PlanetCatfish.com

I was in a fish shop the other day known for its "tankbusters" and flowerhorns. There were a mass of little black fish wriggling around at the bottom of a tank. On closer inspection, I recognized them as some sort of catfish. They were about 1-1.5 inches long and lean, smokey black all over except for the maxillary barbels which were white. I was tempted to buy a few but don't need a tank buster. Can anyone tell me what they could be? The closest thing I could find in the cat-eLog is Hemibagrus species. But not many juvenile examples. Is the color pattern indicative or definitive? I can try and get a pic if needed. Thanks for any help.

A pic would help no end - there are loads of things it might be.....

How many barbels in total per fish? 6 or 8 or something else???

Sounds like juvenile .

Thanks guys, I'll get back with more details in a few days.

could be the hemibagrus wyckioides or the hemibagrus wyckii
as both the fish at juvenile size look quite similar, only once they reach like 4"+ do the wyckioides start getting more red on the tail but the extended ray on the caudal comes early at 3" or so.