Adonis Plec

[Deroplatys]

I finally got my adonis plec out of his hidy hole, absolutly stunning, this is really aimed at severum boy
Whats the exact species?
Want to find out a bit more about them like size ect

 

[nmonks]

There are only two species of Acanthicus: A. adonis, and A. hystrix. The first has white spots*, the second doesn't. So identifying your catfish shouldn't be difficult...

Both Acanthicus are similar: highly territorial carnivores. Shouldn't be mixed with other loricariids (there are some VERY nasty stories of situations where people ignored this rule). Largely ignores algae, vegetables etc. Feed it chopped seafood, bloodworms, the odd bit of whitebait. Algae wafers and catfish pellets will be taken, too. A. adonis is enormous: maximum length one metre! That's not common in aquaria, but certainly expect something much bigger than the average Pterygoplichthys or Panaque.

As with any jumbo carnivore, managing water quality is difficult because of the sheer amount of protein being dumped in the system. Unfortunately Acanthicus are quite sensitive fish, so take filtration seriously!

Superb fish though, and worth the effort, provided you have a big enough tank and filter.

Cheers, Neale

*When young; both fish are basically grey-black when mature.

 

[Bert]

Very nice! I'd love to find one of these for my South armeican cichlid tank

 

[Deroplatys]

Thats not quite the nice and 40cm i read at the pet shop where i got it
Ah well, thanks for the info, when he gets too big or starts trouble i`ll have to rehome him then

 

[Deroplatys]

Oh yeah forgot to add, theres 5 catfish in total in our tank, 1 talking cat fish, my dads common plec, my gibbi, my medusa, and my adonis, hes by far the smallest though, in the mean time while hes in my care will he cause any harm still at his size?

 

[nmonks]

I think you need to read the Planet Catfish entry on this species: there's a report of an Acanthicus adonis killing a gibbiceps, ripping its skin off! These are seriously unpleasant animals if they feel their territorial dominance is threatened.

They work great with midwater fish (cichlids for example, or large characins) but keeping them with any catfish or loaches is risky. Substantially smaller catfish will likely stay out the way, particularly if there are ample hiding places, some of which are too small for the Acanthicus to take any interest in. The problems usually come about when Acanthicus are mixed with other big, territorial catfish, including Pterygoplichthys, the genus that includes both the common and the gibbiceps catfish.

Assuming this tank is fairly large to begin with (hundreds rather than tens of gallons) then you could take the chance, but make sure there are lots of hiding places, and always keep an eye out for signs of aggression, for example holes in the fins or unusual scratches on the body.

Cheers, Neale

Oh yeah forgot to add, theres 5 catfish in total in our tank, 1 talking cat fish, my dads common plec, my gibbi, my medusa, and my adonis, hes by far the smallest though, in the mean time while hes in my care will he cause any harm still at his size?

 

[cane76]

have a large pair of adonis and they very aggresive with eachother and any other bottom dwellers