farlowella catfish

[Mushroomman]

ahhh... my search for the unusual has lead me to the farlowella catfish, aka twig cat. i checked planet catfish, the MFT.net profile, and googled it, but i havent found sufficient info. does anyone know anything about these or keep them?

do they really get 6-8"?

are they somewhat hardy?

territorial?

lazy? (planet catfish said they are like "furniture")

do they eat plant matter (dead or alive)?

are they loners or do they need a group of the same species?

what swimming level do they occupy?
are they considered "bottomfeeders", or "glass suckers"?

are they interesting in habits?

these things look really cool and i am considering them.
thanks

 

[catfishmike]

pretty much everything said at planetcatfish is right on.lazy is a very good descripton.they don't do much but sit around and look cool.when they do swim it's comical.i usualy see them resting at the bottom of the tank,buit they can equaly be found on the glass.i think the younger ones like the glass more cause i always see the big ones on the floor resting and the smaller ones stuck to the sides or on a peice of wood.feed them wafers zzucchini and keep some wood for them too.they are easy on plants which is cool.somewhat hardy.it's kinda spotty,but thats with all plecos.once they are healthy they tend to be pretty tough.overall one of my favorite plecos even if they are a bit dull.

 

[wayne]

do they really get 6-8"? Yes
are they somewhat hardy?Medium. Not hard to keep, but not good for new tanks, poor quality water
territorial? Not as I remember
lazy? (planet catfish said they are like "furniture")Do't move much
do they eat plant matter (dead or alive)? Herbivore/detritivore
are they loners or do they need a group of the same species?Either
what swimming level do they occupy?They don't swim much
are they considered "bottomfeeders", or "glass suckers"?Both
are they interesting in habits?Sometimes I think so, but I haven't kept them for a while
these things look really cool and i am considering them. THen try them

 

[Mushroomman]

ok thanks guys

 

[dana307]

LOVE my farlowella cat. He gets some attention when visitors figure out it's not a stick.

There is a brief profile on myfishtank with a, if I do say so, pretty good pic. ;-) planet catfish is acurrate and a good source.

I have had mine for about a year and he is about 5 inches but that is a very slim 5". Hardy yes. Not a very long life span although I don't know what that means. Not territorial. They could give a crap less about other things in the tank. I can nudge him to get him out of the way to clean the tank sides and sometimes he will only move a tad, and i have to nudge him again. They kind of hang around on the side of the glass or the bottom... move here and there. They are a pretty decoration that moves around. Loners is fine and I THINK preferred. They occupy the side of the glass most of the time and occasionally the bottom. Have never seen them eat except for a few times here and there. Easy to care for. I definitely recommend them. Interesting look to any tank, IMO. Hope that helps some more.

 

[Mushroomman]

thank you. yes that does help!