I've always been fascinated by Duckbill Catfish and have long wanted one. I'm curious if any of you have kept them, and I'd like to know what your setup was and all that jazz.
Thanks!
Thanks!
Questions about Duckbill Catfish (Sorubim lima)
- Thread starter cataphractz
- Start date
I have one! I started my lima in a 90 gallon when it was about 3". Moved him to a 300 gallon after about 6 months. Today he's 9"-10" and I still haven't had him for a year. They grow very fast. Mine eats shrimp,silversides, and pieces of fish fillet. I have trouble getting him to eat pellets but I just hide pellets in his food. These fish can become pretty territorial (he loves his driftwood) and actively hunt at night time. you will want to make sure they have suitable tank mates. I'm not for sure what a minimal tank size should be for these guys but I wouldn't do a anything less then a 180.
Let me know what more info you might need?
Let me know what more info you might need?
I had one in a 75 gallon (a rubremaid tub so he saw the sides) and he was not very active. Anytime the lights turned on or off or he saw me he smashed his nose into the side before i got him into a tank where he could see the sides. He rarely ate (about twice a month) and we was so hard to feed he got 5 mollys every few month. I got rid of him because of that. For a small one a 75 would be fine but for a large one i would recommend a 225 or greater. If it is a rubermaid tub and he can see the sides of it he will bang his nose a lot less. for tank mates i would not add active fish with it unless it is in a 250 galloon tank or greater. They are very tolerant of bad water conditions when the tank is cycling.
Thanks. This is exactly the kind of stuff I wanted to know.
Do they dig up plants? I'd imagine they would, but that would be sweet if otherwise.
Yeah, 180 was around where I estimate if I decided I wanted one, and what I had generally read.
What kind of fish do you keep yours with? Or is he/she alone?
I had one and it was one of my favorite fish. I just set up my freshwater tank after a couple of years And I think I am going to get a couple of them. My guy had a messed up bill when I got him and a little curve in his spine. He was good buddies with my 4 line pima. The other tankmates were a mystery knife fish, tinfoils, jack Dempsey, parrot fish and a few rainbow cichlids.
//
//
Interesting. Could I keep one with Angelfish in a large enough aquarium? Also, how prolific of diggers are they?
I don't have any plants other than plastic ones. I don't think though that they would dig up any plants. Mine isn't a digger at all, they will scoop up food when it comes to feeding but that's about it. I keep mine with SD's, Clown knife, and other large catfish. I plan to add severums and maybe an oscar. I saw you ask about Angelfish as tank mates. I don't know much about angelfish but I would be surprised if you could keep them with Lima's. Maybe when the lima is small you could get away with it for a little bit but i would find other tank mates. If you start a lima in a small tank make sure you have a upgrade tank ready, they grow very fast. If you have a tank to house one, I highly recommend them. One of my favorite fish for sure!!
Alright. Thanks for all the help. I have nothing solid yet, he's just a potential tank mate for my BGK that I'm gonna start growing out when I head home for the summer from college. I won't be getting one until I have a 180 cycled and running, even if I'm growing it out in a smaller tank.
As far as what I read more about them digging, what you said seems consistent with more species profiles that I found, which is good cause I wanted to plant the tank with SA plants to a certain degree. As far as angelfish go, I read that generally things over 4-5" are okay, though that's pushing it a bit. Angels get around 6" and they're tall as hell (8" average if I recall right) so I'd think it would be pretty hard for a Lima to swallow one, but I'll do more research before I pick other tank mates.
Again, thanks for all the help. I'd love to see your Lima if you felt like posting pictures!
As far as what I read more about them digging, what you said seems consistent with more species profiles that I found, which is good cause I wanted to plant the tank with SA plants to a certain degree. As far as angelfish go, I read that generally things over 4-5" are okay, though that's pushing it a bit. Angels get around 6" and they're tall as hell (8" average if I recall right) so I'd think it would be pretty hard for a Lima to swallow one, but I'll do more research before I pick other tank mates.
Again, thanks for all the help. I'd love to see your Lima if you felt like posting pictures!
Here are some pictures!! With the Angelfish your right that they would be hard for a lima to eat but they get territory and will give a good "smack" if any fish comes close. I had a 4" Flagtail that always eat algae off the driftwood and my catfish ended up killing him just by the force of his territorial "smacks". You can always try it and see what the aggression of yours is and if it will accept them!
Oh man that's a nice catfish, I can't wait to get my own. Yeah, I'll see what I can do, if they start fighting a bunch then I will relocate the angels to a 55 or something. Thanks for all the help!