All fish / Loricariidae

Twig Catfish

Farlowella amazonum

Also known as twig catfish, amazon twig catfish, farlowella catfish, stick catfish, whiptail catfish, farlowella acus, needle catfish, ファロウェラ, ファロウェラ・アマゾナム, farlowella, 小精灵枯枝鲶, 枯枝鲶

This is a very thin, stick-like suckermouth catfish with a long snout and a whip-like tail, and it is brown with a dark stripe down each side. It copies the look of a fallen twig and spends most of the day resting still on wood, glass or plant stems. Keepers like it for its odd shape, how gentle it is, and the way it grazes on soft algae.

Care at a glance

Care level

Moderate

Temperament

Peaceful

Adult size

15 cm

Temperature

23 to 27 °C

pH

6 to 7.5

Smallest tank

100 litres

Keep as

Singly, in pairs or a small group

Diet

Herbivore: algae, biofilm, sinking algae wafers, blanched courgette, cucumber and spinach

Swims

Bottom of the tank

Lifespan

5 to 8 years

Water

Freshwater

Wild range

Amazon and Paraná-Paraguay basins, including Brazil, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Argentina and Colombia

Breeding

Males guard eggs laid on smooth vertical surfaces such as glass or wood until they hatch, and adult males grow bristles on the snout. It has been bred in home aquariums when the water is clean, well oxygenated and fed by a steady current, but rearing the fry needs plenty of fine algae and biofilm.

Good to know

It is sensitive to nitrate and poor water, and it starves easily in new tanks or when kept with boisterous fish that outcompete it for food. Several Farlowella species look alike and are often sold under the wrong name.