Synodontis petricola (Germany)

[KittyKat]

5 Synodontis petricola wanted in Berlin, although might be able to collect from Dresden, Hamburg, München and Nürnberg too. Suggestions for shops which might stock them are welcome too.

[MatsP]

Are you after the

Synodontis petricola

or

Synodontis lucipinnis

- the latter is almost always sold as S. petricola and much more common. The real S. petricola is quite rare and nearly always wild-caught. S. lucipinis is often sold as juvenile tank bred fish, and as I said, fairly common - by fairly common, I mean in relation to true Petricola. It's still not a fish you find in every shop - I would have thought that Berlin would have at least one good shop that have them, however. It's a big enough city to have a shop that carries a few less common fish.

--
Mats

[KittyKat]

I would prefer S. petricola, although would be happy to settle for S. lucipinis (because they are a more realistic option).

Even though I have been living in Berlin for 1.5 years now, I am not German and do not speak the language, which makes finding shops very difficult. I have asked on German forums before for recommendations, and there is only one which comes up regularly. They are happy to order the fish in for me, but I would personally prefer to see the fish before buying. I used to have to work with a number of wholesalers in UK a few years ago and the fish were too often mislabelled!

[MatsP]

I can see how not speaking the language may be a hindrance. I bought a pair of motorcycle boots from a small shop in Nurnberg several years ago (because they were about half the price compared to UK, and still quite expensive even then), and there was a bit of a language barrier... The shop-keeper managed to get the chap from next door to come in and help out, and we managed to sort out the deal.

--
Mats

[RickE]

Hi Kat

Have you tried asking Aquarium Glaser if they can recommend an outlet to you?

http://www.aquarium-glaser.de/en/index.php

Whilst not cheap, Glaser usually have a huge range of fish including many rare and unusual species. They are trade only though, so you would have to ask your LFS to buy them in for you.

Rick

[Richard B]

Sidguppy may be able to recommend somewhere in Germany as he knows about such things - particularly involving Tang fish. A supplier might be able to provide pics of the actual fish & then ship to you?