Catfish Bonanza
- Thread starter necrocanis
- Start date
no clue on sexing them except one is growing much larger and faster than the other two, and doesn't have vivid spots. I think it might be a female and the other two are male. The smallest one I think is a male doesn't swim with the other two, and that might possibly be because the other two have paired? Not sure. Never bredd fish before, and I cannot find any documentation on breeding limas in captivity. Once my big boy is moved to the 1100 gal tank, these limas and maybe a few more will be moved to the 350 gal for an attempt at breeding. That way they can be in a tank alone. Right now they are in with a tsn and two oscars. I think they are too intimidated right now to try and mate. We'll see though. They have been acting really strange lately. Usually they swim together, but this last week they have been swimming verticle in the open water with the big one on top and the little one on bottom, and they will just hover for hours like that. Strange huh? The other one just hangs on the drift wood. I really hope to breed them.
well thought it was about time for another update on my rtc. I now have 2 rtc. The new baby is about 2 1/2" and is eating ok, but seems really shy. The other one that I bought just about a month and a half ago is 8" already. I know that 6" of growth seems impossible for a month and a half, but just look back in this thread to when I posted the first pics and look at these new pics. It's the most incredibly fast growth I have ever seen in a fish. I have bought a rtc x marble catfish hybrid, but due to a shipping error it's not being shipped til monday along with my new jau. We'll see if they make it here before I go to work next time. If they do then I will post up some pics for ya'll to enjoy! hehe. My smallest tsn is around 11" now, biggest is 14-15", my three channels are 13", 11", and 8". My baby shark cat is 4" chillin in his new brackish tank! The tsn x rtc hybrid is happy as can be somewhere around 35" and eating like a pig. About 1/2 lb. of shrimp every night while I am home and every other night while i am at work! Just fed him a ball park frank to see if he would eat it, and he did, but no plans on feeding him those I was just curious!
oh yeah, here's some pics lol! Oh, and yes he's getting moved tomorrow for the first time since I've had him. Going from the 10 gal to a 75 gal, and after it finishes cycling he'll go into the 1100 gal along with all the other catfish besides the shark, and the rtc x tsn hybrid. Also has anyone ever kept a jau? Just wondering their temperment. The new rtc has a touch of fin and tail rot, just like the other one had when I got him. I don't think my lfs supplier is very good, but it's the only way for me to get them. Kinda funny they are so availible everywhere but here in montana. lol enjoy!
p.s. the last pic is of the rtc from when I first got him 6 weeks ago. He's really grown!
p.s. the last pic is of the rtc from when I first got him 6 weeks ago. He's really grown!
necrocanis;940429; said:
Not with good water quality and keeping him FAT "all" the time
I have found that RTC's are healthier and better appearing when not powerfed when young. I'm sure yours has grown this amount due your vigorous feeding schedule, but for the long haul you may want to slow down a bit. I dont think that growth rate is healthy. I've done the same thing in the past and those RTC's seemed inferior to my slower grown ones. It may just be coincidence, maybe not.
Good luck on feeding that cat collection when they all get big
NICE CATS by the way.....
bob
RTC looks good.. so does the TSN... My RTC is almost as pretty... ButI noticed that urs also has four symmetric white spots near the dorsal fin.. so does mine.. what I haven't these on grown ups .. I can't say I have seen too many juvis .. but are these markings on all juvi RTCs...
Tnx for the kind words guys. Not too worried about over feeding them. I only feed them when their bellies go down completely. For my big catfish that's everyday. 1/2 lb. never fills him up. About a month ago to see how much he could eat I fed him till he stopped eating and he ate 1 1/2 lbs. of shrimp in one sitting. I waited two days to feed him again. I've noticed that when I feed fish it takes 2 or 3 days for his belly to go down, but if I feed worms or shrimp he'll be ready the next day. Anyway he's been on this type of feeding schedule for 2 years with no problems. All my other catfish are on the same kind of diet. As for the white spots every juvenile or baby rtc I have ever had, has these spots. They always seem to get smaller or go away when they get big though. As for feeding them when they all get huge, hell that's what I am waiting on. lol, feeding time will be amazing. I am gathering supplies to make my 8,000-12,000 gal heated outdoor aquarium. Start breaking ground next year. I am sure that the fish will eat less when they get huge because their metabolism slows way down as adults. The hybrid is far from being full grown, and still eats like a juv. due to hybrid vigor I am not sure when he will slow his eating. Rtc I have had in the past slowed their eating alot when they were in the 2-3' range. Only time will tell. Thinking of starting my own website with webcam. Let me know what you guys think.
Necrocanis: from what I've read about the Jau I would expect its temperment to be much like the RTC. Huge appetite, grows considerably bigger than RTC's, big mouth so anything half its size or smaller would be food probably as you know. Riverine catfish so faster water than most RTC's I'd think, probably a decent dissolved oxygen content and it might enjoy hanging out in the current of your tank much like a planiceps in that aspect. Really haven't been many people with Jau on the forums from what I've seen, I can account for only a small handful of pics that I've found with a few members having them ~Trent
