Catfish and Guppies  10/16/11
Hello,
I have a 2 foot tank with mostly Guppies and a shoal each of Neon and Glo-light Tetras and I am hoping to include a frog or 2, and catfish. I was wondering if you could give me a list of Catfish which would be compatible with my fish, no fin nippers, or ones that would definitely outgrow my 2 foot tank.
I am aware most catfish would eat any fry and am going to buy nets and plants for the fry so this should not be a problem. So could you please list some catfish which would do best with my fish and tank, also I'd like to know some interesting looking ones such as the Bumble Bee type if you could, I will be very grateful for any advice or ideas.
Many thanks,
Emmalene
<Your best bets would be Corydoras catfish, ideally the excellent and easy to keep Peppered or Bronze Corydoras, in a school of at least 5 specimens because these are sociable fish that appreciate company of their own kind.
Bristlenose Cats (Ancistrus sp.) are another option, a singleton being a good choice and it would have some additional value as an algae-eater. So far as oddball sorts go, Whiptail cats, Rineloricaria spp., are excellent choices. They're mildly territorial but you could keep 3-4 without any problems. They consume a wide range of foods despite their strange appearance, with algae wafers and catfish pellets making fine staples.
Cheers, Neale.>

What sized aquarium, & Cichlid/Catfish comp.    7/1/11
I am going to purchase an aquarium soon for large cichlids.
<Fair enough.>
The fish I want are 1 red Oscar,
<Needs soft water; not aggressive when not spawning.>
1 jack Dempsey,
<Needs hard water; can be aggressive.>
1 convict,
<Also needs hard water; females more colourful than males and less aggressive.>
1 Salvini,
<Also needs hard water; extremely aggressive; quality of specimens in the trade nowadays pretty poor.>
6 silver dollars
<Need soft water.>
and 1 Pleco.
<What sort?>
All Male if I can.
<Good luck sexing juveniles'¦ male and female Oscars for example are essentially identical and cannot be sexed outside of spawning. Usually male cichlids are more aggressive than females, so adding adult males to an aquarium usually ends up with bullied or dead fish!>
Are then any type of catfish I can put with these fish?  
<Depends on the water chemistry. Are you keeping a hard water collection or a soft water collection? How are you keeping nitrate down? Above 20 mg/l, nitrate is a serious killer for Oscars especially -- Hole-in-the-Head and Hexamita infections in particular. It may well be that water quality will be better managed with fewer fish.>
What sized aquarium will I need.
<Which of your cichlids do you want to keep? A collection of hard water Central Americans can work in 200 gallons/750 litres without too much bother. Have done this with a Jaguar, a Midas, and a group of Convicts, plus a Channel Catfish and a Gibbiceps Plec. Obviously you wouldn't keep Oscars or Silver Dollars in a hard water Central American community. Likewise, a 200 gallon tank could be a great home for a harem of Cyphotilapia frontosa together with a few Tanganyikan species of Synodontis.>
I am willing to buy up to 807 u.k. litre aquarium. It is 8x2x2. If I can go smaller I would like to. That is just the maximum. Could I get by with a 6x2x2 foot aquarium. Is there any room for more fish, and if so what would you recommend. Thank you
<Do think more carefully about what it is you want to keep, rather than a random collection of cichlids. Hope this helps, Neale.>
Re: What sized aquarium
On your first combo of fish, the hard water one could I sub a Flowerhorn for the midas. Sorry for the stupid questions.
<Yes, a Flowerhorn would be more or less equivalent to a Midas cichlid, but do be aware of the problems associated with Flowerhorn cichlids including inbreeding and the often-low quality of the specimens offered for sale.
Cheers, Neale.>

Catfish sel. for Neotrop. Cichlid... comp. - 8/1/10
Hello, I plan on getting a 75 to 100 gallon fishtank, which will have 1 red devil or midas, but before I get them, what kind of catfish could I get?
<Large Pterygoplichthys work well, e.g., Pt. gibbiceps, though this assumes there's a good sized cave where the catfish can hide. I've also kept a Midas Cichlid with a large Ictalurus catfish in a 200 gallon system.>
Electric?
<Nope. These are very much catfish for their own aquarium.>
And would tinfoil barbs or some kind of higher level fish work if they were at least equal size or bigger then the midas and put in before?
<Nope. Midas Cichlids will harass and likely kill any midwater fish. Do review the literature on Amphilophus spp.; the hybrids sold in pet shops are not good "community" residents and males especially often end up on
their own. Amphilophus lyonsi is an exception, if you can find it. Plus, Tinfoil barbs need completely different water chemistry.>
Thanks
<Cheers, Neale>

Catfish Selection  2/28/07 Hello WWM, <<Hello, Joe. Tom here.>> We currently have a 20 gallon aquarium with a Tetra Whisper Power Filter 20, 4 inch bubble wand, and heater. The system has been going for about 8 weeks and currently the pH reads 6.8, hardness 120 ppm, ammonia 0, nitrite 0, and nitrates at 0 to 10 ppm after a 20% water change (done weekly), with temperature at 78 degrees. <<I like the sounds of it, Joe.>> There is currently some rusty/brownish algae growing on the plants which I am guessing is caused by the use of the fluorescent light for about 5-6 hours per day. <<Diatoms ("brown algae"). Very common in new tanks and will dissipate/disappear on its own. Nothing to worry about but rather unsightly.>> We currently have 1 female Red Wag Platy, 1 female HiFin Platy, 2 Female Sunburst Mickey Mouse Platies, and 1 male Calico Platy and a varying population of babies (currently about 5) and all seem healthy and happy. The water is treated with dechlorinator and 1 Tbs/5 gallons of conditioning salt is added to the water. No salt is added when replacing evaporated water. <<A Platy fan, eh? Good for you. Very colorful and nice fish.>> My question is this. My kids would like to add some more fish. I have told them we have room for 5 more perhaps 7 fish. I figured this would be a good population for this system. We would like to add 2 more platies (we figure the more platies the better) and perhaps 3 catfish. What type of catfish would you recommend? Reading your site it seems Cory catfish and Otos are out because of the salt or is this salt level tolerable? <<Joe, you can reduce the salt level just a bit and the Corys would be fine. One Tbsp./five gallons of water is tolerable for just about any fish but cutting back just a bit wouldn't hurt. Maybe about 3/4 Tbsp./five gallons.>> Plecos sound like they would get too large for this tank size and I know the Chinese Algae Eater has no place in this tank. <<Common Plecos would, indeed, get too large for this tank as would most varieties. There are some very nice Plecos that remain smaller but I think the Corys would be a better "fit" here, Joe.>> So any advice on "bottom dwellers" would be appreciated. Thank you, Joe <<Keep up the good work, Joe, and I hope you all enjoy your new additions. Tom>>

Shovelnose catfish Is there a shovelnose catfish that stays under 12 inches in length? <Mmm, Sorubim lima...> Or do they are all get over the 2 feet mark? I worked in a pet store for years and the only shovelnose I have ever encountered back then, were the striped shovelnose that got over 2 feet in length. We used to warn customers ahead of time before they purchased any fish that would get fairly large. Anyway, I have been out of the aquarium circuit for a few years now and I was doing research to keep myself updated. However, each aquarium books seems to have their own set of rules to follow. One book stated that the striped shovelnose catfish only reaches 8 inches in length. <We know this is incorrect...> That is why I am asking this question because I think the book is wrong. And this is also the same book which stated Clown Knife fish would only really a maximum length of 19 inches in captivity, but in the wild they grow to 4 feet. I have seen plenty of 30 inch clown knife fish pass through the pet store!!!! Let me know if there is a shovelnose cat that stays under 12 inches, thanks!!! Shannon <Plug the above name into fishbase.org or search the entire family of Pimelodidae... or see some on our site here:  http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/pimelodids.htm  Bob Fenner>