I confess, I haven't been very attentive to my tanks over the holidays. Tonight, I was looking in my 29 gallon and admiring my two albino bristlenose plecos when I saw several little (.33 inch) dark catfish skimming the bottom and all over the decorations. I spotted about 10 of them. They are dark with some speckling/striping. Are these perhaps fry from my Bristlenose cats? Would two albinos produce dark fry? They look happy and healthy, so I don't plan to mess with them for now. It's a friendly tank without any mean fellows in there.
Babies... Bristlenose Plecos or Upside-Down Cats?
- Thread starter Fangirl
- Start date
While both will breed for hobbyists, I'd guess they are BN fry. That would be far more common an occurrence. Congratulations either way.
As to the color, BN genetics is a mixed thing more than fixed. Many people keep both albino and dark BNs and sell the young ones as what ever they happen to look like. What looks like, and is Albino, can toss brown fry. As hard as it is to spot them, you may have albinos you can't see yet. As soon as you can see the mouth clearly, you'll be able to tell if they are BN or upside down cats.
As to the color, BN genetics is a mixed thing more than fixed. Many people keep both albino and dark BNs and sell the young ones as what ever they happen to look like. What looks like, and is Albino, can toss brown fry. As hard as it is to spot them, you may have albinos you can't see yet. As soon as you can see the mouth clearly, you'll be able to tell if they are BN or upside down cats.
If they're BN fry you'll see them hanging on the glass and generally acting the same as the larger ones.
Which upside-down catfish do you have? S. nigriventris is the common upside-down catfish, and they've never been spawned in an aquarium w/out hormone injections.
It's quite possible for 2 albino BN to produce brown fry, just depends on their lineage. I have brown BN that also produce some albino, calico, and even a couple super red offspring.
Which upside-down catfish do you have? S. nigriventris is the common upside-down catfish, and they've never been spawned in an aquarium w/out hormone injections.
It's quite possible for 2 albino BN to produce brown fry, just depends on their lineage. I have brown BN that also produce some albino, calico, and even a couple super red offspring.
I'm pretty sure that my upside-down cats are Synodontis nigriventris. I also suspect that they are both females (and thus not likely to breed...) as they both have very fat bellies and pretty much just sit nestled in plants all day. The fry tend to just skim along the substrate and up and down some ornaments. I put a couple of slices of squash in for them, but so far they don't seem too interested.
Typical behavior for 2 nigriventris, add 3 (or more) to the group and they'd be more active. If your signature stocking is current the Syno's would be happier in the 75 with some more of their own species. They're schooling fish, and moving them would make more room for a few more von rio and neon tetras.
If the BN did spawn you can expect them to do it again, and again, and then at least a few more times. The Syno's may be fat from eating BN fry, not necessarily a bad thing...
If the BN did spawn you can expect them to do it again, and again, and then at least a few more times. The Syno's may be fat from eating BN fry, not necessarily a bad thing...
By the description I would def guess BN fry. 2 albinos can certainly produce brown babies. They can carry the gene and throw a mix or all albino or all browns. For the survivors you might want to consider throwing in a blanched zucchini wedge for them to snack on. They love the stuff. You should post pics if you can too. That will make for a sure identification and baby plecos are just cute anyway. 
