Synodontis Adult & Fry. ID please

[TerryPerth]

Can anybody ID these Synodontis for me, I believe that I know what they are but I would value the opinions of people on here. All photos are by George Casper.
This is an adult male

These are some of his fry

These fry are from a different colony


Thanks in advance
Terry

[I_Xeno]

The first 2 are Synodontis sp2, i have the same, they also call them synodotnis polli white zambia.

The 3rd is Synodontis lucipinnis

[andywoolloo]

too handsome!!

[Birger]

The first 2 are Synodontis sp2, i have the same, they also call them synodotnis polli white zambia.

The 3rd is Synodontis lucipinnis

Just had a quick look and I would say so as well

Birger

[Richard B]

I agree completely!

[Richard B]

Welcome to Planet catfish TerryPerth - i see that was your first post

[Veikko]

I'm sure only what comes to the last picture. Synodontis lucipinnis, or would it be after revision, S. lucipinna. Wonderful species.

[Birger]

or would it be after revision, S. lucipinna

Veikko
Are you referring to the way Syno's are referred to in the Ferraris list of catfish or which revision do you mean?

Birger

[TerryPerth]

Thankyou for confirming my belief that the first 2 pics are S. polli
The fish in the 3rd pic are known as S.petricola in Australia, can anybody tell me the difference between S.petricola and S.lucipinnis.

Cheers Terry

[Richard B]

TerryPerth - the first 2 photos are NOT syno polli - they are

Synodontis sp(2)

. This is an unidentified fish which has the common name of "white polli" or "zambian polli", which leads to confusion everywhere .

99% of the world call Syno Lucipinnis "petricola". Lucipinnis was described to science in December 2006 & for years was known as the "dwarf petricola".

Differences in these 2 species can be slight - they are the only 2 tanganyikan synos with white first rays of the dorsal & pectoral fins. I have both in my tank & can easily spot the difference but sometimes when shown a photo it can be far more tricky.

The first guide is price - here in the uk a petricola will cost 5 times as much as a lucipinnis - so if dealers are selling cheap petricola, they're probably lucipinnis.
2nd point is availability - in a day of travelling all round the country i could buy 300 lucipinnis i'm sure, but probably i'd be pushed to find 50 petricola.
thirdly, physical differences - when kept side by side (IME) the white edges are brighter in similar sized fish in petricola, petricola are a little more elongate, spots are rounder & more frequent in petricola.

Your third photo shows young lucipinnis where differences are not so obvious - check some of the photos in cat-e-log to illustrate what i'm saying

All the best

Richard B

[Birger]

but probably i'd be pushed to find 50 petricola.

I have yet to see one that I know for sure is petricola all I have seen around here is the lucipinnis

Birger

[Richard B]

I remember the first petricola & polli i ever saw at the time the first granulosus came into the country - the granny was £1,000, the petricola £140 & the polli £180 - i remember wanting to keep them someday but as a young lad thought it would be impossible - ha ha dreams DO come true (sometimes anyway).

I got my first petricola from the wholesaler where the granulosus were bred, they had a tank full & i got 3, well 2 actually & an "unknown" that was a contaminant which is probably either an undescribed species or a regional variant of polli. I realise now i should've bought the whole lot hindsight is a wonderful thing!

They had some a while back at wildwoods which looked really nice & were certainly the genuine article, but you do have to search them out , here in the uk.

Lucipinnis are readily available, but hybrids are creeping in all over the place at the moment with no signs of easing off - some shops have 3 or more different different types

[Carp37]

The bottom pictured ones are absolutely gorgeous! The adult male of the top species looks wonderful too...

[Veikko]

or would it be after revision, S. lucipinna

Veikko
Are you referring to the way Syno's are referred to in the Ferraris list of catfish or which revision do you mean?

Birger

Hi, and sorry because of the late answer!

Respected and appreciated catfish expert Pertti Rassi wrote in finnish Akvaristi -magazine (4/2007) that Synodontis family is feminine, not masculine. This means that names turned from -us -endings to -a endings. Synodontis notatus became S. notata and so on. By Mr. Rassi, this was told at recently introduced register (or index?) concerning all catfish names. That's the most accurate clearance I can give to you.

[Birger]

Respected and appreciated catfish expert Pertti Rassi wrote in finnish Akvaristi -magazine (4/2007) that Synodontis family is feminine, not masculine.

Okay, this was shortly after the Farraris list came out, which restarted this discussion, thanks.

Birger