# african catfish...



## gmoney1585 (Apr 13, 2009)

So if i get one of those african cats to keep my population down, would that just result in my tank becoming stuffed with catfish?? Or are they usually eatin by the cichlids when small?? I dont want a tank full of catfish!!!!!


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## Number6 (Mar 13, 2003)

gmoney1585 said:


> So if i get *one *of those african cats


uhm, now... where to begin... birds, bees, it takes two... 

maybe I'll just say no, one catfish will stay one catfish. :thumb:


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## BurgerKing (Jul 1, 2008)

agreed :thumb:


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## Stickzula (Sep 14, 2007)

Even with a group of cats, it would be difficult to get any fry from them unless you setup your tank specifically to breed. I know multi's swap thier eggs with cichlid eggs and let the mouthbrooder carry the fry for a few days until they hatch out. Petricola's will lay a line of eggs then pass back over them and eat them. You need a bowl of marbles for them to lay on so that the eggs fall between the marbles before they can be eaten. Presumably some eggs could get between some rocks or other decor in the tank, but the cichlids would eat the eggs if they could get to them and would eat any fry if they hatched. The chances of any catfish reproduction in a non breeding aquarium is beyond slim. If you end up with fry, catch them, grow them out, and sell them for $20 each. It's a win win.


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

Yep, I wish it were possible to raise catfish with cichlids, very rarely does one or two survive in my tanks.
The larger Syno cats (better cichlid fry eaters) are really hard to get to spawn too. 
So you are pretty safe from your tank being Syno cat taken over, even by a shoal of Syno catfish.

One is of course completely without any risk. But they all predate on small cichlid fry I think but lucipinnis is pretty rubbish at it so if you want a fry eater I would avoid that one.


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## gmoney1585 (Apr 13, 2009)

sorry, meant a couple of syno's that let the female cichlid be the foster parent. I was just curious as to if once the cat fry have consumed all the cichlid eggs and swim out of the mama cichlid mouth, they will begin to multiply like rabbits. Or if the cichlids would eat them while they little and it just is one big circle of life......... Mom, where do babies come from?


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## hollyfish2000 (Aug 23, 2007)

> sorry, meant a couple of syno's that let the female cichlid be the foster parent


You mean, then, synodontis multipunctatus. And you should be so lucky!!! I spent $50 a piece on my four. They are good at fry control and I don't believe very successful, generally speaking, at reproducing in a tank not built around that specific purpose. I had two "pregnancies" in my tank and despite my wishes for cat babies, no such luck, both were just plain ol' lab babies.


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## BRANT13 (Feb 18, 2009)

NTM that multis arent sexually mature for quite some time...three years i believe?


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

NTM ??


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## BRANT13 (Feb 18, 2009)

not to mention


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## gmoney1585 (Apr 13, 2009)

thanks for the help guys, i will prolly pick up a couple pretty soon.


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## gmoney1585 (Apr 13, 2009)

one last question. What would a perfect breeding tank look like (besides absence of cichlids) for these syno's???? Just wanna make sure i dont accidently built to their specifications.


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## hollyfish2000 (Aug 23, 2007)

I can't say for certain, but any breeding tank for multipunctatus actually has to include a breeding cichlids or it doesn't work for them. They do have a preference, as I recall, as to what species they like, but I can't recall. I don't think, really, that you have to worry too much about them breeding in your tank . . .


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## Jatmon (Dec 31, 2008)

If I may, I'd like to add on a question.

I prefer not to have a Syno that gets over about 5". Is there such a species?


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## BRANT13 (Feb 18, 2009)

multicats will stay right around that range :thumb:


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## Stickzula (Sep 14, 2007)

> I prefer not to have a Syno that gets over about 5". Is there such a species?


 petricola and lucipinnis both max out at about 4".


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## Jatmon (Dec 31, 2008)

Thanks for the replies. :thumb:


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