All fish / Loricariidae

Twig Catfish

Farlowella oxyrryncha

Also known as twig catfish, stick catfish, farlowella, whiptail catfish, oxyrryncha twig catfish, farlowella oxyrhyncha, ファロウェラ, 小精灵鲶, 竹节鼠

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This is a very thin armoured catfish with a long pointed snout and a long tail filament. It is brown with a dark stripe along each side, so it looks like a twig. Keepers like it because it is calm and odd to look at, and it grazes algae from wood, glass and leaves.

Care at a glance

Care level

Moderate

Temperament

Peaceful

Adult size

18 cm

Temperature

24 to 28 °C

pH

6 to 7.5

Smallest tank

100 litres

Keep as

Singly, in pairs or in a small group

Diet

Herbivore: algae, biofilm, algae wafers, blanched vegetables such as courgette and cucumber

Swims

Bottom of the tank

Lifespan

5 to 10 years

Water

Freshwater

Wild range

Amazon basin: Peru, Brazil, Bolivia, Ecuador and Colombia

Breeding

Pairs lay eggs on the glass or on smooth surfaces in strong current, and the male guards them until they hatch. It has been bred in home aquariums, but rearing the fry is hard because they need a lot of fine algae and biofilm.

Good to know

It needs a mature tank with plenty of biofilm, clean well-oxygenated water and calm tankmates, as it starves easily when kept with fast or greedy feeders. Imported fish are often thin, so try to see them feeding before you buy.