Synodontis Catfish

[winmore]

Hi are there any synodontis catfish that you can have in a community tank.i like the look of them so much and would like to know.i have a 3ft tank that is 58 gallon.i realy like the Synodontis multipunctata.

 

[toddnbecka]

S. multipunctatus are hard/alkaline water fish, usually mixed with African cichlids. They are somewhat adaptable to different water conditions, but not suited to soft/acidic at all. S. nigriventris would be better suited to neutral-acidic water conditions. The nigriventris are the smallest commonly available species, social fish, best kept in groups.

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

I'd say your tank is a little too short for the likes of multipunctata; lucipinnis; petricola and other ~10cm Synodontis long term.

A few Synos that spring to ming that are very suitable for a 3-footer are...

nigriventris
contracta
Microsynodontis spp. ("African Bumblebee Catfish", there are many more than M. batesii, often an incorrect label for every fish from this genus that gets imported)
M. paynei (very closely related to Synodontis)

All the above are very social fish, just like South Amercian Corydoras, absolute minimum of six but ideally 10+. I recently upped my S. nigriventris group to 13, after buying four more for a total of £8.25 last Friday, stonking deal!

 

[Steve GT]

They get quite big but iv got a filamentosa in with my big fish community tank and he gets on with all of them there pretty friendly fish just make sure you have somewhere they can hide if they want cause they can be a bit more timid at times

 

[winmore]

i quite like the look of Mochokiella paynei.i will have to try and track some down.i was thinking about 3 of them is that ok.

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

i quite like the look of Mochokiella paynei.i will have to try and track some down.i was thinking about 3 of them is that ok.

No, minimum six, ideally closer to ten. They stay quite small (~4cm), so unless your tank already has bottom dwellers, that many should not be an issue.

As for sourcing, one place I know has them is Wildwoods through "Tropical Fish 2 Your Door"...

http/www.tropicalfishfinder.co.uk/stores_productsinfo.asp?store=54&prod=2087

I won't spoil the surprise at how much they are excluding the Special Delivery P&P.

 

[Gentoo]

I have kept two synodontis multipunctatus in a 66 gallon/4ft tank for several years. However, prior to that one of them was quite content in a much smaller tank, so I don't think a 3ft tank should be a problem. In my exeperience, these synos are quite well behaved fish and don't cause any hassle to other tankmates, even other species of synos and other bottom dwelling fish. Just make sure there are lots of hiding places in case of occasional diputes.