Catfish pterygoplicht: varieties and care recommendations

Pterygoplicht (aka pterik) is a large brocade catfish native to the tropical rivers of South America. This, in general, unpretentious nocturnal fish will especially interest those who can afford a large aquarium with a volume of up to 500 liters, where it will feel quite satisfactory.

Pterik is one of the largest aquarium fish; in natural reservoirs, its size can reach half a meter. In an aquarium, the maximum size of a catfish is directly related to the size of the aquarium itself. If a pterik outgrows the aquarium in which it is kept, serious irreversible changes take place in its body, which are the reason for the reduction in the lifespan of this catfish in an artificial reservoir. In aquariums, they usually live for about 15 years.

The color of pterygoplicht catfish varies very widely, depending on the age and conditions of keeping. Usually the body of the catfish is covered with well-defined, irregularly shaped dark spots, rather evenly scattered on a lighter background. The classic color resembles the skin of a giraffe. The coloration of females is usually lighter than that of males.

The body structure is typical for bottom dwellers - it is significantly compressed in the horizontal plane. The back and sides of the fish are covered with a shell of movable bone plates.

One of the features that distinguish even young pteriks from other benthic adherent catfish is a high dorsal fin, comparable in height to the head of a catfish. There is a noticeable ridge in front of the fin on the back.

The eyes and nostrils of the pterygoplicht have a high position on the head, typical of bottom fish. The nostrils are equipped with additional external outgrowths and are close in size to the catfish eyes. The oral apparatus of the pterikis is a suction cup combined with thick antennae.

It is not difficult to distinguish a male from a female pterygoplicht: the male is usually larger, but the main difference is the pectoral fins, which have longer front rays provided with spines.

The fish is compatible with almost any aquarium neighbors. The basis of the pterygoplicht's diet is plant food, and therefore it is completely indifferent to other inhabitants of the aquarium. However, herbivorous fish can end up on a starvation diet, since a larger catfish, with the help of its suction cup, very quickly destroys food, and digs up growing algae, from which they wither and gradually die. Catfish can also be a serious nuisance for sluggish goldfish, which it easily sticks to with its suction cup. In attempts to throw off such a rider, the fish can completely fray their lush fins.

Due to the large size of the pterik, it is not interesting to other fish. Conflicts and even accidents are possible if there are two or more males in the same aquarium, between whom fights are inevitable. Sometimes males even conflict with males of other, similar in lifestyle, species.

Currently, at least 14 species of pterygoplicht are known. Some of them are quite rare and do not have a common name. All of them are inhabitants of the South American rivers of the Amazon and Orinoco basins. Some have successfully mastered the mountain rivers in the Andes, where they find refuge and food among the stones.

The most popular species in the aquarium hobby are the following, sometimes referred to as the pterygoplicht subspecies.

• Leopard print. The fish can grow up to 56 cm. The color spots of this catfish are the most blurred. It can live in aquariums for about 10 years. The caudal fin is distinguished by pointed ends directed inward.

• Reticulate. May grow slightly larger than the previous variety. The color resembles a light, fine mesh that covers the dark body of a catfish. There are cases when, in an aquarium, these catfish survived up to 20 years.

• Pterygoplicht Joselmann. The maximum body length does not exceed 35 cm. The head is pointed. The body is covered with golden spots, the pattern on the tail becomes smaller. Life expectancy is no more than 10 years.

• Sailing yellow (orange). Reaches a length of 30 cm. Dark large irregular spots cover the entire body, the spaces between them have an orange-yellow tint. Can live in a large aquarium for at least 10-15 years. A distinctive feature is the large sail-shaped dorsal fin.

• Brocade. One of the largest subspecies. The body length can reach 60 cm. Large dark irregular spots are scattered on a light background. Lives in aquariums up to 20 years. The dorsal fin is sail-shaped and has pronounced spines.

• Gold (albino). In fact, the name "albino" is conditional, it is an independent taxon of pterygoplichts, and not a random genetic mutation, which is what real albinos are. The color of this catfish is the most striking. The general shade is much lighter than the color of most congeners. The body length can reach 50 cm.

Often, inexperienced aquarists, when purchasing brocade catfish for their aquarium, confuse them with very close species: small ancistrus and larger plekostomus. Indeed, the young of these species have many features in common. First of all, they all belong to armored (chain mail) catfish, have a suction cup-shaped mouth apparatus, and lead a bottom lifestyle. They have a similar color shade, all have spots on their bodies. The general plan of the structure of these fish, which are similar in lifestyle, is actually similar.

Plecostomus is the more common genus of fish bred in aquariums. Often, an aquarium with these wonderful catfish in its own way is presented as a reservoir with pterics, and this is not surprising.

The fish is widespread in the Amazon basin, where the pterygoplichts live. The highest ecological flexibility has led to the emergence of a huge variety of subspecies of these catfish. They live in mountain streams high above sea level in the Andes, and in tropical swamps with stagnant water in the Amazon and Orinok lowlands. Moreover, everywhere they are distinguished by high numbers and fertility.

The size of fish in natural reservoirs is quite impressive - up to 50 cm, which is close to the size of pteriks. In an aquarium, they can grow up to 35 cm. The color of the fish is highly variable. Dark spots prevail on a lighter background.

Now about the main differences.

• Fish, even very young ones, can be distinguished by the color of the sucker when they are on the glass. The plekostomus has a pale thin antennae and gill covers slightly colored from the abdomen. Ptericus, on the other hand, has thick colored antennae and spotted gill covers.
• The leathery fold on the nostrils of the pterygoplicht is much more developed than in the plekostomus, and rises above the level of the eyes. In the second catfish, the fold of the nostrils is always below the line of the eyes.
• Rows of spines on the lateral sides of the body. The pterygoplicht has two of them, one goes on the side of the eye level, the second starts from the pectoral fin. Thorns are quite noticeable even in young fish in a lighter color. The plekostomus has only one row of such outgrowths, extending in a curved line from the pectoral fin.

Novice aquarists often confuse pterik with another popular inhabitant of an artificial reservoir - the ancistrus catfish. The juveniles of these catfish are very similar. First of all, you should pay attention to the pattern of the spots - the tail of the ancistrus seems to be separated from the body by a light stripe. And, of course, the head - in the Ancistrus it is covered with differently shaped growths - "horns", which never happens with pterygoplichts. Adult catfish cannot be confused, if only because of the differences in size: ancistrus rarely grows more than 15 cm.

Brocade catfish are inhabitants of the vast river systems of the Amazon and Orinoco. Since communication is established between these river basins during the rainy season, fish can freely move from rivers to rivers over vast areas. You can meet these and catfish close to them in lifestyle in all permanent and even temporary reservoirs of the northern part of South America and the Caribbean coast. Some fish can also inhabit the brackish water of river estuaries.

During the dry period, catfish trapped in a drying up reservoir hibernate, making a rather complex hole in the silt with a length of at least 1 meter. The large habitat of pterygoplichts included areas with different conditions, which gave rise to numerous natural varieties and subspecies of these catfish.

Fish nutritional problems in natural reservoirs never arise. 80% of the diet is plant food - microscopic algae, soft tissues of aquatic plants, decaying wood.

The main mistake when keeping a pterik is placing it in a small aquarium. The fish grows rather quickly, reaching impressive sizes. A capacity of at least 400 liters is considered optimal for a pair of these fish. Of course, young catfish will live fine in an aquarium with a volume of up to 100 liters, but after a while it will be impossible to create satisfactory conditions for it there. This significantly shortens the lifespan of the brocade catfish.

Caring for an aquarium with pterygoplichts does not present any difficulties. The fish lives in large and deep rivers. The water needs to be changed by about a quarter weekly. In an aquarium with brocade catfish, it is desirable to create a slight flow and aeration. To keep the aquarium clean, an external aquarium filter is needed - large catfish can create a lot of cloudiness.

The optimal temperature for keeping pterics is from 24 to 30 ° C, because in nature the water of slow rivers of the equatorial belt warms up very well. Average hardness is required, and the pH is not lower than 6.5, but preferably 7.5.

Brocade catfish is a rather peaceful fish, so it can be kept with almost any neighbors. However, at night, when the catfish is active, it can stick to the covers of slow-moving fish. Goldfish, sometimes discus or scalars, which are inactive at night, can especially suffer from its harassment. Pterik can strip the scales from their bodies, thus trying to cover the need for animal food.

As a bottom dweller, the catfish happily devours fish eggs that somehow ended up in the aquarium. The presence of armor and its large size make the brocade catfish compatible even with rather aggressive cichlids and some other predators.

For the digestion of pterygoplicht catfish, cellulose is needed; in nature, they use numerous rotting trunks and branches of trees as its source. Therefore, in the aquarium where the pteriki are kept, there must be driftwood.

80% of the diet of the pterygoplicht should be vegetable feed. You can give spinach, cucumbers, carrots, zucchini. Also for them it is necessary to purchase special combined vegetable feed. Large fish will definitely eat young shoots of aquatic plants.

Of course, like many herbivorous fish, brocade catfish also need animal food. Animal feed usually makes up about 20% of the fish diet. Like all catfish, they pick up any remnants of frozen or dried food from the bottom. In natural reservoirs, they often eat the dead inhabitants at the bottom. As live food, pterik can catch shrimp, worm or bloodworms.

In an aquarium densely populated with different fish, brocade catfish can be on starvation rations, since daytime active fish almost completely eat the offered food, leaving the catfish to be content with only miserable leftovers. Large catfish will not be able to compensate for the lack of food by eating microalgae. When keeping pterygoplichts, it is necessary to monitor their adequate nutrition, which is often evidenced by the shape of the abdomen of these fish.

Unfortunately, the cases of successful breeding of pterygoplichts in amateur aquariums, as well as in professional aquarium farms, are still unknown. Under natural conditions, these fish arrange long, complex-shaped burrows in the banks and at the bottom of reservoirs, where they can successfully endure drought and also lay eggs. It has not yet been possible to create a semblance of a burrow even in very large aquariums.After fertilization of the eggs, the male remains in the tunnel to guard the clutch. At this time, it is quite aggressive and, spreading its fins with spikes, can attack both its unwary fellows and any passing fish.

Sexual demorphism in these catfish is rather weak. The male, as a rule, is somewhat larger, has a brighter coloration and more developed spines on the fins. An adult female is distinguished by a special, so-called genital papilla, which experienced aquarists know how to distinguish. Fish become sexually mature at the age of 3 years.

For information on how to keep a brocade pterygoplicht, see the next video.