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what is a small catfish (no more than 5 or 6" adult size) that can be kept alone, and is active during the day?

it seems all the ones i like are schooling, and though i could have a school of one of the catfish i like, it leaves little room to do stuff with mid- and top-dwelling fish. alternatively, are there any catfish that grow to about 3"?

Dianema longibarbis seem to do fine as lone individuals, unlike D. urostriata which seem skittish unless maintained as a group. Lepthoplosternum also do not seem to have any problems when housed singly, although you could always add to the fun by getting a pair and breeding them.
What fish do you already have in the aquarium?

I would disagree about the dianema longibarbis. I had one by itself for a couple of years and he was very shy. When I added some more in the past few months the longibarbis were very very happy!


I think you might want to look at Synos. S. Eupterus is a very fine specimin that appears to grow in your length and would cover all levels. Mine has a piece of corkwood to hide under near the top of the surface.

The other one's to consider are Doridae (amblydoras hancocki, striped and spotted raphaels).

Various Lnumbers types too.

If you want a few and of course not knowing the size of tank or other fishes, I might also suggest the pygmy cory types (c. pygmaeus, C. habrosis, and c.hastatus) these guys are small, but you probably want them in groups of 6. We mix our least killifish with the c.hastatus (mid-level cory).

I hope the suggestions help, but remember you will look at the aquarium every day, we won't so make sure you like your fish you select! Some people don't and then get quite frustrated.

Thanks,

Scott

i really prefer the slender body types, and the eupterus seems to get quite chunky as an adult. that said, i don't mind them, i like synos as a group.

i've heard that the raphaels are extremely shy?

i really like cories, i might just end up getting a bunch of those, but i so love the big catfish.

thanks for your help, again

oh, i have a 48g, and it's not stocked yet, but am planning on some small loaches, a bristlenose, and some small- to mid-sized schools of top-dwelling fish.