Synodontis Decorus

[Elisabeth83]

I have a 30 gallon tank (114 litres) with a pair of Sajica Cichlids. I went out today looking for a smaller Syno that would take care of their eggs. The guy helping me there was showing me all of the Synos they had and we came across a tank with a Syno that neither one of us knew what it was (no name on the tank). It was really stunning so I asked for the Baensch book to see if I could identify it. I thought it looked like a Synodontis Decorus and read Decorus gets up to 10 inches and needs a tank of at least 200-250 litres. Neither one of us was 100% sure though and because they only had one left the guy said I could have it for $7 dollars and said that if it did turn out to be Decorus that I could return it no problems.

Now that I am home I have positively identified it as Synodontis Decorus. I've read many different sites and all have different information. Some sites say that in captivity that it gets to only 8 inches while other sites say it gets to 12 inches. In my Baensch book I have at home it says that only young are recommended for aquariums but doesn't say why adults arn't.

It's such a stunning looking fish that I'm tempted to keep it and put it in my 200 litre tank with my pair of Blue Acaras, Syno Eupterus (feather fin) and Rubber lipped pleco. I'm not sure if that is possible though?

Here are some of my questions

How large do Decorus grow in captivity?
Is my 200 litre tank large enough?

if so

Can I keep two Syno's together?
With there already being a pair of Acaras, Feather fin Syno and Rubber lipped pleco do I even have room to keep the Decorus? (I'm thinking not)
Why does it say in the Baensch book that only young Decorus are recommended for aquariums ?

And finally if I do return it (which I am thinking is my only option) what are some Synos that would work for my 30 gallon? I saw at the shop they had Synodontis multipunctatus (Synodontis petricola), Synodontis njassae, Synodontis Eupterus and Synodontis Schoutedeni. I don't want another Eupterus so maybe out of those the Schoutedeni will work? Although again different sites are saying they grow to different sizes and recommending different tank sizes.

 

[CFC]

S.decorus grow to around 10-12 inches and like many Synodontis species become increasingly territorial and aggressive as they get older, i wouldnt advise keeping a full grown adult in less than a 5x2x2' (about 600 litres) tank if you want to have tankmates without them being relentlessly harrassed during the night. It is not usually possible to keep more than one of the larger synodontis species in the same tank, they are usually quarrelsome between their own species but inter species aggression can get really nasty to the point of damaged fins and barbels or worse death.

 

[Elisabeth83]

Thanks CFC for the reply! All the sites I have read about Syno Decorus have said that it is known as the gentle giant of the aquarium a very peaceful Syno unlike most larger species of Syno. Again I have never kept Syno Decorus so am only going by what others have said. What I am worried about is all the different info I am reading concering adult size and what tank size it should be kept in.

Planet catfish says it get's to 10.6 inches and many other sites say that in captivity it usually only reaches up to 10 inches and that a 50 gallon aquarium is the minimum tank size. Whereas I have read on other sites that it can get up to 12-13 inches and that a 75 gallon aquarium is minimum.

Also unlike a lot of Synos I have read that Syno Decorus likes it's own company like Syno multipunctatus so that also worries me as obviously I would only have room to keep him/her on it's own. Not sure if they need to be with their own kind of can live a happy life alone.

What I was thinking of doing was swapping my Syno Eupterus over to the 30 gallon and putting the Syno Decorus in the 50 gallon (I think 200 litre actually works out to something like 53 gallons). Also moving the rubber lipped pleco to another aquarium.

Again these are all if questions and maybe the best thing for me to do is really take the fish back to the shop.

 

[CFC]

In my experience S.decorus are at best tolerant of their own kind if there is sufficient room for each fish to take up a separate territory, though minor border disputes will still occur where territories overlap; in fairly small tanks like yours the chances of two separate species of Synodontis co existing peacefully are slim. S.decorus are certainly less aggressive than other large Synodontis species of which some can be unholy terrors which demand masses of room and will happily challenge all comers but they are still certainly capable of aggression and don't like to be crowded. Even smaller synos like multipunctatas and petricola will each take a separate cave during daylight hours and will jostle each other about until one leaves if two try to take up the same residence.

If the syno is small i wouldn't be hastey to return it to the lfs just yet, syno's grow fairly slowly so by the time it is too large for your tank you could be in a position to upgrade or kow someone with a larger tank who would like to take it.

 

[Elisabeth83]

So even if you do have a large tank S. decorus don't really "hang" out with eachother and actually prefer to be alone and have their own territory? I probably shouldn't be overly worried then that I only have one and it'll do just fine living by itself?

At the moment it's just about 2 inches long and the guy that sold it to me said to me that they had actually had it for awhile themselves. That was one of the reasons why he thought it actually might be a species that stays smaller. I talked with the guy there before I bought it and asked him that if it did out grow my tank if I could bring it back and he said that they would take it back no problems.

How long do you think it'll take before it reaches adult size? The S. eupterus that I have was about 2 inches when I bought it and it is now around 6 inches and I've had it for about 6 months.

 

[CFC]

Growth rates depend on a lot of factors including food and enviroment but on average i would expect to see 3 to 4 inches of growth a year from S.decorus so you are looking at a minimum of 2 years before your fish is anywhere near full grown

 

[Elisabeth83]

I was thinking of feeding about every other day but then I read on another site that with young synos that you should be feeding a couple times a day? Not sure how true that is but I'd imagine if I was feeding a couple times a day I'd be expecting it to reach adult size a lot sooner no less doing water changes on a daily basis.

Do you think feeding every other day would be fine then?

If I have 2 years before it reaches adult size then I am not worried at all. I have plenty of time to upgrade tank size in fact I have no doubts that in 2 years I'll have a larger tank in fact I'll probably have a couple larger tanks!

Thanks CFC for all the help!!!

 

[CFC]

Synodontis are grazing feeders which spend a long while rasping algea and small benethic organisms from rocks and sand rather than one big meal eaters so are not set up for only being fed once every two days, i would suggest feeding once every day in the evening with a changing variety of frozen foods and algea wafers/catfish pellets.

 

[Elisabeth83]

That's how I feed my other Syno...everyday with a variety of frozen (bloodworm, brine shrimp) and wafers, pellets but wasn't sure if I needed to be feeding that often. I guess everyone you talk with tells you something different. Another guy I know said he only feeds every other day but he's a breeder with hundreds of tanks so I guess he's probably just trying to save on doing water changes whereas I only have 4 tanks so it doesn't really matter.

I think with Synos though you could be feeding them constantly and they still wouldn't be satisfied. They seem to be the vultures of the aquarium!

 

[bunjiweb]

my S. decorus and S. Angelicus sleep in the same hole, seem very friendly... but then it is a big tank.

Ben

 

[Elisabeth83]

What size tank do you keep them in bunjiweb?

 

[bunjiweb]

6x2x2ft with about at least 50KG of bogwood.

I have 2 Syno Euruptus and a Syno. Petricola in the same tank.

Ben