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Hello! I can get some Belonoglanis tenius or Trachyglanis sp. from Kintele (Congo Brazzaville). Do someone know how to keep them? Something special I have to know? Size of the tank?

The only things i can say are:

Fine sand substrate, some water movement, cooler temperatures and massive oxygenation. Couple this with live or frozen live foods - daphnia, brine shimp, cyclops etc - these are tiny fish with tiny mouths.

If you are gonna get some, it would be good if they have been properly acclimatised by the dealer & are feeding already. Many amphillids do not survive long due to poor export processes & inadequate husbandry.

Hi Stan

I have only had some for two weeks now and am still worried about how they feed...I suggest a well conditioned tank that has much for them to browse over as they search for food. Oxygenation is good but too much movement of the water may keep food from settling where they can browse for it.

The suggestions above are good, I also feed chopped bloodworm and Repashy Soilient Green as that was suggested by the seller, I think they eat the bloodworm but I do not really see them browse on the Repashy food.

These fish are dainty enough I have also been feeding Walter worms from a culture I have and it is hard to say but I think this is what they eat the most of...this is what seems to get the most movement from them.

I suggest to refrain from adding any tankmates until you are used to these fish and certain they are feeding (and still alive)...although the proper choice of tankmate may also help them to feed better but I do not have enough to experiment with.

These spend most of the time sitting on the sand often near an item, but not necessarily completely under, sticks, foam filter base, that sort of thing. They will also sit out on the sand in plain sight.

Seeing these fish in person they are the most delicate looking of fish (aside from maybe a pipefish), quite a change from many of the robust fish of the region. Many of the fish from the region are quite hardy so we just need to figure out their requirements.

Mine are alone in a 76 L, 76cm x 30cm x 33cm

Belonoglanis tenius are a larger fish and may settle in better but hard to say...also these fish are hard to ID so a person could even have a species or two or three lumped together in a large group.

Birger

Thank you for the comprehensive answers! So I will keep them alone at first (steel, I don't know the prices, I hope they won't be to expensieve). What water conditions do they need? (pH, dH)
Birger: How many do you keep? Can you tell something about interactions between them (aggression)?

Mine did a lot of travel before making it to me...I have four of the original six but all seem to be eating...If I were to do it again I would get a larger group to start, hoping enough of them settle in.

I had a good price (I thought) at $12 US each.

There has not been any aggresion yet that I have seen and often they are sitting near one another but I do not think they really do this on purpose.

Most fish from the area are quite resilient when it comes to conditions and I think a stable environment is better than messing with the water to try to match. Getting their bellies full is the key I think...at least in preliminary stage. Birger

Belonoglanis brieni's got my attention for quite a while which was a bit tempered after surfing the web.
next week a new arrival is expected and i know it contains both belonoglanis' as well.

birger's post makes me stll want to try.

lovely photo btw

thank you for pm Birger! Very nice foto! I'm really fascinating by these fish, try to get a group of 8 individuals - Belonoglanis or Trachyglanis. Steel waiting for the prices... 12$ is O.K., as I have recently seen "Belonoglanis sp. RED" on the stock of a German importer for ab. 70€

november: utaka.nl ?

that is correct stan, utaka it is.

I got six from the same group as Birger but only two made it.
I think they are great!! Very outgoing when feeding.

I am also going to add this link, it has great pictures http://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/view ... 32&start=0

and this one which has what I believe is a B. tenuis http://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/view ... 39&start=0

Dave, I think you possibly have both,I may too, compare the overhead shots in the two threads above.

Add your other two overhead images as well here please.(And send them all to me for the Cat-eLog)I will also check with Ben to add his shots.

What are yours eating???

Birger

birger's post makes me stll want to try.

These fish seem to be getting exported at the moment...so Yes please try, lets figure out these little gems.

Birger

I'm feeding decapsulated brine eggs, frozen glassworms, baby brine, bloodworms etc.

Hopefully they'll appear over here...

@november: there must be some delay then, I had an information, that the westie-import incoming on the 2.11. Do you know, if they sell direct after the arrival, without acclimatizing the fish?

PS: I think, I have more informations I ever dreamed of now.

Stan wrote:PS: I think, I have more informations I ever dreamed of now.

it is amazing what fish you can put your hands on, though, the S.alberti i've asked for months ago still are too far away....


a PM is coming your way stan.

Even though you may see them less I think leaf litter should be added as this is a natural place they are found in the wild, also found among trailing branches at the edges of streams. They then browse among this form of cover. Or in my case established spawning mops allowed to sink.

So far with further looking I think this one is a , maybe the shape of the Nuchal plate and the spotting and placement of the spots on the body.

This one I still believe to be the slender head,body and shape of the Nuchal, the yellowish coloration, lightly pigmented. Seemingly the more delicate of the two.

"Belonoglanis sp. RED"

This could possibly be they can have quite a red tinge to them.

I feel a COTM (or two) coming on...

Birger

Phractura would be also very interesting, but 70€/ 400-600€ for a group are really too much .

Successfully bred as early as the 1950s by Försch. Breeding report is summarized in Baensch, Vol. 3, and pictures of eggs and fry are reproduced in Burgess' Atlas.

Never heard about it. Do they care about the eggs?

There is an account in Seegers (Catfishes of Africa pg.155)for Foersch, he had called them P.ansorgei at the time. 100 eggs per spawning were expelled at the bottom and does not mention broodcare.

Birger

Stan wrote:@november: there must be some delay then, I had an information, that the westie-import incoming on the 2.11. Do you know, if they sell direct after the arrival, without acclimatizing the fish?

PS: I think, I have more informations I ever dreamed of now.

i can tell belonoglanis'(as many others) have not arrived after i've phoned yesterday.

Cat-eLog updates.

Wishing everyone luck with these!

Birger wrote:This could possibly be

Phractura clauseni

they can have quite a red tinge to them.

I feel a COTM (or two) coming on...

Claus? Red tinge? Christmas CotM?

Jools

@november: that are bad news. They did have some more cool species on the list. So we have to hope, that at least Trachyglanis arrive.

@Birger: thanks! I'll take a look at home

Jools wrote:

Birger wrote:This could possibly be

Phractura clauseni

they can have quite a red tinge to them.

I feel a COTM (or two) coming on...

Claus? Red tinge? Christmas CotM?

Jools

That would work out nicely except for the fact I have not kept these (yet) but I will do the other two species in this thread.

Birger

Stan wrote: So we have to hope, that at least Trachyglanis arrive

well i think they did, i was there today to pick up 7 S.flavitaeniata and a single decora to complete my own group (got 5 now) and noticed a couple.

they were called trachyglanis sp.and were red'ish as shown earlier this thread.

I sent an email to Utaka - all Trachyglanis are already reserved . At least I preordered Nannaethiops, Sicydium and the last decorus. They are waiting for a new shipment in December, so there is still a hope.