29 gallon catfish possibilities (microglanis iheringi?)

[Rocco]

Hello everybody!

Laterly, my interest in catfish has really grown. It started out with my interest for plecos, however I have recently been looking into all the other cool types of catfish. Because of my shift in interest, I have decided to alter the stocking of my 29 gallon (110 L) (heavily) planted tank. The tank currently houses:
1 bristlenose pleco (6 cm)
8 zebra danio
10 guppys

The tank is heavily planted. Including floating plants which cover about 25% of the surface. The substrate is fine sand. Furthermore the tank is decorated with two big pieces of driftwood and a variety of stones. So there are quite a few hiding spots. But I could add more if necessary.
The parameters are:
Temperature: 24° C
pH: 7.5-8.0
kH: 10° DH
gH: 9° DH
NH3: 0
NO2: 0
NO3: between 0 and 10 mg/l
PO4: 0

Changes could be made to certain parameters such as temperature if needed and if still suitable for the current inhabitants.

I would like to add more species of catfish to my aquarium (if possible). I want to keep my zebra danios (and of course my bristlenose) but I am planning on moving my guppies to another tank or selling them.

I was wondering what kind of catfish would be suitable for this tank. (And if this tank is even suitable for any more catfish). I personally really like the south american bumblebee. But I'm not sure whether they would eat my danios. Would the south american bumblebee be suitable for this tank? Another cool fish is the synodontis pericola, but I'm pretty sure they would have to be kept in a group and that they would eat my danios. Is that true? Perhaps a different type of synodontis? Loaches are also pretty cool. I have been looking at a lot of species but there are so many and I'm currently a bit overwhelmed.

There are a few criteria the catfish would have to meet. Firstly, they have to be suitable for my tank and be compatible with the other inhabitants. On top of that as my budget is limited I am not able to purchase extremely expensive fish. And it would be nice if they are actually available. However, I live in the Netherlands and the availability of fish probably depends per country so as long as they aren't extremely rare feel free to suggest them. Lastly I think I would rather have 4 different types of catfish that can be solitarily kept than having a group of 4 catfish who have to live in groups. But fish who can be kept solitarily are not a must.

I hope you guys can help me a little with suggesting suitable fish . If there is any more information you would like to know feel free to ask.

[Bas Pels]

The problem with Microglanis is, it is the perfect catfish for a catfish hater: one never sees them, unless you would be netting a whole tank.

Why not Corydoras or a catfish from Asia, such as Hara hara, which would combine perfcetly with the zebra danios.

They, the bristlenose and Hara hare prefer some 18 - 22 C

[Rocco]

Thank you for your reply!

I have indeed read that Microglanis tends to hide a lot. However I have also read that they will usually come out during the night. I would be okay with this, as I think they are so cool. Especially since the tank is located in my bedroom. But I'm not sure to what extent this is true, as informations differs per source.

I am actually planning on getting corydoras for a different tank. I am aware there is a huge variety of corydoras but I would prefer to keep a variety of different (cat)fish. The same goes for the Hara Hara, as I'm planning on getting Hara Jerdoni.

However I would be open to keeping catfish from Asia if they are more suitable. What are some other asian species suitable for this tank?

[Birger]

As far as Synodontis the only one I would say is suitable for your tank and what you want is the Synodontis nigriventris...better in groups, alright as a single. The smaller Microsynodontis are also a possibility.Very solitary but a hoot during feeding time.