish...
Cheers
Yann
Well, i realise that I am getting close to or over the stocking limits, but i clean the tank every week with a 25-35% water change, its got the internal Juwel filter and the Ecco running side by side and an air curtian at the back... The water is as clean as anything, I recently had the water tested and it was 7.5/0/0/50 so i dont see any problems with it.
As for the fish being from different biotypes they are all happy so does this really matter?? the set up is a wonderful community aquarium!! Good to watch with all the different behaviours!
I know some of the fish will get bigger, but in a few years time when they do ill increase the size of the tank! This is my second tank, the first is a basic 60cm which i am still running with breeding Kribs....
Surely if they are all happy and i will increase the size in a few years i could add two more cats???
Paul I'm assuming that 50 in your readings was for the nitrate level. If so, I would increase the frequency of water changes, and reduce how much you feed. I do agree that your tank is already overstocked. What Yann was referring to when he said they had different needs is that the petricola come from water that is very alkaline, and the tetras come from water that is very soft and acidic. With that said, if they're already acclimated to your tap water and doing well, you've already won half the battle. Personally, I think you'd be happier if you added a second larger aquarium and split the fish load up somewhat. You're definitely pushing the stocking limits already, and your fish aren't full grown yet. The petricola would fare better with a larger group, but the fish that are already in the tank won't appreciate more of a fish load, IMO. The clown loaches also like to be kept in larger groups, and grow to over a foot. I realize you plan to upgrade at some point, but in stocking the fish, you need to allow for their ADULT size, in order to be able to feed them to their potential without polluting the water and stunting them in the process. Sorry its not good news
Well what i plan on doing is removing my Kribs from my 60cm tank and getting rid of them at my fish supplier when they are large enough, set up a rocky enviroment in my 60cm tank to put the Chaetostoma Cf. Thomsoni, 5 Red Phantom Tetras (Megalamphodus Sweglesi), along with the 1 mountian Minnow in there, 2 small Siamese Algea Eaters, 2 Peppered Corys and 4 Cardinal Tetras.... Move the single Large Clown loach into the large tank...
That would leave, 2 baby 1 Large Clown Loaches (Botia Macracanthus), 2 Panaque Maccus, 2 Puntius Denisonii, 1 Male Krib (Pelvicachromise Pulcher), 2 pairs of Cherry Barbs (Puntius Titteya), 1 pair of Albino Cherry Barbs, 7 Green Fire Tetras (Aphyocharax Rathbuni), 1 Glow Light Tetra (Hemigrammus Erythrozonus), 2 Siamese Algea Eaters (Crossocheilos Siamensis), 9 Rummy Nose Tetras, 1 female Ram (Microgeophagus ramirezi) (will get male soon) and the 2 Synodontis cf. petricola''dwarf''.
