S.Schall or Nigrita, colour is off for one and has spots :/

[saphphx]

This is Mr Grey, one of my 3 rescued Synos. He use to be more grey and is now more brown. I had thought when he was smaller he was bang on a Juvi S. bastiani. However when he went missing 3 years ago I gave up trying to work out what he was. Long story short he has turned up. I have two S. euptera in with him who have paired up and seem very happy. He just sits in his cave, day and night. If food doesn't drift into it he doesn't eat. I've spent hours watching. I moved him to a bigger tank, with his cave, in hope more space would make them all happier (now in a 78x24x24 inch tank) but he has picked a new hide and still wont come out. The S. euptera will sit with him for a bit - they couldn't all fit in the cave before, but he is now under a large chunk of bogwood with room for three - but he ignores them and wont swim with them.

I currently feed the tank on a rota; cut up fish, various blanched veg, catfish pellets, sinking varity tabs, bloodworm, daphnia, and a good deal of oscar food that ends up sinking, so he shouldn't starve. But I am wondering if I am missing something key. If I knew what he was maybe I could work that out and make him happy. Do you think he needs a friend of his own kind? The tank is big enough (78x24x24 inch - 700+ltr water, 1x Oscar, 6x Giant Danios, 2x S. euptera, 1x P. pardalis, 1x P. gibbiceps and Mr Grey) so I don't see a problem there. Eventually the oscar should go and clown loaches will have that tank, but by then my 5 foot will be well established for the synos to have.

Any help would be fab. Here are a few more pics of him, but they are really all the same. If you need more I can try to find him in the tank:

http://www.phoenixfish.co.uk/image/forp ... -09-13.jpg
http://www.phoenixfish.co.uk/image/forp ... -09-13.jpg

And for fun, my S. euptera on the same day, moved them all to the big tank and took pics while I could find them - the big tank is full of hiding places lol. I am terrified of them, ever time I go into the tank I get poked by the little guys. This day was no different. I assume the big'ol'fishy is female lol, rr very ill and I should be worried :/ Sorry for the crap pics, will get better ones when they settle!


More here: It is evenly bulgy on each side at least, thus I think its just female
http://www.phoenixfish.co.uk/image/forp ... -09-13.jpg
http://www.phoenixfish.co.uk/image/forp ... -09-13.jpg
http://www.phoenixfish.co.uk/image/forp ... -09-13.jpg
http://www.phoenixfish.co.uk/image/forp ... -09-13.jpg

[Chrysichthys]

But I am wondering if I am missing something key. If I knew what he was maybe I could work that out and make him happy. Do you think he needs a friend of his own kind?

I think he's a Synodontis schall. Possibly he just doesn't venture out when the lights are on. You could try adding food to the tank late at night with the tank just lit barely enough for you to see. As far as needing more of his own kind, schall is one of the more aggressive and territorial syno species, so adding another might cause trouble, although a group of five or six would be possible.

[saphphx]

Not sure I can fit 4 more of them in a 5 foot when its time for the clowns to move, will have to think about it though!

I've tried, sat for ages in the dark with just a night light so I can just see and never saw him move. He must do at some time. I had originally thought he had gotten stuck and couldn't get out, though he is smaller then the cave opening - and the bog wood opening.


I have no idea why I put C. Schall... I have corydoras on the brain haha

Thank you so very much for the info! I guess he just has weird colouring or I'm not looking for the right thing! I don't generally do Synos, just plecs and corys haha.

[saphphx]

Donno - he is maybe 6 inches SL, reading that he should be 14.. He is at least 4 years old, I use to think he changed size, but looking at some really old pics and he doesn't seem to have changed at all other then going more brown. Will have to try to scan the old pics in, but they are a bit badly printed and fuzzy to start with :/

[Richard B]

Schall is a definate possibility looking at the large adipose. A pic directly from the side would be beneficial to see the humeral & head shape/relation to eye/snout length

[MatsP]

Donno - he is maybe 6 inches SL, reading that he should be 14.. He is at least 4 years old, I use to think he changed size, but looking at some really old pics and he doesn't seem to have changed at all other then going more brown. Will have to try to scan the old pics in, but they are a bit badly printed and fuzzy to start with :/

Synos live for a long time (someone posted about one that has been held for 29 years in captivity), so slow-growing isn't very unusual. If you also have other synos in the tank, they will probably get some of the food first, so that may also explain slow growth.

--
Mats

[saphphx]

wow, at this rate he could outlive me haha.

I saw him pick at some flake last night, but spit it back out. There is enough food for everyone, and always left overs that I have to scoop out the next morning as the oscar never eats the same amount twice, so its all guess work, but normally there is bits left over.

Will try dropping some pellets right under the bogwood then turning out the lights and see if he eats then. He couldn't have gone 3 years without eating anything, so he must be being sneaky about it. I guess I am just use to chucking things into an "empty tank", waiting 20 seconds then finding a mass of corydoras everywhere lol."

[sidguppy]

it could be schall -it loks like it- but in my experience, schall is a fast growing fish

mine went from a wee lil 1" bycatch to a 7" terrormonster in less than a year.....

Synodontis schall is very robust, boisterous and fearless. it's also not afraid to tackle any other fish and win the fight over a favorite cave.
and that's including adversaries like spiny doradids, pims, 1 foot spiny eels etc.

I had to ditch it unfortunately, because it kept on beating up 2 adult Batrachoglanis raninus. that was back in the days before I restricted myself to African fishes

bloody shame, really, cause that schall would have been a very visible "por mans' granny" in any Rifttank. it's a perfect fish for a tank with big cichlids.

synodontis schall is one of the very few catfishes I can advise to people who keep those big nasty Central American cichlidspecies like Parachromis, Vieja, Nandopsis and the like.

[saphphx]

Hm, I don't think Schall at all then, either that or he is on drugs he is the calmest fish in the tank, and has moved from inside the cave to sitting on top of it - I don't think he likes the bare glass. He really just sits there and takes the occasional in-the-faceness of the S. euptera where they come over and get RIGHT in his face, swim nose to nose with him then bugger off and he just sits there and ignores them. Of the three I like him the most for that.

I figure he has maybe grown an inch or so since I got him 3 years back, and has gone from a sorta grey to sorta brown, but now that he's been in the big tank for a while he's going a bit grey again. Will get some more pics tonight when I get in if he's still hanging out.

I am kinda wondering if they are ill though, they are all active except him, but that S. euptera looks like it at a golf ball and I found some floating poo. But they are all acting normal for them, I don't have experience with other synos, but these three are acting as per norm, but if they've always been ill (and for some reason haven't died which would be impressive of a 3 year illness) then yeah.

I donno, maybe I will just never know what he is lol. Will post some more pics tonight though.

[saphphx]

Someone on another forum has suggested S. Frontosa, what do you guys think?

Here are some more pics:


A very NOT IMPRESSED Mr Grey in a plant pot.

Lots more at: http://www.phoenixfish.co.uk/image/forp ... is/MrGrey/


I've also measured him - closer to 7 to 8 inches!!! He fills the plant pot nose to tail haha. I fail at guessing fish sizes!! Everything is SMALL after 2foot long pacu!!!