Comfortable home for Zamora catfish?

[kalija]

For those of you who have Zamora catfish – what type of caves do you find they prefer to live in? I have 8 Zamora’s and they have jammed themselves into a ceramic burrito style pleco tube. As they have grown I am seeing more and more of their tails sticking out of the end – so I know they are running out of room inside (I can’t believe they all fit in there – the ones in the front must be squished!). I have a ton of driftwood in the tank to make caves and I have added other ceramic tubes – but they remain crammed into the one. I really want to give them other options so I am looking for suggestions.

What else could I add that I am missing? I tried drilling holes in piece of bogwood as suggested in the catalog but they never used them, and I have removed it since they have grown and I fear them getting stuck….

Thanks,

Karen

[Marc van Arc]

The best thing you can do is get that burrito-thing out of your tank and leave it out.
If you have so much wood, they will soon find other places to hide without having to sit like sardines in a tin can and - like you say - without the risk of hurting each other.

PS: I would also get the other ceramic tubes out. Fine for plecos, but not for auchenipterids imo/ime.

[Narwhal72]

For my T. exilis and banjo cats I actually use some large burrito caves that happened to be broken in half lengthwise. I just lay them on top of the sand.

The caves are open ended so I don't have to worry about fish getting stuck (they can just swim out the other side). You could probably make something from PVC by just taking some 2" or 3" pipe and cutting it lengthwise into two C shapes.

Andy

[Jools]

I'd have had good results with pleco burritos too, I've got a bunch of [male] zamora's in a tank and the prefer this over scattered bogwood. I think because it's darker. The ideal would be a long dark pipe, open both ends and mimicking bamboo. However that is currently deployed for larger woodcats I have.

Hope that helps,

Jools

[dpm1]

X'ed

[Marc van Arc]

Seems my E.gameroi are the odds ones out and are too enigmatic for the usual woodcats behaviour...

Pipes, caves, logs, coconut halves, dark shabowy corners and the hideaways underneath the XL catappa leaves - all ignored.
Instead I've caught them enmeshed in Vallis, entangled in riccia, surrounded by otos, or even just sat in plain sight pressed up against the glass or a piece of decor. In fact about the only thing they do regularly is rest at every angle except upright...well that and the mad dash as soon as I switch to night mode!

I fail to see the relevance of your reply wrt the OP's question.

Besides, E. gameroi is definitely not the only auchenipterid that behaves in the way you describe. So you did a good thing by using the word "Seems".

[kalija]

Thank you all for the suggestions. So from what some of you are saying, it does seem like they may prefer to be all together in a hiding place.
Mark - I can take out the burrito cave and they will certainly hide individually in the wood - but I don't want to cause them stress if that is not what they prefer?

Maybe I just need more of them or bigger? Or are you saying that having them all hide together in one place is bad? I have never noticed them fighting - but of course I don't "see" them often anyway. I guess I am afraid if I remove it and take away their security I will see them even less?
These may be dumb questions - I appreciate you all taking the time to answer!

Thanks,

Karen

[Marc van Arc]

You're welcome.

As I am rather opposed to artificial objects in a tank, I have been using wood and plants in my tanks for decades. My Zamoras have always done very well in settings like this. If given enough hiding places, they will certainly not become stressed. In your case they may be a little confused for a while, but I'm sure they will adapt to the new circumstances.
Sometimes mine hang out together, but most of the time they don't. And mind you, adult males can and will fight rather fiercely when ladies are involved. Of course these are my experiences; maybe someone else has had different ones.
I also find them very visible with lights on when food is served. After lights out - but with moonlight on - I find them very visible anyway.
I have been keeping mine (2 pairs) for 13 years now and I think it is a very rewarding species.

Btw: there is no such thing as a dumb question. Or maybe one: the question one has but does not dare to ask. So keep on asking as long as things are unclear to you.

[dpm1]

X'ed

[Marc van Arc]

I find the emphasis on the use of 'seems' as almost a sarcastic implication that 'the noob is types before he thinks'.

I have no idea what this is supposed to mean.
But don't bother explaining. As most of your postings show an arrogance that irritates me, I will ignore them from now on. There's a button on PC that will help me do so.

Now let's return to the subject.

[kalija]

Thanks Mark! I would prefer to keep the tank more natural also. Maybe I will try to drill the holes bigger in the piece of bog wood I tried before. If the burrito is gone they may use it....
Of course my husband will complain about me dulling his drill again lol. I actually added it for the plecs but they have never had an opponent to use it anyhow.

[Marc van Arc]

Thanks Mark! I would prefer to keep the tank more natural also. Maybe I will try to drill the holes bigger in the piece of bog wood I tried before. If the burrito is gone they may use it....
Of course my husband will complain about me dulling his drill again lol. I actually added it for the plecs but they have never had an opponent to use it anyhow.

There's no need to ruin a drill afaics. Ime Zamoras do not really like sitting in holes. I still have 2 pieces of wood with holes large enough to house them, but they never use them. They'll be perfectly fine when they have pieces of wood which lie on the sand and provide shelter. These are the spots where I can (nearly)always find them.

[Jools]

I suspect preference for bogwood versus pipes etc depends on how bright the tank is when the lights are on. If you're going natural then bamboo might work?

Something like longer versions of the pic below which you should also be able to find in green if you look a bit further.



Jools

[jodilynn]

When I first had my two females and my male, the one female (who has since died) would cram herself in the corner by one of the decorations, and the other two hid in one of the other decorations. They had become quite ill and I had removed them to a hospital tank, and since they were reintroduced they have been wedged between the driftwood and the glass, which makes me very happy as I able to see them during the day.

I have two more females in quarantine right now so it will be interesting to see where they wind up, if they join the other two or find there own place.

I am just a bit concerned as I have a female Ancistrus going in the tank soon and I do not want any battles over that driftwood, so I am going to look for another piece of driftwood or the bamboo to add to the tank.

Good Luck! They are truly one of my favorite fish!

[kalija]

I like the looks of the bamboo - maybe I will look into that in the future, if they don't seem happy. For now the "burrito" has been removed. My 10 year old counted them as they all poured out of it and was astonished they were all in there. I moved some of the driftwood around and made sure there were enough hollows beneath them and they all found a spot rather quickly. I will see what happens. Thanks for the help!

[jodilynn]

http://www.petco.com/assets/product_ima ... 78224C.jpg

Any opinions? Thought about getting a couple for my Zamoras and SA Bumblebees.

[jodilynn]

http://www.petco.com/product/122082/Pen ... =LookAhead

More info...

[Martin S]

I'd say no for the zamoras as it's only 3" across the entire three tubes. Though the bumblebees may be OK.

[kalija]

You may have a different result than me, but my Zamoras won't use any of pleco tubes that I have that are open on both ends. Maybe if you found something larger and closed off one end somehow.....
I was thinking the bamboo might work since the one end has a smaller opening.
Karen