Two New Rare Catfish

[Yellowcat]

I just received 2 Lophiosilurus Alexandri, AKA Pacman Catfish!

Two juvenile's around 5" TL that now join my recently acquired 10" a. occidentalis (Volta) giraffe catfish in my 130G biggest tank. Unavailable for more than a decade, always wanted to have this species as part of my interest in pseudopimelodidae and lophiosilurus species, having kept a few before. From doing research on this unusual species it seems they aren't all that hard to keep, can be fed a variety of foods, a bit more active than you would think and some have even bred adult specimens in captivity. I have no intention of breeding them, in any case they aren't sexually mature until 3 years old or so. I also found out that there's no way to determine the sex by venting them as you can with other pseudopimelodids, everything is internal with these fish. They seem to be settling in well, thankfully no sign of aggression from the giraffe cat, nice! Oddly enough the giraffe cat has a penchant for meaty foods like shrimp, tilapia, Massivore and big earthworms, among other things , so it seems I've read that pacman cats enjoy the same things too so the only minor worry might be possible competition for food at times, we'll see. The next photo shows typical behavior for L. Alexandri, burying itself in gravel or sand, in a similar way as a chaca-chaca catfish or a halibut for that matter.

Cute, eh? This is the larger one, only an hour or so out of the acclimation bucket, a good sign in many respects, I reckon! Anyway a new species for me to keep and learn about, hopefully a bit more active than my other species, some rarely seen if at all or only at feeding time. BTW they came from Wes Wong @ RareFish, Thanks Wes! All my other critters are doing well, some are starting to feed in daylight after months of refusing to do so, here's the b. villosus about to inhale 2 nightcrawlers

Same with the a. biscutatus giraffe cats, I only show this poor photo to show the size difference between the supposed male and female..

While I'm posting photos, here's a rare blurry shot of my largest rhinodoras dorbigny at feeding time, otherwise almost never seen..

The 2 rhinodoras were also from Wes...
Not a catfish but my favorite pet fish with lots of personality, the African Bush Fish! My only tank with lights and a more or less failure to have aquatic plants!

One more pacman picture

It just occurred to me that since my niche in the hobby is somewhat concentrated on 2 families of catfish being pseudopimelodidae and auchenoglaninae , that for the first time in many years I have specimens from both in the same tank, I guess cool if you're a fish nerd? Cheers...

 

[The Masked Shadow]

Very cool!

 

[Mikepugman]

I just received 2 Lophiosilurus Alexandri, AKA Pacman Catfish!View attachment 1501364
View attachment 1501365
Two juvenile's around 5" TL that now join my recently acquired 10" a. occidentalis (Volta) giraffe catfish in my 130G biggest tank. Unavailable for more than a decade, always wanted to have this species as part of my interest in pseudopimelodidae and lophiosilurus species, having kept a few before. From doing research on this unusual species it seems they aren't all that hard to keep, can be fed a variety of foods, a bit more active than you would think and some have even bred adult specimens in captivity. I have no intention of breeding them, in any case they aren't sexually mature until 3 years old or so. I also found out that there's no way to determine the sex by venting them as you can with other pseudopimelodids, everything is internal with these fish. They seem to be settling in well, thankfully no sign of aggression from the giraffe cat, nice! Oddly enough the giraffe cat has a penchant for meaty foods like shrimp, tilapia, Massivore and big earthworms, among other things , so it seems I've read that pacman cats enjoy the same things too so the only minor worry might be possible competition for food at times, we'll see. The next photo shows typical behavior for L. Alexandri, burying itself in gravel or sand, in a similar way as a chaca-chaca catfish or a halibut for that matter.
View attachment 1501366
Cute, eh? This is the larger one, only an hour or so out of the acclimation bucket, a good sign in many respects, I reckon! Anyway a new species for me to keep and learn about, hopefully a bit more active than my other species, some rarely seen if at all or only at feeding time. BTW they came from Wes Wong @ RareFish, Thanks Wes! All my other critters are doing well, some are starting to feed in daylight after months of refusing to do so, here's the b. villosus about to inhale 2 nightcrawlers
View attachment 1501367
Same with the a. biscutatus giraffe cats, I only show this poor photo to show the size difference between the supposed male and female..
View attachment 1501368
While I'm posting photos, here's a rare blurry shot of my largest rhinodoras dorbigny at feeding time, otherwise almost never seen..
View attachment 1501369
The 2 rhinodoras were also from Wes...
Not a catfish but my favorite pet fish with lots of personality, the African Bush Fish! My only tank with lights and a more or less failure to have aquatic plants!
View attachment 1501370
One more pacman picture
View attachment 1501371
It just occurred to me that since my niche in the hobby is somewhat concentrated on 2 families of catfish being pseudopimelodidae and auchenoglaninae , that for the first time in many years I have specimens from both in the same tank, I guess cool if you're a fish nerd? Cheers...

Nice! I’m new here and was referred to you by Viktor (bigger the better). Predatory Fins is advertising Oremon Rusty Jelly Catfish (Cephalosilurus Fowleri) for sale. Viktor said it’s very unlikely the fish I would get if I purchased from them, would be a Fowleri, but instead an Apurensis. How can I know for sure what the fish are that he is selling? 3”-3.5” @$80. Thanks, Mike

 

[Yellowcat]

Interesting, Lophiosilurus Fowleri (formerly Cephalosilurus Fowleri) had been banned for export by Brazil since 2012 I believe but I did read recently that their export is now permitted. Obviously the first thing to know is if the fish @ Predatory Fins was imported from Brazil as this species is only endemic to one river there, The Rio Sao Francisco, same river as L. Alexandri. Lophiosilurus Apurensis are only found in Venezuela and Colombia. From the photo's shown on P. F.'s website, the one showing the fish in hand, (easily a 6" fish) could be L, Fowleri, the other photo with the blue gravel background was taken from the PlanetCatfish website. The stated size of the fish for sale is 3". The two species are very similar in appearance as juveniles. When comparing the two from a profile, Fowleri's have a flatter head than Apurensis. The more obvious difference is the belly markings of lack thereof, in that the Fowleri will have a clear pale belly whereas the belly of Apurensis will be heavily marked/spotted by comparison. Look in the Cat-eLog on PlanetCatfish for both species, some photos found there are of my former Fowleri and Apurensis. I recently lost my L. Fowleri after 17 years and would easily have another, an all time favorite. Both have similar behaviors but Fowleri tend to be less aggressive and only grow to about 18" where Apurenis are more aggressive and will grow to 28". I think, not sure, that the owner of PredatoryFins is a friend of Viktor's, perhaps he has talked to him about these? Perhaps a call to the vendor might reveal information as to the origin of the fish and maybe a photo of the underside of the fish which would be very helpful. All this being said, he may indeed have real L. Fowleri's and if so, great! At the asking price stated it would be a good deal in todays market, even if it turned out to be L. Apurensis, still a good price for one of them too...

 

[Yellowcat]

L. Fowleri vs L. Apurensis photos of adult fish for what it's worth....
This is L. Fowleri:


This is L. Apurensis:

 

[thebiggerthebetter]

I've not contacted Rodrigo about this fish. I hope armed with this new, wonderful, authoritative, and generous knowledge, Mike will do the leg work for us Mike, ask Rod for the place of origin and for the belly photos, and for profile photos if possible, please.

 

[Yellowcat]

Juvenile L. Apurensis photos


L. Apurensis from Colombia, photos from Amazonas Magazine Article "In The Trade: Jelly Cats" Nov. 6 2020...

 

[koltsixx]

I just received 2 Lophiosilurus Alexandri, AKA Pacman Catfish! Two juvenile's around 5" TL that now join my recently acquired 10" a. occidentalis (Volta) giraffe catfish in my 130G biggest tank. Unavailable for more than a decade, always wanted to have this species as part of my interest in pseudopimelodidae and lophiosilurus species, having kept a few before. From doing research on this unusual species it seems they aren't all that hard to keep, can be fed a variety of foods, a bit more active than you would think and some have even bred adult specimens in captivity. I have no intention of breeding them, in any case they aren't sexually mature until 3 years old or so. I also found out that there's no way to determine the sex by venting them as you can with other pseudopimelodids, everything is internal with these fish. They seem to be settling in well, thankfully no sign of aggression from the giraffe cat, nice! Oddly enough the giraffe cat has a penchant for meaty foods like shrimp, tilapia, Massivore and big earthworms, among other things , so it seems I've read that pacman cats enjoy the same things too so the only minor worry might be possible competition for food at times, we'll see. The next photo shows typical behavior for L. Alexandri, burying itself in gravel or sand, in a similar way as a chaca-chaca catfish or a halibut for that matter.

Cute, eh? This is the larger one, only an hour or so out of the acclimation bucket, a good sign in many respects, I reckon! Anyway a new species for me to keep and learn about, hopefully a bit more active than my other species, some rarely seen if at all or only at feeding time. BTW they came from Wes Wong @ RareFish, Thanks Wes!

All my other critters are doing well, some are starting to feed in daylight after months of refusing to do so, here's the b. villosus about to inhale 2 nightcrawlers

Same with the a. biscutatus giraffe cats, I only show this poor photo to show the size difference between the supposed male and female..

While I'm posting photos, here's a rare blurry shot of my largest rhinodoras dorbigny at feeding time, otherwise almost never seen..The 2 rhinodoras were also from Wes...

Not a catfish but my favorite pet fish with lots of personality, the African Bush Fish! My only tank with lights and a more or less failure to have aquatic plants!
One more pacman picture

It just occurred to me that since my niche in the hobby is somewhat concentrated on 2 families of catfish being pseudopimelodidae and auchenoglaninae , that for the first time in many years I have specimens from both in the same tank, I guess cool if you're a fish nerd? Cheers...

Very cool pics and info. Yellowcat. It's funny I was talking to Wes awhile ago as I had seen you asking about the Pac-Man's on here in his Vendor section. He wound up telling me a couple days after he had found your email and I'm glad you got to pick up a couple. I don't think we ever really spoke on here but I've been aware of you by reputation(positive of course). I believe Viktor was one of the people who often mentioned you and your knowledge to me on numerous occasions. I myself picked up 3 of the 3 inchers and 2 five inchers should be arriving to me Tuesday. My first monster fish and the one that led me to MFK was a Cephalosilurus/Lophiosilurus Apurensis I picked up just before joining MFK from George/Shark Aquarium. So I've been a long time fan of Pseudopimelodidae too.

Never kept Pac-Man's till now, of the family currently I am also keeping Batrochoglanis sp. (2). Viktor got a kick out of a story I told him when I first got them. I bought 3 Batro's all around 3 inches and was Face timing my girlfriend that evening when I let out a very girlish scream and nearly fell out of my seat. My girlfriend had no idea what was happening as I raced out of my seat disappearing into the dark room. I had glanced over to the left where the 75 gallon that had the Batro's was when I saw that one had one of his brethren down his throat. I managed to save the victim and have never had a issue since. Matter of fact the Batro's are kept with 2 small Tenellus ternetzi and despite keeping close quarters there hasn't been any attempted predation(knock on wood). They do eat sizable pellets such as Massivore with gusto.

I also have two Rhinodoras Dorbignyi from Wes. Had a third but one of my Trachycorystes tried to eat him and just managed to suffocate it instead. I've been dropping a bit of money on fish thanks to Wes lately. lol I really do appreciate the fish he brings to the hobby. He's opened me up to many cool species. Thanks Wes!

Anyway again nice pics and info. Appreciate the info about the differences between Apurensis and Fowleri. I knew about the general flatter body and size bit did not know about the belly spot differences, very cool.

Nice! I’m new here and was referred to you by Viktor (bigger the better). Predatory Fins is advertising Oremon Rusty Jelly Catfish (Cephalosilurus Fowleri) for sale. Viktor said it’s very unlikely the fish I would get if I purchased from them, would be a Fowleri, but instead an Apurensis. How can I know for sure what the fish are that he is selling? 3”-3.5” @$80. Thanks, Mike

Thank you for the heads up for everyone on the possible Fowleri. If you do manage to contact Rod and find out if they are Fowleri I hope you update here. I plan on trying myself to contact Rod and likewise if I find out anything I will try to let you guys know as well. Though I'll probably buy a couple regardless if they're Fowleri or Apurensis.

 

[Yellowcat]

Hey koltsixx, like your post and must admit I always read anything you have posted in the past! Where to start in reply, first with batrochoglanis, seeing a past post from you on the subject I'm inclined to think that "species 2" are likely to be batrochoglanis villosus. I have always cautioned folks to not mix batrochoglanis, pseudopimelodus and lophiosilurus apurensis or fowleri with their own species or related one's and only keep them in a community tank with other fish not just twice their size but I would recommend 3 X their size to be safe. As juveniles, batrochoglanis and lophiosilurus 'jelly cats' may get along with their own species for a time but later on expect problems. The above can be kept in a community tank as long as they are Well fed. When raising past apurensis and fowleri I alway kept a shoal of feeder goldfish in the tanks that they could pick off when their mood suited them. No goldfish, tank mates beware! Being in a community tank the other fish would quickly eat up the pellet food and the jelly cats couldn't or wouldn't bother, only wanting goldfish or nightcrawler worms. Many good reasons to not use goldfish feeders, even though I couldn't wean them off them, others seem to have gotten them on pellets, cut fish and Massiveore. The vendor from which I got my batrochoglanis had 2 fish and had to put a divider in their tank to prevent eventual murder. My L. fowleri nearly killed a p. bufonis which I was able to save. Just sayin'. About the possible L. fowleri's you're considering, good luck about the species. I alway appreciate vendors that show pictures of the actual fish they are selling.. I should mention that when I got my Fowleri back in 2005, they were very rare then, almost never imported and I had to pay $125 which I thought to be pricey then.
About L. Alexandri. Before buying them I did much research concerning sexual dimorphism, reproduction, behaviors and feeding. Just using the search box on this site revealed some very interesting past posts on these fish, a must see. My new fish seem to be settling in well, choosing depressions in the gravel to just hang out during the day in the sunny end of the tank as opposed to the giraffe cat that prefers the driftwood in the dark end. I tried feeding foods that I think both species would like, the giraffe cat likes a variety of Hikari pellets including Massivore, frozen Hikari Jumbo Bloodworms and nightcrawlers for sure. I tried frozen shrimp and bits of tilapia but found them mostly uneaten in the morning so not sure if any were consumed by either species? The tank does have a population of guppies, the giraffe cat doesn't bother them but yesterday I put in a scoop of guppies from another tank near the Alexandri's and one snapped one up immediately so it seems they won't starve in the short term if they don't want the other things on the menu. Wes told me he was feeding them market prawns and Canadian smelt. He also said he thinks they are wild caught fish. As with my other reclusive cats whose feeding behavior can only be observed by using my infrared night vision device, I may need to employ it in total darkness when feeding a variety of foods to the pacman cats to see how they respond. So you're gettin 5 of 'em, wow man! Kinda hate it that nowadays a few fish can cost more than your first car! Having kept so many of the popular, common and somewhat rare catfish through the years it hard for me to find species I haven't kept before, too large for my tanks or aggressive needing to be kept alone. It can get ex$pensive anymore if ya want the good stuff!
I'll just post one photo, (they only did this for a few minutes then separated) this time reflecting what seems to be a common behavior among L. Alexandri which is how they will stack up like a serving of pancakes at times, from pictures I've seen...

Unlike other pseudopimelodid's, this species seems to like hanging out with their conspecifics...
I know you will enjoy getting your new fish and learning about them too, I'm confident you will have observations to share with the rest of us as well!

 

[koltsixx]

Yellowcat Thank you, I'm flattered. I often feel I ramble on to much and worry I'm oversharing uninteresting or irrelevant info. And I've enjoyed the info. and observations you've provided. I'll definitely have a go at the search bar on here to see what Pac-Man info. I can get, thank you. By the way I know you said the Pac-Man's ate the guppies but did they also eat the bloodworms? I have 2 Pac-Man's right now around 2 inches and will be getting the 2 five inchers Tuesday. I wish I would've opted for the 5 inchers from the beginning, the 3 inchers wound up being a lot smaller then I expected. I don't think they could take even a baby guppy, I am even considering live brineshrimp incase movement will help stimulate them to feed. I actually loathe feeding live. Some of it is because I'm allergic to bloodworms for instance(my eyes get itchy as heck if I accidentally touch them). The other is I like to be able to easily monitor feedings and like to dose with vitamins etc.

Yeah, I guess I was a little reckless with the Batro's. I didn't consider their temperament despite having kept a Apurensis in the past. When I first got my Apurensis I knew nothing of Pseudopimelodidae, heck I knew very little about fish period. Then again I still consider myself a novice even now, I feel there's always something new to learn in this hobby. I found out fairly quickly Apurensis don't have a very agreeable personality. Despite their often times cantankerous disposition I couldn't help but love the grumpy fish. As I expressed in the past one of the funniest things about him/her was watching the cat patrol. Not that they move from their favorite spot often(at least in my experience) but when he/she did I used to get a kick out of them running into some piece of decor. When a object had the audacity to refuse to move from the cats path he/she would push against with ever growing force till it would eventually start snapping at the offending thing while moving itself with the most amount of effort I ever saw the fish exhibit. Food didn't elicit such a high energy response this passion the fish showed seemed to be saved for annoyance. lol

I was worried when you reminded me of Pseudopimelodidae aggression. I remembered seeing people keeping Pac-Man's together in the past but thought perhaps I remembered wrong. I was happy to see you say Pac-Man's seem to be an exception.

So you think the Batro's maybe Villosus. I only see them during feedings. Lucky for me all my cats eat with the lights on(except the Pac-Man's) including the Batro's. One Batro on rare occasions will even swim to just underneath the surface of the water. Won't eat pellets that float but anything that breaks the surface to sink is taken. I'll see if I can get a pic.

By the way Yellowcat thebiggerthebetter and M Mikepugman I emailed Rod about the possible Fowleri and am waiting on a response. If I get one I will try to update you guys ASAP on here.