Platinum? Redtail/Tiger Hybrid and some recent catfish additions

[koltsixx]

Dude how are you getting these super rare cats?! THET ARE AMAZING!

Thank you very much. The RTC/TSN hybrid I actually found on Ebay. Guy had 2, a 14" and 7-8" I bought the fourteen and was considering getting the smaller but it got sold while I procrastinated. The Albino Yarrelli I got from Wes/ fugupuff and I think he still has some, but they are pricey, so was the RTC/TSN but not as much as the Yarrelli. The Rhamdia Quelen and Redtail/Black Ear's are from Predatory fins. The Quelen was $75 for a 8" but are sold out now, the Redtail/Black Ear's are $45 and around 2.5" and Rob still has them listed.

 

[Abominus]

Thank you very much. The RTC/TSN hybrid I actually found on Ebay. Guy had 2, a 14" and 7-8" I bought the fourteen and was considering getting the smaller but it got sold while I procrastinated. The Albino Yarrelli I got from Wes/ fugupuff and I think he still has some, but they are pricey, so was the RTC/TSN but not as much as the Yarrelli. The Rhamdia Quelen and Redtail/Black Ear's are from Predatory fins. The Quelen was $75 for a 8" but are sold out now, the Redtail/Black Ear's are $45 and around 2.5" and Rob still has them listed.

Thanks a lot. However i doubt that i would be able to pay huge amounts of shipping charges.
I also wanted to ask you how to defferntiate between a melanistic and regular RTC. i recently bought a pure black 3 inch RTC, with a black body and black tail. However, it turned like a regular RTC only after a month, except for the tail part, which is still kind of dark.

 

[koltsixx]

Thanks a lot. However i doubt that i would be able to pay huge amounts of shipping charges.
I also wanted to ask you how to defferntiate between a melanistic and regular RTC. i recently bought a pure black 3 inch RTC, with a black body and black tail. However, it turned like a regular RTC only after a month, except for the tail part, which is still kind of dark.

Yeah, I imagine it wouldn't be easy to do on your own on many levels. I had looked into it in the very distant past and I'm unsure of actual shipping costs but there were requirements such as permits etc. and going through customs to check for invasive species, possible taxes, etc. It must be profitable if you import in decent numbers as there are people who act as transhippers at least in the U.S. But if you know of a local pet store you may be able to get them to bring in fish for you. I know both fugupuff Wes/Rare Fish and Rod/Predatory sell internationally and you can give your local LFS their contact info so you can special order.

As for melanism unfortunately many fish have the ability to adapt their coloration to match their environment to a degree and coloration can also be affected by stress so a unscrupulous seller can manipulate a fish's coloration. There are also unknown to me until as of recently other things sellers can do to induce unnatural coloration that may not last and often shortens a fish's life. You're kind of at the mercy of the seller which is why it pays to do you due diligence in looking into those you want to buy color morphs from. You're best bet is to try and source wild caught color morphs to hopefully get an actual legit heritable color expression. Melanism also doesn't have any distinctive traits like abinism other than the darkening of the animal. Most color morphs can only be proven out in time or by breeding and even the breeding may take more than one generation as the traits that determine color can be Dominant, Co-Dominant or Recessive. For instance Albinism is recessive so both parents must have the necessary gene to produce offspring that express albinism. So, say you breed an albino Rhamdia Quelen to a normal colored Quelen all the resultant offspring will be visually normal colored however they will be genetically heterozygous for albinism. So, if you breed the resultant offspring to each other their offspring will be visually albinos. You can determine offspring percentages by using Punnett squares as long as you know if the trait is Dominant, Co-Dominant or Recessive.

 

[koltsixx]

Another older pick up from Wes/ Rare Fish

Trying to see when Wes will get these guys in again

 

[BOREEK]

This guy was delivered to me 3-5-2024. I bought him as a Platinum Redtail/Tiger Shovelnose hybrid. Platinum being the terminology often used in the fish hobby for a fish exhibiting Leucism( Leucism - Wikipedia) as far I know. As I'm not positive that's a fully accurate description and in the effort of transparency is why I added a ? in my title. The hybrid exhibits some reduced grey coloration on his dorsal area the obvious spots and a yellow coloration on the upper half of his body that is at least as intense as my Albino Yarrelli. The black eyes and coloration on the body denotes he is definitely not an albino. The blotchy coloration maybe an expression of piedbaldism? Not sure if that'd be a more accurate descriptor. Again, I mention it in an effort of being transparent and not misrepresenting the color morph by being definitive in my identification of his color morph/form. In my experience it's harder to discern definitive color morphs in fish than in say reptiles once you go beyond albinism, leucism, xanthism and melanism. Especially since we have less representatives of the different color morphs available to us in the fish hobby.

While I'm not planning on making this an ongoing thread and I think RTC/TSN hybrids have been kept often enough there are better resources I will tell my very initial observations with his tankmates. Unfortunately, I'm having issues with one of his tankmates harassing him. I'm unsure which one it is but the possible culprits are an Achara/TSN hybrid, Xanathic Synodontis Nigrita or Tachysurus Ussuriensis. I've been unable to witness the aggression just the aftermath, torn, tattered fins and two small wounds on one side of his flanks. The Achara/TSN shows aggression to a slightly smaller Achara/TSN in weird spurts. Ignoring the other hybrid most of the time then a sudden surge in aggression resulting in severely tattered fins on the subordinate, than the dominant just as suddenly starts ignoring him again. So, I'm not sure if that aggression is also being directed at the Redtail/TSN. The Nigrita shows occasional spurts in minor aggression to everyone that goes too close to his hide. Finally, the Ussuriensis who I believe despite being much smaller maybe having a predatory response or aggressive response toward the RTC/TSN. Funny thing is I was originally worried the RTC/TSN might predate on the Ussuriensis since the hybrid was larger than I expected. The Ussurensis shows aggression toward my Hemibagrus Filamentus and he does so very stealthily. Choosing to attack when they are both behind decor by sneaking up on the Fila. Since they're both Bagridae aggression between the 2 isn't totally unexpected. The Ussurensis also has issue with the Albino Yarrelli. I don't think it's an aggressive response but a feed response triggered by the Yarrelli long fins or coloration or a combination of the two. I know the little so and so bites me out of a feeding repsonse every time I stick my arm in the tank. I have to keep my eyes peeled for him and the Gar for the same reason, but I digress. The Yarrelli however I don't have to worry about because he gives a very short but snappy chase to anyone who gets close. Doesn't stop the Ussurensis from trying though to take a bite out of him. Or at least that's my interpretation of the situation. So, I think the Ussurensis predatory response maybe triggered by sight and color. A stupid hypothesis based on limited visual observation and half-baked postulation of the motives of the Ussurensis actions but hey it's the best I got. Since the Ussurensis ignores everything else except for the Fila and it's obvious to me it aggression in that case and his other bites directed at me and the Yarrelli seem to be exploratory are you edible actions imho. So, I wonder if I'm correct in that, then he might be checking out the Platinum RTC/TSN in the same way. The Ussurensis is normally reserved and sedentary rarely moving about except when food is introduced, and I know I've seen him more active as of late occasionally shadowing the RTC/TSN but haven't seen him take a bite. Still the Ussurensis is sneaky, I'd almost swear he's on his best behavior when he thinks I'm looking. I don't know maybe I'm just crazy.

Anyway apologies for the huge walls of text. I guess I love hearing myself talk/write. Here's 2 short vids of the Platinum RTC/TSN

I saw this catfish on next level aquatic site, how did he turn out, I'm thinking about getting one and just wanted to know how they hold up

 

[koltsixx]

I saw this catfish on next level aquatic site, how did he turn out, I'm thinking about getting one and just wanted to know how they hold up

I got mine on the large side at around 12" but he's held up well. IME thus far he's proven to be hardy and a good eater. A little skittish at times but that I believe is because his tankmates can be boisterous but he's fine handfeeding and readily takes anything and everything.