Which Parotocinclus??

[BevN]

I got a bunch of these guys in and have been trying to identify them. They came only as Parotocinclus Rio Negro. They are just about 1". Cute little buggers. I'm going to keep a group for myself and would like to learn a bit more about them.

If anyone has any ideas I'd greatly appreciate it. They are neat little fish for sure.









Thanks,
Bev

[Martin S]

First thought was

Parotocinclus cf_eppleyi

...
Martin

[BevN]

Thanks Martin! I really appreciate the response. These are some of the neatest things. I'm looking forward to finding out more information on them. From what I see here there isn't a lot known. Hopefully I'll be able to find out some more. I'm going to set up a small species tank for them.

Thanks again,
Bev

[Martin S]

Hi Bev
Be interesting to know how you get on with these - my LFS had 15 in, I took home 2, and they lost all of theirs within a couple of weeks. I lost my first one after about 10 days, the second one held on for another three weeks - relatively active and constantly grazing around the tank, it looked like it may survive, but sadly it didn't make it, even though it seemed healthy.
How many do you have? I'm guessing info on temperature/tank setup is pretty much the same as per the other

Parotocinclus

.
Good luck
Martin

[apistomaster]

I just got 6 of these Parotocinclus cf epplyei from Bev Newcomer.
I live where the USPS considers a rural area so Priority or Express Mails both take 2 days to arrive.
I think my order was chilled at some point and 2 of these little Parotocinclus were DOA but the 4 survivors have seemed to acclimate well so far. I already had a well established planted 10 gal tank with very soft water, 50-75 ppm TDS and a pH of about 6.2-6.4
I had allowed algae to grow on the sides and back glass panels while this tank has been previously set up to spawn Apistogramma panduro. The new catfish have already made a noticeable dent in the available algae supply in only 24 hours.
There is presently a pair of Apistogramma trifasciatus, 2 Boraras maculata, many Cherry Shrimp and 4 Pangio oblongata, a Brown Kuhlii Loach species.
None of the fish have bothered the new Parotociclus but when I get more, I will be removing the other fish.
The new Parotocinclus went to work immediately on the algae and they appear to be doing well, so far.
I plan to collect 12 more so I have a group size of 16 or so. If they do well, I will be allowing them to have their own permanent set up and I will try my best to get them to spawn. Breeding this pygmy would be a very personally rewarding experience for me. They don't seem to me like a fish that would be likely to bother their own eggs or fry.
They have quickly made my short list of favorite Loricaridae Catfish.
At a glance, they look like stubby, chunky short-tailed 6 week old Sturisoma fry.
I think it is early in the history of P. cf epplyei in captivity and therefore, it is a species for which we have much to learn about their optimal care and ultimately, captive spawning. I think most of the experience may be safely gained using only 10 gal sized tanks.
They are so small yet i know mine are about as large as any that have been imported so far. Finding out exactly what their maximum size potential is will be interesting. I doubt if they ever get more than 1 inch TL.
I have a fascination for nano-fish spp. Some Hyphessobrycon amandae seem like good possible tank mates.
Now that it's beginning to warm up, I think I will keep some stones in a wading pool in full sun and added fertilizer to encourgae and maintain a supply of algae coated stones for their supplemental feeding. I wanted to have my outdoor pools already going but my yard spraying company hasn't applied the herbicides yet. That should be done early next week so i will get them going asap. I raise mosquito larvae and live blood worms in them every summer. Some algae over rocks and wood are easy enough to include and the outdoor cultured stuff will also have very small insect larvae in the algae. I have a feeling that prepared foods alone may be inadequate, especially for any breeding attempts.