is this a Synodontis Longirostris?

[Sand]

does anyone have a pic of a true longirostris? i got one from petsmart (i know, hasn't everyone?), and his nose sure looks long to me. any pix i have seen of this fish do look like mine. I would think the S. Longirostris at the PetSmart by my house is the real thing. I keep reading on different forums that it might be a hybrid, but it looks like photos that i have seen of the S longirostris
here is mine, hard to catch his side angle for a good nose view, as he is shy. but he does indeed have a long nose.

he's really lovely isn't he?

[Silurus]

Looks like

Synodontis euptera

(or worse, a hybrid) to me.

[Dave Rinaldo]

Synodontis longirostris

Your fish looks to be a hybrid.

The Syno guys will give their thoughts.

[Sand]

why do you say or worse, is a hybrid bad?

[Birger]

These have come up before from the same source with the same identification...hybrid, not sure how large it will get for you though.
S.euptera I think should still show the reticulated pattern, at least on the head at this size, but it looks like it is in the mix.

why do you say or worse, is a hybrid bad?

It is bad yes, in my opinion...especially when it is being sold under a genuine name.

Birger

[MatsP]

A hybrid is a mix between two distinct species. Whilst a "Hybrid car" may indeed be a good thing, mixing a petrol engine and a electric drive, or some such, it is not good in fish, because it involves syringes with hormones to get the fish "in the mood" and most likely the death of the parents (because of the rough handling), not to mention that the result is a fish that would not occur in nature - but often sold as the genuine item.

Not only is it unnatural to do this, but since Synos in general aren't really fast growers, we do not know their ultimate size. Hybrids in general grow faster and possibly bigger than the parents.

--
Mats

[Richard B]

Agreed it s a hybrid - additionally hybrids passed off as the genuine thing command high prices which should not be applicable to a hybrid fish. In the UK as a rough example a longirostris might cost £60, but a hybrid should be nowhere near that figure

[Sand]

I'm the original poster. Mr big fish is still going strong! I got him, around nov 2008. We just a few weeks ago had delivered,a 65 inch long acrylic tank built for him & Mrs Bigfish . he grew up with a clown loach, who died many years ago. After clown loach died, Mr Big fish wouldn't eat, & he was so thin i could see his ribs. I treated him with different meds, but nothing helped. Weeks went by & i saw a chubby bellied fish who looked like a female version of Mr Bigfish. I brought her home & wouldn't you know it, Mr Bigfish not only followed her everywhere, but he started eating, a lot!

[Viktor Jarikov]

Interesting how the thread is jump started 11.5 years later...

Anyhow, very cool to hear from you, Sand, after such a long time (and we are neighbors BTW). I don't know anyone who keeps or kept S. longirostris but I imagine at 12 years old it would be approaching an astonishingly large size (for a syno), as it is the biggest-growing known synodontis maxing out at 2 feet.

Needless to say, the experts above said correctly that this is likely a hybrid. Would be cool to see updated pics, if you willed.

While your explanation is heartwarming and stems from the human anthropomorphism tendencies, an alternative might be more rigorous and pragmatic - the fact that the loach died before living out its lifespan (which numbers a few decades, my understanding is) and that the syno refused to eat for a very long time after that might merely indicate an illness, as a result of something inadequate in the husbandry or a pathogen-induced illness, what not.

In any case, I must say I probably have never seen one fish sulking the absence of another fish but admittedly I almost never keep fish in pairs but rather in large communities.

[Sand]

no pathogens, i was out of town & a large water change was done (without me) we have chloramine in our water as u know, AND clown loaches are sensitive to their water, mine was. there was too much water changed, done too fast and with not enough de-chloraminator, the loach didn't last til morning.

Mr Bigfish is the one on top

[Viktor Jarikov]

Thank you. Mr. Bigfish looks like my biggest hybrid named "Krol": viewtopic.php?f=13&t=42768&hilit=hybrid+syno

If so, it is the most common syno hybrid that has been sold for the last decade or longer.

The one below is likely a genuine eupterus from the little I can see.

[Sand]

Thx 4 the pix of your fish. I no longer care what kind of fish he is, i just wanted to update that he is still alive. I hope he lives a long time, i sure spent a lot to get him a large home, & he's part of the family. He's such a friendly guy.
He grew at an ALARMING rate, from what i recall he grew an inch a week or so at first which is why i wanted to know what he was back then.

[Birger]

Good thing you did not get a real Longirostris...a friend of mine has one 24 inches long

Birger

[Viktor Jarikov]

Good thing you did not get a real Longirostris...a friend of mine has one 24 inches long

Birger

Mama mia! Can we see it in any shape or form? I've never seen one, let alone such size. What a prize!!!

[bekateen]

If anyone has a true longirostris they want to get rid of, I have a friend with a 4,000 gallon tank, about 30, maybe 40, feet long, who wants a few.

Cheers, Eric

[Viktor Jarikov]

If anyone has a true longirostris they want to get rid of, I have a friend with a 4,000 gallon tank, about 30, maybe 40, feet long, who wants a few.

Cheers, Eric

That mystery friend of yours better be me or otherwise this'd be ridiculous IMHO... wanting a few holy grail catfish for free... the guts in that friend! SMH.

[bekateen]

That mystery friend of yours better be me or otherwise this'd be ridiculous IMHO... wanting a few holy grail catfish for free... the guts in that friend! SMH.

Sorry, Viktor, no I didn't speak clearly. I didn't mean for free. I'm sure he'd buy the fish. He's been looking for a while, from what I've heard.

... Also, no, I wasn't referring to you, but I didn't mean to create competition.

Cheers, Eric

[Viktor Jarikov]

Sorry, Viktor, no I didn't speak clearly. I didn't mean for free. I'm sure he'd buy the fish. He's been looking for a while, from what I've heard.

... Also, no, I wasn't referring to you, but I didn't mean to create competition.

Cheers, Eric

Haha... thanks for the elaboration, Eric! My post was a farce, a joke directed at myself but a play off your post. Sorry. I wish all the luck to your friend and I'd dearly love to see him or her succeed, it's just that from my perspective chances are none unless your friend finds an importer who can bring in this species. I've no clue as to what time is needed for the longirostris to gain that kind of size and sexual maturity.

I too suspect your friend is not on PCF or MFK, so if they ever succeeded, I'd be unlikely to know or enjoy the process or the visuals.