Anaspidoglanis
macrostomus (Pellegrin,
1909)
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his species, is the smaller
of three from the same African genus of Anaspidoglanis
Teugels, Risch, De Vos & Thys, 1991. The other two being Anaspidoglanis
akiri (Risch 1987) and Anaspidoglanis boutchangai
(Thys van den Audenaerde 1965). It was a member of the African-Asian
Bagridae family until 1991 when Mo split it up and constructed a
new family, Claroteidae, which is closely related to the Bagrids,
where we of course find this months subject.
When aquarists, through the years, owned this
species in their tanks it was always mooted as, Parauchenoglanis
guttatus, but we now know that Parauchenoglanis macrostoma
was probably the species as guttatus was very rarely imported
and so our Factsheet of the Month started life as Auchenoglanis
macrostoma and then Parauchenoglanis macrostoma
and now to its present day name of Anaspidoglanis
macrostomus and of course on into
a new family.
Of course needless to say it needs a large
tank to accommodate it and its larger tankmates and kept singularly.
There is conflicting literature that states that they will do well
in a group but the general consensus is that this is a loner that
is best kept on its own. It is also a burrower in the substrate
so plants may take a bit of abuse from its activities but all in
all an interesting catfish for the larger community setup.
D 1/7; A 12, 9 branched.
Body elongate, compressed of fairly uniform depth. Caudal fin truncated.
3 pairs of long barbels.
Upperside brownish, flanks yellow-brown, underside
yellowish. 5 transverse stripes composed of large, dark blotches
which may more or less run together. A few rows of prominent spots
between the bolder rows of blotches. Fins yellowish to reddish-brown.
Dorsal and caudal fin with rows of dark spots.
This African bagrid is a night time predator
so tank mates would need to be at least over 3 ins (7cm) to escape
its clutches. Tank mates could include the larger African Characins
such as the Congo Tetras ( Phenacogrammus interruptus)
and the larger American Characins such as from the Distichodus
genera. Larger Barbs like the Tinfoil Barb (Barbus schwanefeldi)
could be a good choice. Alternately, you could house one in a Cichlid
Community as long as it is not a Rift Valley set-up as the higher
p.H. may prove a bit too high over a long period of time. Try to
keep less bottom dwellers with a Dwarf Giraffe Catfish as they are
quite territorial and need their own hiding niche such as a rock/slate
shelter so it can rest up during the day.
Not in the aquarium but in their native habitat
they have been reported that they build a nest and practice parental
care
Will feed on almost anything including worm
foods, frozen bloodworm, tablet and pellet food.
| Etymology |
Anaspidoglanis:
From the Greek, an= meaning without, aspis= meaning shield,
and glanis= meaning catfish; in reference to the absence of
a well-developed shield between the cranium and the dorsal
fin
macrostomus:
From the Greek makros, meaning
long and stoma, meaning mouth; in reference to the size of
the mouth.
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| Factsheet
Request |
Joseph Stuart
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| References |
Riehl, Rüdiger Dr & Baensch Hans
A.; Aquarium Atlas 1
Sterba, Günther; Sterba's Freshwater Fishes
of the World 1
Burgess, W.E. 1989 An atlas of freshwater and marine
catfishes. A preliminary survey of the Siluriformes. T.F.H. Publications,
Inc., Neptune City, New Jersey (USA). 784 p.
© 
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| Synonyms:
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| Parauchenoglanis
macrostoma, Anaspidoglanis macrostoma, Auchenoglanis macrostoma,
Parauchenoglanis ansorgei, Parauchenoglanis ansorgii |
| Common
Name: |
| Dwarf Giraffe Catfish |
| Family: |
| Claroteidae |
| Subfamily: |
| Claroteinae |
| Distribution: |
| Africa:
S. Cameroon, Gabon, and Congo River system. Type locality:
Ngomo (Ogôoué) [Gabon]. |
| Size: |
| 24cm. (9ins) |
| Temp: |
| 23-27°C
(73-81°F) |
| pH.: |
| 6.5 - 8.0 |
| Donation: |
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