Speckled catfish - care and maintenance in the aquarium

Speckled catfish got their name due to the fact that they have a specific color. These fish are otherwise referred to as straw shells, corridors, and also ray-creatures. Due to the fact that the presented family in a short time became popular among aquarists, catfish were simply called - ordinary. By their habitat, these fish are classified as South America. In fact, they are harmless and peaceful. They quickly adapt to changes in the aquatic environment, are easily bred, and do not require any maintenance in content.

Description

1. The represented family is considered a direct competitor to the catfish panda, as well as the bronze corridor. Water inhabitants are classified as small-sized, in length they reach about 6 cm (males), and females 3–7 cm. Housing is dirty brownish-greenish, squat, with scattered stripes of gray or green-blue.
2. Each catfish is famous for its unique appearance. In all individuals, spots are different in size and shape, and their number varies.
3. There are brownish spots on the fins and back, they are slightly paler. The abdominal region is colored gold. Males are famous for the fact that they have a sharp fin on their backs, and females have a rounded fin.
4. As is characteristic of all consistent, tendrils are located on the upper part of the lips. They help fish to search for food, as well as get it out of the ground. Fins are equipped with spikes that do not allow predatory relatives to eat catfish. If a transplant is planned, then this is done not in a juicy fashion, but in a plastic container.
5. Water inhabitants from natural conditions are usually brighter colored than their relatives grown in an aquarium. These fish prefer to be active at night, although in natural light they can also be found floating.
6. Usually kept in flocks of 8 individuals. As for the life span, it is 6-15 years when existing in the natural environment and 3-5 years in aquarium conditions. It all depends on what temperature will be in the aquarium, as well as the acidic environment and stiffness. The higher the temperature, the less fish live.
7. When the fish are in the spawning period or experience fear, they begin to actively move their fins. They make strange sounds like rustling or crunching.
8. Catfish can breathe atmospheric air, protruding from the surface of the water. If the fish does this too often, an appropriate aeration filter must be installed in the water tank.
9. Gender is easy to identify. In females, the abdominal region is rounded. When looking at the female from above, she seems wider than the male. Males are much brighter colored, can boast a large fin on the back and a pointed anal.

Content

1. Difficulties in caring for these aquatic inhabitants will not arise even for beginners. The fish easily gets used to any aquatic environment; it gets along well in the company of catfish.
2. The neighbors may be kilfishes, barbs, zebrafish, tetras and dwarf type cichlids, guppies, swordsmen and non-donkeys. Of the swordsmen, preference is given to those who swim above or in the middle.
3. The presented family feels great, living not in warm water. Therefore, they should not hook fish that prefer tropical conditions. The catfish will not be able to get along with aggressive relatives who constantly open the hunt.
4. Soms prefer to live in a lowland. They need to line soft soil in the form of sand or small-gravel gravel. Catfish look better against a dark background. Be sure to plant the plants in the tank, set the driftwood so that they act as light diffusers.
5. Corridors do not need careful care. All the rules for keeping similar catfish apply to them. That is, the temperature regime adheres at around 22 to 24 degrees, the hardness is up to 7 units, the acidity is low (6 units).
6. Since individuals are kept in flocks, they require a spacious tank. Usually 7 liters are allocated to catfish. water. This volume increases if more fish are added to the water dwelling. It is not enough to change the fluid once a week, this must be done every 2-3 days. 20% of the volume is removed, new water is poured.
7. Catfish can become ill for a variety of reasons, ranging from accumulation of food debris in the aquarium and their decay, ending with the presence of salts and nitrites. If one of the fish suddenly becomes ill, remove it and transfer it to another reservoir until it is completely cured.

Feeding

1. The family under discussion does not impose special requirements for keeping and feeding in particular. They can eat granular, tableted composition, as well as bloodworm or tubule.
2. Since fish feed from the bottom, enough food should fall into this area. It is better to choose cereal-sinking food. A live or frozen product is also suitable.
3. If there are many different fish in the aquarium, including those feeding with a smooth surface, then choose a different feed. One should remain at the top, and the other should fall to the bottom of the catfish.

Compatibility

1. Speckled catfish can be kept in both small and large aquariums. But here you should take into account a small nuance. It is highly recommended to keep such fish in flocks of at least 5 individuals. Good neighbors for such catfish are barbs, livestock, zebrafish, small tetras, kilfish, ramerezi and small cichlids.
2. Do not forget that the considered fish representatives prefer cool water. For the same reason, it is necessary to treat the selection of neighbors with extreme caution.
3. In no case do not try to settle catfish along with heat-loving discus. In addition, the considered individuals should not be kept with aggressive large inhabitants of the aquatic world.

Breeding

1. When catfish begin to spawn, then about 200 eggs can come out of this later. Each of them in diameter reaches 2 mm. As for the duration of incubation, it is 4-12 days. It all depends on the temperature and other conditions. As a spawning ground, a 12-liter tank is selected. minimum.
2. A pair of males is assigned to the female. In order for the fish to start breeding, it is necessary to repeat their natural biotope as much as possible and imitate the rain season. That is, a third of the fluid merges, a new, cool one is added instead. The aquarium is set in the sun.
3. Experts advise feeding fish with artemia, bloodworm, daphnia, tubule. The female will be ready for spawning when her abdominal area turns red, and the body itself is compacted. Then reproduction becomes possible.
4. Reproduction can occur in different ways. The male begins to play with the female, fanning her abdomen with a mustache. Then the male releases milk, the female swallows them and then passes through the intestinal tract. It turns caviar. Spawning lasts an hour or more.
5. So that parents do not eat caviar, they must be deposited in another tank. Ripening occurs within 7 days, but can happen earlier. It all depends on the temperature of the water.
6. When the fry appear, they are fed with ground dry food (dust), crushed worms, artemia. Be sure to replace the water so that the tank is always clean.

Health

1. Fishes of the represented family are subject to the same diseases as other inhabitants. Since catfish are freshwater, fungal and other bacterial infections usually develop under such conditions.
2. If you notice that the aquatic creature has become sluggish, moves less, eats almost nothing, you should pay attention to external data.
3. The fins can be folded, a whitish coating will appear, the color will become dull. Then the animal is transplanted from the other guests.
4. If treatment is carried out in a timely manner, then catfish will quickly return to normal. However, one thing must be remembered for sure - fish are not treated with salt water.

It is easy to care for this variety of aquarium pets, if you follow all the recommendations and follow the elementary rules of maintenance. Catfish are freshwater inhabitants who will not survive in brackish water. They often need to change fluids, removing impurities. Do not forget about the saturation of the water with oxygen.

Video: aquarium fish speckled catfish