Pseudolaguvia shawi
(Hora 1921)
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This month (October 2005) we welcome a
new contributor in Adrian Taylor secretary of the Catfish
Study Group (UK) and an avid
fan of Asian cats, especially of the Erethistidae family. I will
now hand you over to Adrian for an in depth look at the Bee Cat,
Pseudolaguvia Shawi.
hese little fish are unassuming and do better when kept in the
cooler temperatures (21°C) and neutral PH but generally they
can cope with higher temperatures and PH values from 6.5-7.4 as
long as good water quality is provided and maintained. Hiding
places should be provided but if a sand substrate is used they
like nothing better than to bury themselves in it leaving nothing
but their nasal barbels showing.
Pseudolaguvia
shawi until recently was named
as Laguvia shawi. Laguvia is now no longer valid
as it has been deemed an objective junior synonym of Hara.
(Ng, HH and M Kottelat, 2005).
The body of these fish is short and compressed;
the head is semicircular and broad. They have four pairs of barbels,
and a broad mouth, the jaws are sub equal, and contain villiform
teeth in bands. The ventral surface of the body is corrugated and
has a faint V-shaped groove that forms a not easily seen adhesive
apparatus. However this is not as well formed as it is in Glyptothorax.
The dorsal fin has five to six rays with a strong spine; and is
situated midway between the pectoral and ventral fin’s. The
adipose fin being small. The pectoral fins have six to eight rays
with a strong spine that has five to six serrae on its outer edge
and five larger serrae on its inner edge. The caudal fin has a slight
crescent shape to it with rounded lobes. The anal fin is short and
has nine to ten rays and the ventral fins having six rays to them.
The body is coloured in alternative bands
of brown and tan.The first band of brown starts at the snout and
continues to just behind the ventral fins, and from that point to
an area approximately Just forward or level with the vertical between
the start of the adipose fin and the start of the anal fin is a
tan coloured band, from that point to the vertical of the trailing
edge of the said fins is another band of brown; with another tan
coloured band from that point to the caudal peduncle. There is a
further band of brown that extends into the first third of the caudal
fin, the rest of the caudal fin is tan to opaque in colour except
the ends of the fin which has a light brown crescent like marking;
although this may vary from specimen to specimen. The other fins
are coloured light to dark brown with the tips of the pectoral fins
being dotted white to opaque.
Keep with small non-aggressive tank mates.
| Sexual
Differences |
Females have deeper pectoral
fins and are more robust than males
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| Breeding |
Not reported
These fish do better when fed with live food,
such as grindal worms, bloodworms and daphnia.
| Glossary
of Terms |
Nasal
barbels: On top of the
head, by the nostrils. (nasal barbels)
Synonym: Different name for the same fish.
Villiform teeth: Elongated cardiform teeth.
Serrae: Saw-like notches along an edge.
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| References |
K.C. Jayaram.
The Freshwater Fishes of India.
Ng, HH and M Kottelat, 2005.
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| Photo
Credits |
©
Adrian Taylor |
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| Synonyms:
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| Glyptothorax shawi,
Laguvia shawi |
| Common
Name: |
| Bee
cat, Asian mini bee cat |
| Genus |
| Pseudolaguvia |
| Family: |
| Erethistidae |
| Subfamily: |
| |
| Distribution: |
|
Bangladesh
& Bengal, India. |
| Size: |
| 4.5cm. (1¾ins) |
| Temp: |
| 20-24°C
(68-75°F) |
| pH.: |
| 6.5 - 7.4 |
| Donation: |
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