Redtail catfish

The red-tailed catfish, scientific name Phractocephalus hemioliopterus, belongs to the Pimelodidae family, also known as the flathead catfish. A very large representative of catfish, therefore it is rarely found in home aquariums. It has a unique coloration – a red tail and a white belly.

Description

The fish lives in the river basins of the Amazon and Orinoco rivers, preferring deep pools. The body of the catfish in its upper part has a dark gray color with small dark spots, while the belly is white. The fish has a large red tail, the tips of the dorsal and ventral fins also have a reddish tint. The catfish is impressive in size, an adult reaches 130 cm.

Food

Red-tailed catfish, although it belongs to omnivorous species, still prefers meat products, in particular live food – other fish. Young fish are happy to absorb all types of dry industrial food and live food (worms, insect larvae, etc.). As they grow older, the diet will increasingly shift towards meat products, the catfish will begin to prey on small fish. Also, feeding intervals increase with age, juveniles require daily feeding, an adult feeds once or twice a week, which is associated with a meat diet and a sedentary lifestyle.

Maintenance and care

The fish are extremely difficult to keep due to their size and space requirements for swimming, so the minimum volume of the aquarium should be 7500 liters. The flathead catfish prefers near-bottom layers of water and subdued lighting. A prerequisite is the presence of shelters in which the fish will spend most of their time, especially in adulthood. The catfish will protect its shelter from encroachments of other fish.

Social behavior

Catfish get along well with species of their size, but there are practically no aquarium fish of this size. Any other fish that is significantly smaller than it will be eaten.