June 2006: Just freshly arrived! Also for „old stagers“ there are again and again genuine surprises with us. In a shipment from Peru we received today several particularly delicate Loricariids, which represent a petite alternative to the frequently maintained Hypancistrus species. However their size of (50 – 70 cm) probably exceeds the possibilities of most […]
July 2002: For the first time we could import Ageneiosus vittatus from Peru. Slopehead catfish of the genus Ageneiosus are particularly noticeable by its strongly flattened head. These predators can reach an overall length of 30 cm. For the maintenance large basins are necessary. A dark bottom, some stones and bogwood should be brought in […]
The „shark cats“ of the genus Pangasius are highly seeked for aquarium fishes, because their swimming behaviour reminds one on a shark. Sadly all species grow very fast and none of the species stays smaller than 50 cm, some even reach 150 cm or even more. For some time now so-called „mini-pangasius“ are introduced to […]
February 2006: We are pleased to be able to offer you the first offspring of a legend. Now offspring of the recently again discovered and in the last year for the first time to Germany imported Corydoras weitzmani are available. Fortunately this beautiful small, at Corydoras panda reminding species, could quite fast be spawned by […]
Ancistomus sabaji – Hypostomus spec., Peckoltia spec.? A fish with many names! There is hardly another L number catfish where the confusion regarding the nomenclature is as large as with this species. This is a result of the generous allocation of numbers (L 75, L 124, L 301 and LDA 2) for this fish. One […]
From southern Brazil and northern Argentina originates the probably most beautiful representative of the genus Hypostomus. Contrary to many other loricariids they become more beautiful with increasing age, since the portion of the yellow body parts constantly increases. Their southern area of origin suggests a tolerance in relation to low temperatures. They can be can […]
September 2006: This week we succeeded in importing several of this beautiful new Panaque from Brazil. In their appearance they remind of L 27, are however flatter and slimmer than these. In addition they possess a larger mouth and their dorsal fin is smaller. These characteristics let assume that they originate from strongly flowing river […]
This rarely imported catfish species originates from the federal states Bahia and Espirito Santo at the coast of brazil. With only 3cm of total length it belongs to the smallest Loricariids. There habitats are small and fast running streams. They mostly stay in areas thickly covered with vegetation. Otothyris travassosi is not a fish for […]
A close relative of the well known common plecos, is shown at the time of the importation not fully grown yet. This fish can easily grow up to 30 cm in length. This pleco is a harmless solitude fish, very well suited for the cichlid aquarium. It is an animal who has a nocturnal way […]
With L 90a we can offer at present one of the most beautiful Panaque species. Especially the extremely long, orange colored filaments of the caudal fin are remarkable. In addition, the discrete black markings on the noble-grey colored body let them appear very elegant. With the purchase of these fishes their final size (over 30cm) […]
The Spatula-barbeled Catfish, endemic for Lake Tanganyika, has a very special way of reproduction for catfish: they are biparental mouthbreeder. This small catfish is the only representative of its genus and can be easily distinguished by the long barbels on both sides of the upper jaw, which are ending into a spatula form. The total […]
Several adult specimen of L 189 the wormline – Orinko catfish arrived with an import of L 257 Pseudolithoxus tigris. On this shown male, the odontodes on the head, breast and ventral fin are clearly visible, that absolutely states a belonging in the Pseudolithoxus group. Puberty is approximately reached at 7 cm, it’s end size […]
From lower parts of the Rio Xingu we received very high-contrasted Hypancistrus spec. Xingu. In their appearance they arrange between L 333 and fishes of the L 66 group. But they are clearly more flattened and stretched than L 333. From L 66 and their relatives (e.g. L 236) they can be distinguished by the […]
From the Rio Jamanxim (Brazil) comes one of the most attractive members of the genus Peckoltia. L 134 is very variably marked: as well as individuals with stripes there are also specimens with large round spots on the body. It is not known whether this difference in colouration denotes sex, but in at least one […]
This catfish coming from Bolivia, belongs to the smallest of his relatives, measuring 13 cm maximum. It is mostly getting imported by travelling aquarium hobbyists. Regarding the water condition this kind is rather adaptable, as guide values of up to 400 µS/cm and a pH-value of 7.6 were measured. Approx. 25°C are quite enough for […]
This pencil catfish, a relative of parasitic the urethra of humans entering catfishes, is very rarely traded. The affiliation to the genus Pareiodon is rather clear, the species classification however is yet not clarifyed. As predators they should not be socialized with to small fishes. Due to their rarity no reports about their maintenance in […]
From southern Brazil we could import a probably new Callichthyid catfish species. The sexes can be easily differentiated on the basis the dark pattern at the head of the females. In their homeland they inhabit diverse waters types. As accessory air-breathers they can move over land if it gets necessary to reach other waters. Their […]
March 2005: Freshly arrived: Beautiful German breds of L 173. For the first time we can offer thereby more than a “handful” of these wonderful rare pieces. The large variability of their pattern is remarkable. The bluish glow is common in all the white of their fins. (Photo & Text K. Diehl)
Pterosturiosoma microps is one of the regularly imported Loricariidae from Peru, although not in bigger quantities. Even though it is more impressing in colour by its soft black-grey, it can still arouse enthusiasm by its remarkable appearance and its impressive but graceful fins. But its steady nursing is not quite easy. Whereas the acclimatization probably […]
This new and undescribed true mailed catfish differs from C. kanei by a golden band on the shoulder. The very attractive fish originate from the Rio Jamaxin (Brazil). Their final length is 5 cm. C. kanei has been bred successfully on several occasions and Seuß (Die faszinierende Welt der Corydoras, Landbuch Verlag Germany, 1997) reports […]
March 2007: Freshly arrived: Beautiful German breds of L 173. For the first time we can offer thereby more than a “handful” of these wonderful rare pieces. The large variability of their pattern is remarkable. The bluish glow is common in all the white of their fins. (Photo F. Schäfer, Text K. Diehl)
Pseudancistrus spec. L 259 originates from the surrounding of the city Pimental at the Rio Tapajos. As all Pseudancistrus species the males of L 259 show a characteristic “beard” of Odontodes (dermal teeth) during the spawning season. Contrary to the popular Hypancistrus species L 259 are vegetarians. Therefore Zucchini, cucumbers and further vegetables should be […]
As a further german bred rarity we can offer Rineloricaria melini at present. Our specimen of the probably most attractive Rineloricaria species have with 9 – 12 cm length already attained full growth and are of outstanding quality. Their origin is the area of the Rio Negro where they live in black water biotopes. Like […]
Microsynodontis polli is one of three poorly documented pygmy Synodontis species, the other two being M. lamberti and M. batesii. They origin from Western to Central Africa, M. polli is reported for the upper Niger in Guinea and Liberia. Their maintenance is no problem as long as the water is soft and slightly acidic, although […]
A very beautiful colour morph bred in Germany and a true addition to our fascinating hobby. Corydoras aeneus (this fish probably belong to this family) is one of the most common true mailed catfish in the aquaristical hobby. Originally this cory species has a large distribution in nature which ranges from Trinidad, Venezuela, Surinam, Colombia, […]
This ancistrus, which supposedly originates from Colombia, exhibits similarities to L 89, but like L 156 has round spots arranged in a honeycomb pattern. Unlike these other two L-numbers, L 111 has a uniformly marked iris ring and light/dark grey striped pectoral fin spines. This catfish is said to grow to about 10 cm, and […]
April 2005: Only one fish of the albino form of the well-known „Titanic Catfish“ was imported from Belem (Brazil). L 273 is normally extremely variably coloured from fish to fish. As well as splendid specimens with contrasting dark grey/yellow plus orange colouration there are also individuals that are predominantly mouse grey with black dots and […]
July 2006 From southeast Brazil we could import some rare pieces from the relationship of the popular Otocinclus species. In its homeland Hisonotus ornatus inhabits with weeds infested waters. It may not be kept too warm. 24°C probably represents the reasonable upper limit. The requirements for their maintenance do not differ from those of the […]
A remarkable species which came in in one of our import from Colombia. These fishes also originate from the Rio Chacu in the northern tip of the country. Because of the many bristles of the male this species has been falsely determined as Rineloricaria latirostris. A comparison with the pictures (see Mergus Catfish Atlas Part […]
One of the in the aquarium most easy to keep pencil catfishes is Trichomycterus alternatus. This species, originating from the Rio de Janeiro region, reaches an overall length of for 10cm and can be maintained in aquaria starting from 60cm length. These very shy fish, reminding in their appearance of our in Europe native Stone […]
From the Katanga province of the Congo we could import some partly striped specimen of Synodontis angelicus. Formerly these forms were regarded as the subspecies Synodontis angelicus zonatus, today they are considered however as a color variant of the species. In any case they are very decorative and should not be missing in Congo basins […]
