Irratic Twitching - Does This Mean Anything?

[mr.bigglesworth]

My 9" synodontis hybrid is constantly and irratically moving her pelvic/pectoral (idk which...). It looks like twitching or spasming but I'm not sure. Does this mean anything bad?

For example: she's basking under the shade of my broad leaves amazon sword and her pelvic fin is not really moving then it just suddenly 'twitches' and she gets irritated and uncomfortable and moves then settles back down.

It looks like it itches or something... their is no redness, bruised, or damaged areas of tissue around or on the fins.

Old pictures of her taken on November 27 included.

 

[necrocanis]

Is it the paired fins underneath closest to the head or to the tail? If it is the ones closest to the head they are the pectoral fins, the pectoral fin spines attach directly into the pectoral girdle, which is basically the fish equivalent to a scalpula/clavical. The paired fins that are closest to the tail are the Pelvic fins which attach directly to the pelvis that in most catfish is separate from the rest of the skeleton and kind of free floating attached by muscle ect. Hope this helps with IDing which fins are twitching. As for the twitching I can't really understand what you mean. If you have a way please take a vid and post it in here.

 

[mr.bigglesworth]

Ill try to get a video tomorrow. The lights are off now and its late...

Its kind of on and off (the twitching). Sometimes its really twitching and sometimes not so much.

 

[mr.bigglesworth]

Its way, way closer to the head (the fin). Right below her neck.


I think I may know the answer, but feedback as to whether this is right or wrong is appreciated;

Synodontis are capable of making a high pitched 'squeek' by rubbing their pelvic girdle bones together. I heard somewhere that this is also a sign of agression/dominance. Their are other synodontis in this tank, but their all tiny, tiny babies and she's HUGE (comparitively speaking). Other synodontis in the tank include 2 wild caught cuckoo catfish and 2 captive bred (1 possibly a hybrid), and a petricola synodontis. Their is also 3 bn plecos all of which are still very, vefy small in comparison to her. 1 is still a baby. The other two are just developing their bristles.

 

[mr.bigglesworth]

I think I may know the answer, but feedback as to whether this is right or wrong is appreciated;

Synodontis are capable of making a high pitched 'squeek' by rubbing their pelvic girdle bones together. I heard somewhere that this is also a sign of agression/dominance. Their are other synodontis in this tank, but their all tiny, tiny babies and she's HUGE (comparitively speaking). Other synodontis in the tank include 2 wild caught cuckoo catfish and 2 captive bred (1 possibly a hybrid), and a petricola synodontis. Their is also 3 bn plecos all of which are still very, vefy small in comparison to her. 1 is still a baby. The other two are just developing their bristles.

Anybody know?

 

[necrocanis]

Anybody know?

Most species of catfish can do this and there is a plate on the pectoral fin girdle not the pelvic. That's the one that's closest under the head. The rotate their fins forward and usually open their mouth or gills to aid in vocalization. When you take them out of the water depending on the species of catfish it may sound like a squeak, bark, or growl. I'm am uncertain if it really makes the fin twitch, but since it creates a heavy vibration it is possible. Usually catfish underwater are doing this when they display with their mouths open. really hard to hear with a smaller fish underwater, but my RIP rtc x tsn that was 3' would sound similar to bear when pissed lol. They have to over rotate the spin on the leading edge of the pectoral fin to grind the plate and create the vocalization. I will be doing a catfish anatomy thread that teaches all of this in the next couple of months. I will be making it a sticky, and I hope it helps in situations like this one. good observations.

 

[thebiggerthebetter]

Many fish would do that sometimes to try shake off a parasite. They have a range of techniques, from quickly moving fins to jumping out of water and shaking in the air. External parasites usually jump off a netted fish too, especially if lifted in the air and the fish struggles.