How many types of freshwater eel tail catfish are there?

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Ras Haile

Gambusia
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Jan 21, 2019
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I thought I was ordering a Tandanus Tandanus (eel tail catfish) but got sent some other type that I never seen, and can’t find any information on it. Very disappointed.

If anyone could please tell me what this is, its origin , and its care requirements

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Definitely not a weather loach lol. But now that you mention it, that picture does look like a Cooley loach. That picture is from their website, and yes difficult to tell if it has an eel tail or not.

I netted it out to put it in my hand for a pic before I put it in quarantine tote, but it wriggled out my hand, on to the carpet. And while I was trying to trap it with my net, it was intelligently evading capture the same as if it was in water. It must be some type of walking catfish, because it was very agile.
 
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I don't know eeltails well and that picture is not ID friendly to me.

Eel tail is a collective term for many different fish, from tandanus to neoarius to plotosus etc. genus.

You might have something cooler and rarer than just Tandanus tandanus.

No need to stress the fish by photographing out of water, although you made an interesting observation as a result. You could use a net to just bring it close to glass and photograph.

Be careful handling them, eeltails are notorius for a bad, painful, sometimes serious sting. I handled mine with heavy duty leather gloves when I had to.

Consider posting on Planet Catfish if we fail to ID it here.
 
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If it's not what you were expecting, I can see why you would be disappointed. When sellers use only common names there's always going to be the chance of confusion...and also no real way to hold their feet to the fire, since a common name is practically useless, especially with oddball rarities like this.

Personally, I think that critter you received...whatever it is...is very cool; I hope you can find out some info on it.
 
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Thanks. I’m gonna let him get more comfortable, fatten him up, learn him as I go. I’ll get a pic when he’s ready. I have my hands full with a Pom Pom Knife Fish, which I’ve never kept one before, and don’t know for certain what to expect. But hey, at least I know what it is and have been able to research it. ?
 
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I meant Neosilurus of course, not Neoarius genus.

jjohnwm said:
If it's not what you were expecting, I can see why you would be disappointed. When sellers use only common names there's always going to be the chance of confusion...and also no real way to hold their feet to the fire, since a common name is practically useless, especially with oddball rarities like this.

Personally, I think that critter you received...whatever it is...is very cool; I hope you can find out some info on it.
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I too think it is something unusual and interesting; whether it is cryogenic or not I am less sure.

Steve of Exotic Fish Shop sells by name and photo and goes the long and highly, highly commendable extra mile to proudly claim on his price list catalog "Photos of the actual fish for sale". He is responsive too to requests and has decent customer service. So I'd not pin it on him.
 
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I see what you did there, thebiggerthebetter thebiggerthebetter . :) It's not nice to make fun of old folks; I've been using the term "cool" since 'way back when it was the "cool" thing to do so. ?

And I wasn't suggesting that this particular seller should be blamed for anything; I assume that pic was supplied by the seller? I see a lot of...well, let's call it "artistic licence"...in the labelling of fish in some LFS tanks, so Buyer Beware is usually the safest policy. :)
 
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