What kind of Catfish do I have?

[ccgerbilclan]

Hey everyone,

My name's Devon (girl Devon, not guy) and I'm 16. I run an exotic animal rescue/sanctuary and a gerbillry in Edmonton, Alberta,Canada.

Recently, two red eyed tetras, 2 zebra danios, a blue platy, a sunburst platy and a catfish (I assume) were surrendered to me. They were being kept in a five gallon tank and had rotting fins. I fixed them up with some Melafix andI have them in a 10 gallon aquarium, with a filter suitable for a 20 gallon, a sand bottom, plastic plants (I plan to switch to live plants in the near future) drift wood, a cave, and some floating pothos plants and roots, that they like to nibble on. The tank has a canopy, but above the entire exotic area, there is a grow light, so there is a bit of algae covering the back and sides of the tank.

The old owners of the fish didn't know what kind any of them were, but as I had kept all but the catfish in the past, I was able to ID them. Despite googling "catfish" a number of times, I've been unable to ID him, and the nearby Petsmart was also unable to. I've taken some pictures of him in hopes that you may be able to help me...I'd like to learn more about him to make sure I am taking proper care of him. Right now he is just eating the flakes, brine shrimp, and bloodworms...with the occaisonal treat of mealworm Viscera (innards).

The picture quality isn't that great...I had to lighten them a bit in order for you to see his spotting:





Thanks a lot, in advance, for your help!

[shev]

Synodontis, dont know what kind. probably the common ones.


edit: Synodontis nigrita?

[Osiris]

wow must be hard for me to tell, i thought it was a pleco at first. Any way to get pics of it swimmign in tank? u know where's it more spread on fins and all.

[ccgerbilclan]

I'll try...it's really hard to get him to stay out in the open for a long period of time. He's usually in the whole in the driftwood, and you cant see his entire body while he's there.

[Osiris]

i would get a piece of gladware container, feed them, get him in glad container and hold against glass, if this is the case, some fish need someused to camera, but will eventually stay motionless for couple seconds to pose

[flynngriff]

I'm about 90% sure that's a Synodontis Eupterus... Little hard to tell out of water, though. The spots are a bit large, but there can be quite a bit of variation in pattern.

Synodontis Ocefeller's spots are usually larger, and that's the only other one I might think it is. The fins are right for a Syno. Eupterus, too.

[crazyt123]

i think he might be a faney pleco \

[shev]

maybe Synodontis eupterus?

I'm pretty sure its not a pleco.

[shev]

hey shev do you think you can help me?

doubt it, but i can try.

I'm about 90% sure that's a Synodontis Eupterus... Little hard to tell out of water, though. The spots are a bit large, but there can be quite a bit of variation in pattern.

Synodontis Ocefeller's spots are usually larger, and that's the only other one I might think it is. The fins are right for a Syno. Eupterus, too.

ah rats, beat me to it. sorry i read through and saw you already posted Synodontis Eupterus berfore me.

[shev]

well corydoras are fom the amazon and its tributaries, they congregate in shallow pools, when it rains it triggers them to spawn. If you know its full of eggs, and in your other post you said you could see them, then you can do a water change with slightly colder water, and int he morning they should spawn. I'm not sure if the female would spawn without a male in the tank, usually you breed corys with a 2:1 ratio of males to females.
david said ice cubes in the filter will kill the helpful bacteria, so maybe just some ice cubes in the tank floating around, will simulate rainfall.

i'm not sure how long they will hold the eggs, some fish if they dont spawn they will re-absorb the eggs for nutrients. i think.

[ccgerbilclan]

No, he's definitley not a pleco.

This is the best shot I could get of him in the tank:



So I put him in a little one gallon, and these are the two clearest shots. I just got a new camera, and am still trying to figure out how to use it.

[fishfreaks]

looked like a pleco to me 2!

[fishfreaks]

oops, i forgot to mention, welcome to fish forums!

[fishfreaks]

you might want to try www.planetcatfish.com

[Lexus]

are you guys nuts... its not a pleco.... its got whiskers and a body like a Synodontis. so its some type of Synodontis.

[fishfreaks]

Originally Posted by Lexus @ Thu Mar 10, 2005 11:49 pm

are you guys nuts... its not a pleco.... its got whiskers and a body like a Synodontis. so its some type of Synodontis.

ahh hello we said it LOOKS like a pleco just what we thought, we didnt say it IS a pleco

[flynngriff]

After seeing the new photos, it's definitely a Synodontis Eupterus.

Doesn't look anything like a pleco to me...

[ccgerbilclan]

Ah, yeah, thanks a lot everyone I've been looking at pictures and such of Synodontis Eupterus, and that's definitly what he is.

[Osiris]

lol yea looks alot like pleco but whiskers give it away sounds like the syno. type like everyone else said.

[Fishnut2]

Yes,
****It's definetely a Synodontis Eupterus...also known as a featherfin, due to it's long dorsal fin. Unlike most synos...this one is from the Niger river, and lives in soft acidic water. Mine were 7-8", but I believe they can get up to 10". They are peaceful fish. They are egg scatterers, and can have 2,000-3,000 eggs at a time. Although I had 8 of them, I was never to spawn them. Great fish! I really enjoyed mine. ****:P