The upside-down catfish: maintenance and care, compatibility with other fish

Somik synodontis is an unusual shape-shifting fish native to the African Republic of Cameroon. This member of the pinnacle family is distinguished by its peaceful character and interesting habits, has an exquisite appearance and is unpretentious in content. Because of this, many aquarists prefer these aquatic creatures to other fish.

The upside-down catfish is a gregarious animal, usually up to 5–8 individuals get along well in an aquarium. The Synodontis has a naked body without scales, protected by fins with sharp spines and covered with a slimy secretion, reaches 15–30 cm in length, so it is a rather large fish for domestic maintenance. And also the catfish has three pairs of antennae, which are located at the bottom of the large head and resemble a fringe. The body and head of the animal can be light, gray and dark brown or black.

The fish has a calm, balanced character, always busy with its own affairs. During the daytime, catfish are mostly passive, they like to hide in thickets of plants and all kinds of shelters at the bottom of the aquarium. At night, the fish usually revive, become mobile and take active walks around their home in search of food.

Despite their peaceful disposition, shapechangers can be aggressive when it comes to other contenders to their territory. If you let fish, which also like to spend time in digging, into the aquarium, catfish can react very harshly to their presence. Since catfish are able to find organic residues in the most inaccessible places, the aquarium always stays clean. Peristose can be kept together with other species, most often in combination with African cichlids. It is unsafe to settle small fish nearby, because during a night hunt, a shape-shifter can attack and swallow it. At home, with proper feeding and care, aquarium catfish can live up to 10-15 years and more, while in nature their age does not exceed 5 years. However, if you do not take care of your fish, they will hardly make it to 1-2 years.

The African upside-down catfish, which lives at the mouth of the Congo and has a light brown color with a dark ornament, can usually grow up to 7-10 cm and has a life expectancy of up to 9 years. But, in addition to him, there are other decorative species of these fish, namely:

• veiled synodontis - a beautiful fish of dark coffee color with dark small spots and long fins fluttering in the water; the average size of individuals is 15–20 cm, the lifespan is about 9–10 years;

• flag catfish - an animal of gray color with large dark spots of various shapes; named so because of the fin on the back, the beam of which is stretched out like a flag, in good conditions it can live 13-14 years and reach a size of 35 cm;

• speckled (Dalmatian) - a fish 17-19 cm long, bright, beautiful, with edging of fins of light and blue colors, life expectancy - 10-14 years;

• star catfish, it is also called an angel - an extremely spectacular representative of pinnate catfish of coffee, purple color with bright red or golden markings on the body, the body length of males is 25 cm, these fish live up to 12-14 years.

There are also other varieties of catfish, such as petrikola, alberta, domino, showdeden, leopard, marble, clown, braid. It is impossible not to dwell on such an extraordinary underwater inhabitant as the cuckoo catfish.

The Synodontis cuckoo catfish is a species that lives in African rift lakes with fresh water. The fish was called a cuckoo for a reason, it has a habit of laying its eggs in the nests of various aquatic inhabitants. And the color of the catfish resembles the color of the famous bird - its elongated yellow body is covered with black specks of various shapes. In males, they are more saturated, and the body is slimmer than in females.

The skin of the catfish is covered with a mucous layer, but small scales are present on it, which distinguish it from other, naked representatives of the species. And the fish has large round eyes, which are located on both sides of the head, a wide mouth with antennae in the lower part... They help him to navigate in space, including at night, when the animal is hunting. In length, representatives of the species can reach 12 cm, in their own way, they are long-lived, since their life span sometimes reaches 20 years.

Synodontis are undemanding to the conditions of detention, but caring for them provides for the fulfillment of the following requirements:

• the volume of the aquarium is calculated taking into account the size of the fish - for catfish 10 cm long - 50 liters, individuals up to 15 cm - 80 liters, with a body size of 20-25 cm - 150 liters;
• the optimal number of individuals in one container is 4–6, lonely fish behave inadequately, they constantly hide and are too shy.Catfish feel more comfortable in a flock, with the exception of the sucker catfish, which can be kept alone;
• animals need to equip several shelters that can be built from ceramic cups and pots, wooden driftwood or stones; the main thing is that the fish can move freely inside these labyrinths and holes, as well as swim out;
• vegetation that is preferable to plant in an aquarium - tropical bushes of cryptocorynes, creeping shoots of anubias, Echinodorus, popular due to its unpretentiousness; plants are best placed in pots, since catfish sometimes damage their roots;
• for the cuckoo catfish, it will be necessary to maintain the water temperature at least + 22– + 28 degrees, while it is important to adjust the acidity, which should be within 7–8 units;
• lighting for fish is irrelevant, because they spend all day in a passive state, and at night they walk and get food in the dark thanks to their mustache-probes;
• the bottom soil for the aquarium will be coarse river sand or small pieces of gravel; the preselected soil is treated with boiling water, and then placed on the bottom with a layer of at least 7 cm;
• regularly, once every 7 days, 1/4 of the water is replaced with fresh water during general cleaning; for safety reasons, it is wiser to do with the usual washing of the soil without using chemicals.

The multi-spotted catfish, like other synodontis, is an omnivorous fish, therefore, you can feed the fish with live insects, small fish, dry bloodworms, daphnia and gimmarus, pre-scalded oat flakes, pieces of dandelion leaves, lettuce, cucumber and zucchini. The main thing is that a variety of ingredients are present on the menu every day. But the lion's share of the diet is live food, and less than half is plant food, dry and frozen meals.

Speaking about compatibility with other fish, based on the experience of experienced aquarists, the synodontis gets along best with such species as lalius, aulonocara, Jackson's haplochromis, rainbow fish - melanothenia, scalar and Mbuna cichlids - relatives of catfish in native African lakes. Synodontis is considered to be a peaceful, quite intelligent and contact fish. Catfish owners living next to a person for a long time can stroke their pets on the tummy, they often notice an attentive look directed at themselves when they are going to feed their wards. However, if a fish has settled in the aquarium, leading the same lifestyle as catfish, then it is not far before the conflict. Therefore, you should carefully choose neighbors for such an unusual and cute predator.

See below for the maintenance of the upside-down catfish.