 ollowing
on from my learned colleague and fellow catfish enthusiast
Daphne Layley’s article in Practical Fishkeeping
February 2005, I felt compelled to pen this article
in support of what Daf had written. Daf and I have shared
many conversations over our 20 plus year friendship
which dates back to our days spent serving as committee
members of the sadly now defunct Catfish Association
of Great Britain. We lost contact for a while but in
the last couple of years through our mutual interest
and passion for all things catfish, Daf has taken up
membership and involvement with the committee of the
now recently re-named Southern Counties Catfish Rescue
Society (SCCRS), and our conversations have continued
to flourish as a result. We have discussed at great
length the good and bad points involved with the keeping
of large catfish, bearing in mind that over the years
both Daf and I have kept a number of large catfish with
the needs of the fish being at the forefront of our
minds. As many of you are probably aware I am fortunate
enough to have a couple of tropical ponds within the
confines of my fish house. Over the many years that
I have been keeping fish I have been called upon to
rescue a few less fortunate catfish, which have been
able to live out their final days in the surroundings
of a 12’ x 30” x 48” pond (30”
being floor to top of the pond depth), an environment
which is far removed from their natural habitat, but
nonetheless better than that of a 48” aquarium.
Quite what the answer is to the
debate of responsible ownership of a fish that can easily
attain say 24”, and there are a number of species
more than capable of achieving this I do not know. I
have personally kept a number of large doradids the
biggest of which, an Oxydoras niger (Pseudodoras niger)
was 42” in length, I think that you must agree
a truly magnificent catfish, but one that most fishkeepers
would not be able to accommodate due to space and or
money. I must say that I have been very fortunate to
be able to have kept a number of large catfish live
to maturity and beyond. Many years ago some other friends
and I discussed the idea of people having a licence
to keep all big catfish and any other large fish for
that matter. Would it be a licence that the responsible
person would have to pay for and produce at a retailer
after their facilities had been inspected by another
responsible person? How would the facilities be policed
in order to ensure that the accommodation was still
suitable for the fish being kept some months or even
years down the line? How would you stop the fish being
given to someone else when for whatever reason its original
owner had to part company with it? The list of questions
and the debate is almost endless, the answer lies out
there somewhere; although how much longer can the hobby
and the trade who potentially are at the brunt of it
all continue to allow these tank busting fish to be
imported?
On a personal level I was very
fortunate to visit Peru with a number of friends from
the Catfish Study Group (UK) in July 2000. During my
two and a bit week stay I was not only to be able to
visit a number of different habitats in order to collect
fish and enjoy the company of some really good friends,
but I was able to experience first hand how our truly
delightful hobby impacts upon the local population of
people in Peru. I was able to meet a number of exporters
as well as some of the people involved with the collection
of our fish. I remember being told think of any species
of South American fish that could be found in the rivers
of Peru, and our contacts at the exporters could take
us there (if only we had the time!) or obtain the fish
in question for us. I know for a fact that if the organised
hobbyists along with the trade said “Right we
will not import any tank busting fish in the future”
that because of how things work abroad and the fact
that many livelihoods depend upon the tropical fish
industry, that we would still see some of the unwanted
species being exported, but possibly under the guise
of a new name or indeed new species in order to attract
orders. You would also see unwanted species being shipped
to make up the orders as substitutes for fish that were
not available at the time of ordering. In truth there
is a lot of education required both at hobbyist level
and at trade and exporter level. Quite how we achieve
this I do not know. I must stress that I am not here
trying to give the honest trade bad press, as I am merely
expressing my thoughts out load so as to speak. I have
a number of very good friends involved in both the retail
side of our hobby and also within the wholesale trade,
and I know how hard they work to get things right and
make their businesses work. There are unfortunately
in every walk of life those people who do not care or
give a damn so long as they either make a living selling
these fish, or those that keep the fish that they want
to in less than ideal conditions, to these people I
do not apologise for my thoughts and comments.
To further back up the information
given in Daphne’s article I thought that I would
put together some information on some of the larger
South American catfish, some of which I have had the
true pleasure of owning or perhaps looking after is
more appropriate! Obviously I would be one of the first
to obtain a licence in the future in order to keep some
of my favourite larger catfish, although I have to say
that personally these fish should remain in their natural
habitat! This fact is borne out after seeing the body
of a Red tailed catfish in the fish market in Iquitos,
Peru, which would have been in excess of 72” long
had its head still been attached to its body, I rest
my case! As promised please find the following information
on a few of my favourite tank busting catfish.
Oxydoras
niger (Valenciennes,
1821)
Common
Names: Mother of Snails Catfish, Ripsaw
Catfish & Black Doradid
Family:
Doradidae
Synonyms:
Doras niger, Doras humboldti, Pseudodoras niger,
Corydoras edentatus, Rhinodoras niger, Rhinodoras prionomus,
Rhinodoras teffeanus.
Water conditions:
pH 6.0 to 7.8 with up to 25 dGH hardness
Origin:
Amazon region, Peru, Brazil, Rio Purus, Rio Sao Francisco.
Temperature:
70 – 75 ºF
Size:
In excess of 36” (one of mine was 42” when
it died)
Sexing:
There are no known external sexual differences. There
are however some thoughts and suggestions that there
may be some differences in the shape of the bony plates
which extend from the head to the edge of the pectoral
fins. It has been suggested that the male has a more
pointed plate, whilst the female has a more rounded
plate. There is no scientific evidence that is available
to support this observation.
Feeding:
Readily accepts all manner of prepared foods. Stinking
Sinking Catfish Pellets are high on the list, alongside
floating pellets and sticks, as well as frozen bloodworm,
chopped mussel and earthworms.
Breeding:
As yet unknown.
Compatibility:
A real “Tank buster” if ever there was one.
Quite a character obviously suited to large accommodation
especially if keeping a number of fish together. Peaceful
towards other fish and members of its own kind.
Suggested Tankmates:
Other doradids such as Agamyxis pectinifrons
(Spotted Dora), Platydoras costatus (Striped
Dora), Oscars and any other fish of a compatible size.
Furniture:
Large pieces of bogwood and clean plastic drainpipe
of suitable diameter for them to hide under. Ideally
heater guards should be provided in order for the fish
not to burn themselves.
Comments:
The Mother of Snails Catfish is not a very commonly
seen doradid, although if you have kept one then it
is one that you will not forget in a hurry due to the
size that they can grow to These catfish are usually
offered for sale as juvenile specimens at around 4”
in length. To the unsuspecting aquarist they have probably
taken on more than they bargained for! This said if
you are a genuine enthusiast you would already know
a bit about these fish and their requirements prior
to their purchase. The colour of these fish is basically
dark brown to black, hence the name Black Doradid. If
you own one of these catfish you will know that feeding
time can be a rather wet experience, even with tight
fitting cover glasses, or in my case an open topped
pond! I have lost count of the number of soakings that
I have had over the years! I purchased my first Mother
of Snails Catfish about twenty years or so ago. The
first one that I owned was around 10” long SL
(25cm) and very rapidly outgrew a 72” x 18”x
18” aquarium. I eventually purchased a larger
aquarium 72” x 24” x 36” and went
on to keep this fish for a number of years. When the
fish died from a bacterial infection it was almost 28”
in length, and would have required an even larger aquarium
before too long. This was really the main reason behind
the construction of the Tropical Pond, although at present
I am not keeping any large catfish. The Mother of Snails
Catfish belongs to the Family Doradidae, all of which
originate from various locations throughout South America.
Occasionally amongst imports of Oxydoras niger
there are the odd slightly different specimens which
tend to have black coloured fins and a grey coloured
body, which are Pseudodoras holdeni. One of
the main characteristics of the doradids is the presence
of thorn like projections along the side of the body,
which are known as scutes. These scutes are very sharp,
so care should be taken when moving these fish. Sometimes
literature refers to the doradids as “Talking
Catfish” due to the fact that they can be heard
to make audible noises, almost as if they are speaking
to one another. There have been no records of these
catfish having been successfully bred under aquarium
conditions yet, which is probably just as well!
Pterodoras
granulosus
(Valenciennes, 1811)
Common
Name: Common Bacu
Family:
Doradidae
Synonyms:
Doras granulosus, Doras maculates, Doras murica,
Doras murices
Water:
pH 6.5 to 7.5. It is documented that keeping these fish
in water with a pH value above 7.5 can cause skin and
eye cloudiness.
Origin:
Widespread throughout most of the larger river systems
of South America.
Temperature: 20 to 24ºC or 68 to 75ºF although
slightly warmer temperatures are also tolerated.
Size:
Up to 920mm or 36”+
Sexing:
There are no reported external sexual differences. My
own thoughts are that females tend to be more heavily
built or robust than the males, which tend to be slender.
There may also be differences associated with the structure
of the head as with the Synodontis catfish, but further
observations need to be made.
Feeding: Omnivore feeding on a very mixed and varied
diet including catfish pellets, earthworms, whole prawns,
mussels, floating sticks/pellets and snails. In their
natural environment they would feed upon snails, aquatic
plants and fruits.
Breeding:
There are no known aquarium spawnings of this catfish.
This is most likely due to the size that these fish
can attain and hence the subsequent size of aquarium
in which to spawn them.
Compatibility:
Ideally suited to life with other large fish. These
catfish are not predatory but would mistakenly take
a smaller fish if hungry.
Suggested Tankmates: Other large catfish such as Oxydoras
niger, Leiarius pictus, Perrunichthys perruno, Megalodoras
urunoscopus, Oscars and larger characins.
Furniture:
Large pieces of bogwood are ideal. Large diameter pipe
can be used but it should be large enough for the catfish
to easily fit in without becoming stuck. I created two
shady areas within my tropical pond, by covering the
ends with decking, where these catfish preferred to
hide until feeding time.
Comments:
The Common Bacu or Pterodoras granulosus is
another of my favourite large catfish, which I have
had the pleasure to keep. At one time I had three of
these “Gentle Giants” housed within my 12’
x 3’ x 4’ tropical pond. They varied in
size from approximately 600mm (24”) to 900mm (36”).
My observations of these fish suggested at the time
that I had two females and one male, as two were rather
fat whilst the other was more slender. I did not see
any obvious signs of spawning activity, but these catfish
were quite happy to swim around the pond together. Whilst
fish collecting in Peru, we caught a couple of these
catfish on rod and line. These catfish were to spend
the next few days on board the accommodation for the
week, only to be returned to the point at which they
were caught originally. I decided that the three specimens
that I had at home at that time were enough and that
they would be better off swimming in the Amazon! In
South America the local inhabitants would catch and
eat these catfish, and as you can imagine a large specimen
would feed a whole family for a few days. Seeing these
catfish in their natural habitat was an amazing experience,
one that will live with me for a long time to come.
These catfish are found throughout the river systems
of South America. The colour pattern of these catfish
varies depending upon the location that they originate
from. These fish are usually a muddy-brown colour with
some darker spots over the body and fins. As they mature
the spotting tends to fade. Juvenile specimens tend
not to be as dark coloured as adult fish; in fact the
two specimens caught in Peru were light brown/tan in
colouration. The body of these catfish is best described
as being robust. The body is naked i.e. it is devoid
of scales, but the skin is very thick and tough. There
are between 23 and 28 shallow lateral plates known as
scutes along the length of the body. Their eyes are
very small in comparison to the rest of the fish and
they have three simple pairs of barbels. They have a
deeply forked caudal fin, which also helps to distinguish
this fish from other large doradids. In their natural
habitats these catfish are migratory, shoaling in large
numbers as they make their journeys upstream to spawn.
Megalodoras
urunoscopus (Eigenmann,
1925)
Common
Names: Mother of Snails Catfish, Giant
Raphael Catfish, and Giant Talking Catfish
Family:
Doradidae
Synonyms:
Megalodoras irwini
Water:
pH 6.5-7.5
Origin:
Peruvian and Brazilian Amazon, Maranon and Guianas
Temperature:
22-26ºC (72-79ºF)
Size:
61cm (24”)
Sexing:
There are no reported external sexual differences. My
own thoughts are that females tend to be more heavily
built or robust than the males, which tend to be slender.
There may also be differences associated with the structure
of the head as with the Synodontis catfish, but further
observations need to be made.
Feeding:
Their natural diet includes crustaceans such as aquatic
snails, which should be included as part of their captive
diet. In the aquarium they will feed on sinking catfish
pellets, floating food sticks, whole prawns, earthworms,
chopped and whole mussel. They also relish sinking tablet
foods.
Breeding:
There are no known documented aquarium spawnings to
date, although there may be some breeding-taking place
in Czechoslovakia using hormone inducement.
Compatibility:
Ideally suited to life with other large fish. These
catfish are not predatory but would mistakenly take
a smaller fish if hungry.
Suggested Tankmates:
Other large catfish such as Oxydoras niger, Leiarius
pictus, Perrunichthys perruno, Oscars and larger
characins.
Furniture:
Large pieces of bogwood are ideal. Large diameter pipe
can be used but it should be large enough for the catfish
to easily fit in without becoming stuck.
Comments:
This particular catfish is perhaps one of the more colourful
of the members of the family Doradidae, and is also
one of the larger species hence the common names. This
catfish is quite often described as being one of the
“Tank Busters” due to the fact that it can
grow up to 610mm or 24” standard length (from
the tip of the snout to the base of the caudal peduncle).
The local name given to this fascinating catfish is
“Key-way-mamma” which refers to the common
name of “mother of the snails”. The reason
for this common name being due to the fact that when
a specimen was examined the intestine was lined with
large aquatic snails along its length. Some of you reading
this information may be wondering why the scientific
name for this fish is not Megalodoras irwini,
the reason being that the name has been recently changed
and that the old name is now a synonym. It has an interesting
colour pattern with dark brown markings on a light brown
background. The body and head are covered in dark brown
to black blotches. The ventral (underneath) region of
this catfish has a mottled pattern, which is dark brown
in colour. The fins are mottled or spotted irregularly
with black coloured markings. The pectoral fins tend
to be lighter in colour towards the base and darker
towards the edge. The adipose fin is light brown at
the top edge of the keel and darker towards the base.
Megalodoras urunoscopus has 15-18 lateral scutes
that increase in size towards the caudal fin. There
are many caudal fulcra or bony plates. There are no
plates above or below the caudal peduncle. The adipose
is described as continuing forward in the form of a
hard keel. This catfish has two pairs of barbels, one
pair maxillary and one pair mandibular. Keeping Megalodoras
urunoscopus is relatively easy assuming that you
have the available tank space in which to keep them
at their optimum. Ideally they are best housed in an
aquarium which is at least 72” x 24” x 24”.
The preferred substrate is sand such as BD Aquarium
sand, although rounded gravel can also be used. They
tolerate a wide range of water conditions, but do like
to be able to hide away. Aquarium décor should
include bogwood and if you don’t mind the appearance
large diameter pieces of drainage pipe. This species
of catfish despite the size that it can attain is really
a “Gentle Giant” and can be kept with other
large or medium sized fish. They are not commonly available,
if you have the space for one or more as they do tend
to like their own company, they are well worth obtaining.
Merodontotus
tigrinus (Britski, 1981)
Common
name: Tigerstriped Catfish
Family:
Pimelodidae
Synonyms:
None
Water:
pH 6.5-7.5
Origin:
Rio Maderia in Brazil, Columbia and Peru.
Temperature:
22-26ºC
Size:
600mm or 24”+
Sexing:
There are no known obvious external sexual differences.
Feeding:
As these are predatory catfish they prefer meaty foods
such as whole prawns, mussels, pieces of fish and earthworms
etc.
Breeding:
There are no records of aquarium spawnings due to the
adult size and price tag associated with these fish.
Compatibility:
Not compatible with other pimelodids due to its territorial
nature.
Suggested Tankmates:
Anything that does not constitute a meal, I would suggest
some of the larger Characins as opposed to any other
catfish, which may compete for territory. Most enthusiasts
would keep this catfish as a single specimen in a display
aquarium.
Furniture:
Large pieces of bogwood are ideal. Large diameter pipe
can be used but it should be large enough for the catfish
to easily fit in without becoming stuck.
Comments:
This magnificent catfish belongs to the family Pimelodidae,
representatives of which can be found widespread throughout
the rivers of South America. The original specimens
that were caught and described by Dr Britski of the
Sao? Paulo Zoology Museum were from the Rio Maderia
in Brazil. It was originally thought that this was the
only location where this species of catfish was found,
however this catfish is known to be collected in Columbia
and I personally have experience of Peruvian exporters
collecting these catfish in Peru. The original fish
were collected in 1978 by Michael Goulding. A publication
by Dr Dario Castro of the University of Bogotá
in 1984 recorded this catfish as being collected from
the lower Caqueta River in Columbia. Merodontotus
tigrinus is quite closely related to Brachyplatystoma
juruense, but has a longer upper jaw, and the first
rays of the dorsal and pectoral fins are described as
being flexible and not pungent. Both of these catfish
share a similar colour pattern of inclined stripes on
the body, although it has to be said that Merodontotus
tigrinus is the more striking of the two fish.
Brachyplatystoma juruense is quite often referred
to as the “False Tigrinus”. The colour pattern
is outstanding with a yellow to almost white base colour
to the body with black stripes. Most of the fins share
this same colour pattern of that of the body of this
catfish. In their natural habitat, however they grow
well in excess of this size and can attain lengths in
excess of 600mm quite easily. This catfish is perhaps
one of the most expensive specimen fish from this family
of fish. The first specimen that I ever saw back in
the mid eighties had a price tag of £1000, and
I have recently seen specimens for sale at between £500
and £600. Obviously consideration needs to be
given to the size of aquarium in which to keep such
a magnificent catfish as this, I would not recommend
anyone to keep one of these catfish in anything less
than a 72” x 24” x 24”. As well as
the size of aquarium good filtration is also very important
in order to keep a catfish such as this in perfect condition.
I would also suggest that sand such as BD Aquarium sand
be used as a substrate for the aquarium. This is a catfish
that I have not personally kept which probably has something
to do with the high price that these catfish demand.
It was whilst on my fish collecting trip to Peru that
I found out some little known information about this
fish. The exporter in Peru that specialises in large
specimen fish such as this informed us that they collect
these catfish as juvenile specimens from a local breeding
area in the river and grow them on for export. We were
informed that when collected at between 50 and 75mm
they could be reared successfully in the holding tanks
and fed on their favourite food of knife fish. This
particular exporter found that when collected at a size
of around 300mm they did not fare well and would not
feed in captivity. The Peruvian exporter keeps these
catfish at his premises for around six months before
offering them for sale.
Leiarius
pictus (Muller
& Troschel, 1849)
Common
Names: Sailfin Pimelodid, Saddle Catfish,
Painted Catfish, Sailfin Marbled Catfish
Family:
Pimelodidae
Synonyms:
Bagrus pictus, Leiarius longibarbis, Sciades longibarbis,
Sciades pictus, Sciadeichthys pictus
Water:
pH 6.2 to 7.5 and up to 18ºdGH
Origin:
Widespread throughout the Amazon and its tributaries,
South America.
Temperature:
22 to 26ºC or 72 to 79ºF
Size:
600mm + or 24”+
Sexing:
There are no reported external sexual differences. My
own thoughts are that females tend to be more heavily
built or robust than the males, which tend to be slender.
Feeding:
Carnivore feeding on a very mixed and varied diet including
earthworms, whole prawns, mussels, floating sticks or
pellets and catfish pellets. In their natural environment
they would feed upon other fish.
Breeding:
There are no known aquarium spawnings of this catfish.
This is most likely due to the size that these fish
can attain and hence the subsequent size of aquarium
in which to spawn them.
Compatibility:
Ideally suited to life with other large fish. These
catfish are predatory and could mistakenly take a smaller
fish if hungry.
Suggested Tankmates:
Other large catfish such as Oxydoras niger, Pterodoras
granulosus, Megalodoras urunoscopus, Oscars and
larger characins.
Furniture:
Large pieces of bogwood are ideal. Large diameter pipe
can be used but it should be large enough for the catfish
to easily fit in without becoming stuck. I have managed
to create two shady areas within my tropical pond, by
covering the ends with decking, where this catfish prefers
to hide until feeding time.
Comments: The Sailfin Pimelodid or Leiarius
pictus is another of my favourite large catfish,
which I have had the pleasure of keeping within the
confines my tropical pond. It has to be said that this
particular catfish was a real character fish. I kept
this catfish for six years, after I was asked by my
good friend Giles Barlow of Barlows Aquatic Trading,
to rescue this fish from one of his customers’
tanks. When I collected this fish it was approximately
16” long, and it was approximately 28” long
when it died, so as you can appreciate this is not a
catfish for your average sized aquarium. This catfish
is sometimes confused with Perrunichthys perruno
(Reticulated pimelodid) and Leiarius marmoratus
(Marble antenna catfish). The overall body colour of
Leiarius pictus is dark brown with darker spots,
with a lighter underside colouration. More noticeable
in juvenile specimens this catfish has two pale bands,
the first extends from the base of the dorsal fine spine
toward the ventral fin, and then laterally along the
body to the base of the caudal; the second thinner band
lies parallel to the first originating from the base
of the third to sixth soft dorsal fin rays. Large round
spots can be seen in the dorsal, adipose and caudal
fins, whilst the anal and ventral fins have much smaller
spots. The barbels have a ringed pattern to them alternating
light and dark colouration. With regard to the anatomical
characteristics of Leiarius pictus the head
is described as being narrow and flattish above. The
upper jaw is slightly longer than the lower jaw. The
maxillary barbels in adult specimens extend just beyond
the dorsal fin; the inner mandibular barbels extend
to the base of the pectoral fin whilst the outer mandibular
barbels extend to the middle of the pectoral fin. In
juvenile specimens the maxillary barbels can be seen
to extend well beyond the tips of the caudal fin. This
catfish has a large sail-like dorsal fin with 9 –
10 soft rays hence the common name of Sailfin Pimelodid.
The caudal fin is described as being deeply forked.
As mentioned above there are a number of differences
between juvenile and adult fish, such as the fact that
the barbels shorten in ratio to body size in adults,
and the colour is less intense in adult fish. The lobes
of the caudal fin are more rounded in young specimens
whilst they are more pointed in adult fish. These catfish
are real character fish, but can be very territorial
especially towards other pimelodids. My own catfish
had a very understanding relationship with a large Oscar,
basically if the Oscar got in the way at feeding time,
the Leiarius pictus would take the Oscar in
its mouth and swim around the pond a couple of times
before depositing the disorientated fish in one of the
corners! A fascinating catfish to observe and an amazing
site to see the barbels protruding from the surface
of the water at feeding time. I was able to feed this
fish by hand just as long as one of the larger doradids
did not spook the fish at the same time. It is documented
that Leiarius pictus suffer from claustrophobia
caused by the fact that all too often these catfish
are kept in accommodation where their maxillary barbels
touch the front and back of the aquarium, thus stimulating
both barbels at the same time causing the catfish to
become confused! If this is the case it has been reported
that these catfish will try to exit the aquarium, and
it is therefore recommended that tight fitting covers
be added to the aquarium. This did not appear to be
a problem in my uncovered tropical pond!
I will concentrate
on some African and Asian tank busters in order to continue
the debate in the second part of my article.
Chris Ralph 26th February
2005
Previously published in the September 2005 edition of
Practical Fishkeeping magazine.
Photo Credits:
Oxydoras niger: Danny Blundell
Pterodoras granulosus: Danny
Blundell
Megalodoras urunoscopus: Danny
Blundell
Merodontotus
tigrinus: Chris Ralph
Leiarius pictus:
Allan James
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