Few aquarists know that the pets and decorations of their aquarium - catfish - are the oldest fish on the planet that survived to this day.
Somiki - cute aquarium inhabitants
Freshwater reservoirs of the world include about two thousand different types of catfish. About 800 species have developed in aquariums. These handsome people for the most part have a wide head and flattened sides. They completely lack scales, in some places it is replaced by bone plates. Catfish are bottom fish, most of them are quite unpretentious - enough ordinary aquarium conditions. The homeland of aquarium catfish is water bodies around the world, the habitat of many species varies greatly. Details of the contents of some fish, their habits, differences in shapes and colors will be described in our article.
Speckled catfish
The favorite of many aquarists is speckled catfish. The homeland of the fish is South America - Brazil, Argentina, as well as Paraguay and Uruguay. It belongs to the genus Corridoras and one of the species of Carapace or Callichthy catfish. Sometimes it is called catfish ordinary, simple or marble catfish. This is a typical omnivorous bottom fish, peaceful, with nocturnal peak activity. Speckled catfish is quite unpretentious in food, it is easy to keep at home. Often catfish picks up the remains of the feed of other fish, but sometimes it is recommended to give special food in the form of a special tablet for catfish. The speckled catfish is called the "old-timer" of aquariums. His first breeding at home was recorded in 1878.
Golden catfish
The corridoras belongs to the golden catfish. The birthplace of fish is South America. There, in the sandy areas of various reservoirs, he feels especially well. In aquariums, this bottom fish can reach a length of just over 7 centimeters. Coloring in tan colors. Of particular interest to everyone who watches this beautiful fish is the mode of movement of the golden catfish. He moves his body from one place of the bottom to another with the help of spikes, which are located on the pectoral fins.
Thoracicum
A distant guest from the Amazon basin is the thoracicum. This catfish, whose birthplace is Brazil, can reach a length of up to 18 centimeters. The peculiarity of male thoracatum is formed from the anterior ray of the pectoral fin, a protruding bone spike of red or orange color. Prefers twilight, often hides in shelters. This is a fairly peaceful catfish. The homeland of fish during thoracic catfish spawning in water is covered by a large number of floating nests of this original catfish. The fact is that fish build special foam nests under objects or leaves floating on the surface of the water. Moreover, they release air bubbles not with their mouths, but with gill covers. During spawning at home, a piece of polystyrene is most often used, which, after the female has spawned eggs, together with the eggs, is transferred to a separate aquarium. Or they just place the female out of the aquarium, as the male may begin to drive her away from the nest.
Shark Catfish
Shark catfish, the birthplace of fish - Thailand, is very fond of society. And to such an extent that often loneliness causes stress in him. Slow catfish does not like sudden movements and changing lighting. If the light in the room where the aquarium is standing is turned on sharply, the shark catfish can be so frightened that it starts to rush around the aquarium and can damage its nose in an attack. This is a fairly large representative of catfish. Siamese shark catfish grows up to 30 centimeters, and Vysokoplavnichny - up to 50.
Antsistrus
Antsistrus is a very original catfish, the birthplace of fish is Brazil. Male Antsistruses have specific bushy leathery processes on their heads, which is very popular with the kids who watch these fish in the aquarium. Basically, the body is dark gray with light spots. But the color can also “turn pale”, in Antsistruses it is changeable. Often fish attach to the glass of the aquarium and are engaged in scraping algae. The homeland of the aquarium catfish is the Amazon River, where the habitat is soft, slightly acidic water. But the fish easily adapts to life in hard water, which must be cleaned and saturated with oxygen.
Synodontis
Synodontis is an African catfish. The birthplace of fish is the reservoirs of the Congo River. Synodontis are often called changeling, because they turn upside down and swim on the surface, collecting fluffy mustache prey. This catfish has a lot of coloring options, whose homeland made it “invisible” in the aquarium. The spotty color and various shades of colors make it, despite its rather large size, invisible at the bottom of the aquarium, and you need to make a lot of time to find it. The fish feels unprotected if there are not enough shelters in the water.
Brocade pterigoplicht
Brocade pterigoplicht is a magnificent handsome catfish. The birthplace of the fish is the Orinoco River. It got its name thanks to a kind of brocade - evenly scattered black or dark brown spots. It has a large magnificent dorsal fin that resembles a sail in shape. The mouth is a large suction cup. Recently, it is popular with aquarists. It grows to 30-35 centimeters. It should be borne in mind that if Parcovy pterigoplichta is kept together with large slow and slow fish, it will try to stick to them, as a result, scales may be damaged. He is probably attracted to mucus. Basically, this is a very peaceful fish, gets along with small species without problems.
Sack-gill catfish
Another mustachioed handsome aquarium - Sack-gill catfish. The birthplace of fish is Southeast Asia. This is the only species in its family. The color is brown or black and blue. Real barbel - on the jaws has 4 pairs of fairly long processes. It can grow up to 30 centimeters in length. Moreover, females are slightly larger than males. A feature of Sack-gill catfish are two air sacs that are located from the gill cavity along the entire body and play the role of the lungs. In the wild, this allows the fish to survive drought, remaining virtually without water in the mud. Catfish is unpretentious and omnivorous. Prefers places with low light in the aquarium, looking for cracks and shelters. With other bottom fish in the aquarium can come into conflict.