The mountain catfish (Glyptothorax) are virtually unknown in aquaristics. It is a very species-rich group (almost 120 accepted plus presumably numerous undescribed species) of mostly small, current-loving catfish. The extremely limited experience of keeping these catfish shows that (as with many stream fish) they are sensitive animals that do not tolerate heavy organic pollution or the associated bacterial load. In other words: aquaria that are as large as possible, well run-in, well-filtered and sparsely stocked are the basic prerequisite for keeping these fish successfully in the long term.
In terms of compatibility, it should be noted that most species are peaceful towards other fish and conspecifics. However, the latter in particular still needs to be researched. It appears that Glyptothorax buchanani stress each other. In any case, the breathing frequency of two animals that were initially kept together and then separated was considerably reduced when only one specimen was kept per aquarium.
As flowing water inhabitants, Glyptothorax are adapted to sandy substrate (in which they sometimes burrow) with larger stones. The chemical composition of the water is of secondary importance, but bear in mind that hard, alkaline water offers many bacteria more favorable living conditions than soft, acidic water. Due to their sensitivity to bacterial infections, we therefore recommend soft to medium-hard water and a pH between 6 and 7. These fish are also demanding in terms of diet. Dry food and granules are hardly accepted, at least not during acclimatization. Live food is preferable (white mosquito larvae and adult Artemia are ideal for hygienic reasons, but the animals also like to eat Tubifex and red mosquito larvae, as well as mayfly larvae and various small crustaceans), later the animals will also take frozen food.
We received Glyptothorax buchanani from Thailand. This species, which was described in 1945, is endemic to Thailand and therefore only occurs there. It colonizes the river systems of the Mae Klong and Chao Phraya. It becomes about 6 cm long (without caudal fin). Almost nothing is known about the reproductive behavior of Glyptothorax species, except that they undertake spawning migrations.
For our customers: the animals have code 417792 (4-6 cm) on our stock list. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Text & photos: Frank Schäfer
