I recently got a hoplo catfish (hoplosternum thoracatum) and it occurred to me that one of the reasons the species is so interesting me (and hence the purchase decision at the lfs) is that they have a wierd/cool barbel orientation; they have these odd, twitchy whiskers that are arranged so that they twist around each other at the base
From what I can see, it has two long barbels on the lower jaw that protrude forward, while the upper jaw has two shorter barbels that hang down over the others. Makes for a weird looking mouth on these fish, different from what you see on most catfish. So that got me thinking about catfish with interesting or unusual whiskers.
What are your favorite whiskers among the catfish?
For me, I've always been partial to the electric catfish's whiskers, though they aren't particularly odd I admit.
and clarias type catfish (including eel catfish and fossil catfish), which have rather similar whiskers to the ec
the branched barbels that some synodontis catfish have are pretty fancy, although I used to find them unattractive.
I know there are some pimelodids and shovelnose type catfish with some really long whiskers that may be longer than the full body length, which is pretty cool, but I don't know which species.
So how about it? Who's got the coolest looking whiskers in your opinion?
From what I can see, it has two long barbels on the lower jaw that protrude forward, while the upper jaw has two shorter barbels that hang down over the others. Makes for a weird looking mouth on these fish, different from what you see on most catfish. So that got me thinking about catfish with interesting or unusual whiskers.
What are your favorite whiskers among the catfish?
For me, I've always been partial to the electric catfish's whiskers, though they aren't particularly odd I admit.
and clarias type catfish (including eel catfish and fossil catfish), which have rather similar whiskers to the ec
the branched barbels that some synodontis catfish have are pretty fancy, although I used to find them unattractive.
I know there are some pimelodids and shovelnose type catfish with some really long whiskers that may be longer than the full body length, which is pretty cool, but I don't know which species.
So how about it? Who's got the coolest looking whiskers in your opinion?
