African river cat?

[chiefbrody]

Is there anything I could put in a 120gallon with various kribs and other ciclids that wont get bossed around? Currently stocking one synodontis brichardi, any thoughts on adding more? I've heard they can show con-specific aggression

[fissh]

In a large tank like you have I think you could put several types of synodontis cats like angelicus, multipuntatus, even upside down cats and petricola, if there's lots of cover.

[chiefbrody]

I just sold 3 petricolas thinking they wouldn't do as well in a Blackwater tank as opposed to a tanganikya type setup. I'm thinking maybe bumblebee catfish? Hard to find brichardi around here

[fissh]

A bumble bee would work, so would a angelicus.

[toddnbecka]

Bumblebee cats are never seen IME. You could keep S. eupterus or just about any other river species of Synodontis, actually the petricola probably would have been fine too. Just because they live in hard/alkaline water in the wild that doesn't mean they aren't adaptable. Banjo catfish would be good, along with whiptails or bristlenose Ancistrus.

[chiefbrody]

S. eupterus would be my top choice anyway if I could find some. Do they do well in groups or better of alone? I lost the brichardi. Seems he got tangled up in some thread I used to tie down a plant. Never doing that again. I know better too. Usually I just use heavy rocks to weigh plants down. Started getting crafty with this build; lost an expensive fish - not worth it

[Slaphppy7]

The gel-type super glues work great for attaching plants to rocks or DW

[angelcraze2]

Sorry you lost your brichardi :( But it's nice you are learning and getting creative with your project. We all learned the hard way at one point or another, at least I have. I guess you are now starting out from square 1 as far as catfish stocking goes, so your options are wide open.

[toddnbecka]

Eupterus are best kept either single or in large groups, like Malawi mbuna. I do have 2 in my 220 assorted community tank that haven't had any issues, not sure if that's typical or not though. One catfish that looks quite like a Synodontis (but isn't) is the highly conspecific-aggressive Asian upside-down catfish. They're all-black with a few either silver or gold "flakes" on their sides. I see them occasionally at Wal-Mart, and even the babies are usually beat up. Tough enough to hang (singly) with nearly any cichlid though, lol.

Incidentally, there are usually baby eupterus available at Wal-Mart as well. Usually around 1-2", they'll grow to full adult size in a short time, less than 6 months IME. If you're looking for adult size fish check your lfs, they're common enough that folks occasionally surrender them after outgrowing their tank.

[SueD]

S. eupterus would be my top choice anyway if I could find some. Do they do well in groups or better of alone? I lost the brichardi. Seems he got tangled up in some thread I used to tie down a plant. Never doing that again. I know better too. Usually I just use heavy rocks to weigh plants down. Started getting crafty with this build; lost an expensive fish - not worth it

I almost lost a cory catfish a few years back who got tangled in thread I used to tie java fern to a piece of driftwood. Fortunately, I found him before it was too late. I glue everything now to wood or rocks as needed.