Microglanis Iheringi Size (South American Bumblebee Catfish)

Ben · Post by **Ben** » 22 Oct 2003, 06:33

Hey folks,

I have had a pair of Microglanis iheringi (South American Bumblebee Catfish) for some time. Some time ago I was taking some nice detailed pics of them, and noticed something rather striking. On the Cat-dLog, they are listed as being 2.2". In the below pics, see that mine have easily passed that mark. These pics were taken about 5 months ago, and they have grown even more little more since. Has anyone else who keeps these guys seen them get this big? Maybe it's something in the Canadian water eh? ;)

I have a pile of new pics from that photo session, including a very large version of the first image above that gives a fabulous view of the markings @ http://www.corydorasworld.com/planetcat ... m03?page=1

Post by **Silurus** » 22 Oct 2003, 10:50

Maybe that's because the fish may not be M. ihgeringi. Microglanis parahybae is a species that reaches a little over 3" (SL).
Since no one has taken the guesswork out of identifying these fishes to species, it's possible that you may have M. parahybae.
Anyway, the sizes given in the Cat-eLog are not necessarily set in stone. Microglanis is one of the less-studied groups and data for maximum sizes is somewhat sketchy.
FWIW, my Microglanis is also about the same size as yours, and it's fairly amusing to watch it tussle with my banjo cats (you'd be surprised how active they are after the lights are out) for bloodworms.

Ben · Post by **Ben** » 22 Oct 2003, 11:07

A good bit of info there Silurus, thank you. If anyone can shed more light on this, it would be appreciated, as a note of interest.

You are bang on with how active these guys are at night! I have had mine for a little over a year now, and they are the most comical beasts in my tank. The pics in the Cat-eLog of the fellow shoving an oversized food pellet in his mouth is the same one (or perhaps it's companion) as these new pics. I have recently captured come great candid random "shots in the dark" with these guys as star players

Whatever the exact classification, a wonderful fish!

Post by **Silurus** » 22 Oct 2003, 11:10

You are bang on with how active these guys are at night!

Actually, I was referring to the banjo cats...
It's a measure of how active they can be when they start snatching bloodworms out of the mouth of the Microglanis.

Ben · Post by **Ben** » 22 Oct 2003, 11:13

LOL, ah, sorry for the missunderstanding

Banjo Cats are something I've wanted to find for a while actually. They really sounds like great cats to have around. Unfortuanately I'm in an area with slim pickings when it comes to catfish. Like many others that interest me, all I can do is cross my fingers and hope they show up in my LFS.

Caol_ila · Post by **Caol_ila** » 22 Oct 2003, 11:18

Hi!

I have two fish(es) that i bought as M.iheringi and the light colored one looks like your fish and is about the same size if i converted correctly. Maybe even a bit bigger.
The second fish looks totally different as it has dark "light" markings. If you compare it looks like the M.parahybae in the Mergus photo index. I dont have it for too long so i cant say at which size it will max out but at the moment its 5 -6 cm. When i bought it i thought the dark markings (where they normally are skin colored) were stress coloration but the mottled pattern has become even more intense. Sadly id have to catch it and take a pic, cauz i almost never see it.

Ben · Post by **Ben** » 22 Oct 2003, 11:31

Hmmm, I'd love to see a pic if you are able to get one. Just doing a bit of digging around, on the net, comparing different classification pics....in languages I can't understand...the M.parahybae seems to be much thicker in body as well as longer than the M.iheringi , though the marking look close to identical. I can see how any store could confuse the two

One think I've found with mine is that as they have grown, the "light" markings have gotten quite a bit lighter. Compare the older pic below, to the two at the top. Now this difference isn't just a trick of the light, it's really noticable when you look at the fish. These are about a year apart.

Caol_ila wrote:Hi!

I have two fish(es) that i bought as M.iheringi and the light colored one looks like your fish and is about the same size if i converted correctly. Maybe even a bit bigger.
The second fish looks totally different as it has dark "light" markings. If you compare it looks like the M.parahybae in the Mergus photo index. I dont have it for too long so i cant say at which size it will max out but at the moment its 5 -6 cm. When i bought it i thought the dark markings (where they normally are skin colored) were stress coloration but the mottled pattern has become even more intense. Sadly id have to catch it and take a pic, cauz i almost never see it.

MackIntheBox · Post by **MackIntheBox** » 22 Oct 2003, 16:22

well now im wondering if I id'ed mine correctly..

I thought mine was a Batrochoglanis raninus, but after looking at your pictures and the link to the Microglanis iheringi, I think it may be the M. iheringi. I still kind of think it is the B. raninus just because of the fins, the coloration does not appear the same as in the cat-elog though...

What do you guys think?

Post by **Silurus** » 22 Oct 2003, 16:51

Yashmack, your fish is definitely a Batrochoglanis. In time to come, the light markings will become smaller and fade, so much so that they will almost disappear.

Post by **Silurus** » 22 Oct 2003, 16:54

Just doing a bit of digging around, on the net, comparing different classification pics....in languages I can't understand...the M.parahybae seems to be much thicker in body as well as longer than the M.iheringi , though the marking look close to identical.

And that assumes that the fish were correctly identified in the first place.

Caol_ila · Post by **Caol_ila** » 22 Oct 2003, 17:03

Hi!

Thats the color i was talking about. Interesting! Maybe its the juvenile stage after all.

Post by **Silurus** » 22 Oct 2003, 17:12

I don't know. Maybe it's just variation. My fish is the same size as Ben's, but it has always retained the darker color.
It might be a different species, but it seems to have stopped growing.

MackIntheBox · Post by **MackIntheBox** » 22 Oct 2003, 17:13

Silurus wrote:Yashmack, your fish is definitely a Batrochoglanis. In time to come, the light markings will become smaller and fade, so much so that they will almost disappear.

aw, and I liked his stripes ;) ah well, I will still love my catfish.

Ben's does look more like the Microglanis iheringi than anything else, the fins match but the body seems broader and rounder.

Pectorale · Post by **Pectorale** » 23 Oct 2003, 12:09

I have a group of 5 M. iherengi ( at least I bought them as such) and the smallest is about 3,5 cm, the largest about 6,5 cm.They are very variable in their markings but I do believe they are indeed one species.They can get rather bulky especially after an abundant meal, I didn't think Ben's were very "fat" at all and since my fish look very much like his, I'd say they are M. iherengi.

Ben · Post by **Ben** » 23 Oct 2003, 13:18

What in the end made me lean more towards M. parahybae was following

M. iherengi

M. parahybae

Pectorale wrote:I have a group of 5 M. iherengi ( at least I bought them as such) and the smallest is about 3,5 cm, the largest about 6,5 cm.They are very variable in their markings but I do believe they are indeed one species.They can get rather bulky especially after an abundant meal, I didn't think Ben's were very "fat" at all and since my fish look very much like his, I'd say they are M. iherengi.

Caol_ila · Post by **Caol_ila** » 23 Oct 2003, 16:11

Hi!

So is the caudal forked vs. straight? Or is it just the pic. The Mergus Fotoindex also features pics that look similar to this comparison.

Post by **Silurus** » 23 Oct 2003, 17:07

The caudal fin is gently forked in all Microgalnis.

Pectorale · Post by **Pectorale** » 26 Oct 2003, 09:55

Ben wrote

What in the end made me lean more towards M. parahybae was following

That is a very good picture, I assume they're preserved specimen. I'm beginning to have doubts myself now as to what species is /are in my tank. I'll try to persuade Sid to take some pictures, we'd wanted to photograph my sole remaining Ituglanis anyway.

PS We' ve tried but I don't think the pix are any good.

TiGrInUs · Post by **TiGrInUs** » 02 Nov 2003, 06:23

I have two of these...always wondered what speices i had. So they are banjo cat compatible heh? Looks like its time to mix my banjo cats with my bumble bees. What other small species of pim could go in here?

Post by **Silurus** » 02 Nov 2003, 08:51

What other small species of pim could go in here?

Any of the smaller heptapterids (Brachyrhamdia, Heptapterus, Imparfinis or smaller Pimelodella) should do fine. Heptapterus are particularly nasty towards their own kind, though.