Antsistrus: features, types and contents

Aquarium is a closed ecosystem, living a full life. And like any dwelling, he needs those who will maintain the cleanliness of the territory. Most suitable for the role of cleaners are snails and various types of catfish. Unpretentious fish such as catfish catfish are best known among aquarium enthusiasts.

Ancistrus fish-cleaners got into aquariums from fresh water in South and Central America. Catfish of this species in the wild prefer rivers with a fast flow, but they can also be found in the stagnant waters of forest lakes and even in swamps with barrels of clean water. Somik-sticking is one of the most popular inhabitants of aquariums, both among beginner aquarists and among professionals.

Antcistrus vulgaris has a very original appearance. The body of a fish resembles an elongated drop, flattened from above and below. The catfish is covered with multifaceted bone plates, the head is the widest part of the fish. A large dorsal fin, resembling a fluttering cloth, in some individuals can be pressed to the back. The ventral and pectoral fins are rounded and wide; the adipose fin is very small.

The catfish has a very interesting mouth structure, which is why it got the common name "catfish-sucker". Elongated lips, a rounded lower mouth and the presence of horn-shaped suction cups on the lips help the fish stick to the surface, preventing the flow of water to carry the catfish.

Somik ancistruses are often called aquarium cleaners.

In nature, there is a wide variety of Antsistrus catfish, the size of which ranges from 20 to 195 mm. Some varieties of this fish live in aquariums.

Antiscistrus vulgaris is also called blue antiscistrus. This name is due to the fact that in young animals you can often find a blue shade of scales and a white edging on the fins. Adult catfish usually boast different shades of scales. – from yellowish gray to dark gray. White spots are randomly located throughout the body.

This species has highly developed fins, and when moving, they flutter like a veil in the wind. For this feature catfish got its name. The body color of the fish is mainly dark olive, with randomly arranged light spots. The movements are very smooth and resemble the flapping of wings, for which the subspecies received the second name - dragonfly antiscistrus.

Incredibly beautiful colors, reminiscent of the night starry sky, and became the source of the name of this species. The body of the fish is black or so dark in color with specks of pearl white or bluish in color, which creates the feeling that a piece of starry night crawls along the bottom. Young growth boasts a bluish edging of the dorsal and caudal fins. On the first rays of the anterior stellar antsistrus fins there are small spikes.

A dark brown, almost black small fish with small white or blue dots and thickened pectoral fins, covered with spiky spikes, is very similar to stellate ancistrus. The main difference is the wide white edging of the fins, which is present in the fish throughout life. Also, the stars stuck there are bone spines hiding in the base of the head. At the moment of danger, the fish spreads them to drive away the enemies.

One of the rarest number catfish is the L-184 Diamond Antsistrus. Externally, the fish resembles a stellar fellow, differing from the latter in a more saturated black color with large bright white spots. Coloring does not change even in adulthood.

A little-known new species bred by German breeders. It is characterized by an incredibly bright brick-red or orange color scale. Unlike other relatives, Antsistrus Red prefers to live an active life in the daytime. Compared with other species, the body size of the fish is small, not exceeding 60 mm.

Antsistrus albino or Golden Antsistrus is a fish that has lost pigmentation of scales. Because of this, the body color has acquired a beautiful golden-beige hue. The eyes are pinkish, which is a characteristic feature of albinos. As with albinos of other living creatures, the life span of such a fish is shorter than that of other varieties.

Yellow catfish is one of the most famous types of sticky on a par with ordinary antiscistrus. Outwardly, it strongly resembles an albino, differing only in eye color and more saturated yellow color of a little body. Yellow catfish have the most ordinary eyes.

Golden Leopard Antsistrus is also called tortoiseshell or reddish brown. The fish got its name because of the beautiful leopard color. In fry, dark brown spots are scattered across the orange-red body. With age, the body color of the fish changes to golden yellow with pronounced dark spots. The breed is bred artificially and refers to the number species. The official name for the catfish variety is LDA-016.

If the leopard ancistrus has brown and gray spots on the body, then this color option is called tricolor or tiger.

Beginners in aquariums often confuse antsistrus catfish with another type of chain-mail catfish - pterigoplicht fish. Despite the resemblance, these fish belong to different genera and in order to distinguish them, you need to know some features of the fish.

• The color of young and adult individuals in pterigoplichitis is not different. Young Antsistrus on the fins have a light edging that disappears with age.
• A peculiar pattern is located on the body of the pterigoplichitis: the older the individual, the less noticeable it is. Antsistrus has many colors of scales.
• In adult pterygoplychitis, a mustache grows on the lower jaw. Male Antsistruses boast many distinctive horns on the top of their heads.
• In pterygoplichitis, sexual dimorphism is less pronounced.
• Unlike ancistruses, pterigoplicht is incapable of reproduction in aquariums.
• Non-stick catfish live in aquariums for 7–8 years, pterigoplicht can live twice as long - about 15 years.

Somiki Antsistrusy - loving creatures. Due to the fact that they occupy the lower level, sucker fish coexist in the same aquarium with almost any other type of fish. The only exceptions are breeding forms of phlegmatic and leisurely goldfish, as well as species of scaleless fish. These individuals can suffer, as catfish sometimes stick to their bodies, gnawing the unfortunate to the very bones.

The structure of the oral cavity of ancistrus does not allow them to eat shrimp, so the cohabitation of catfish and shrimp is quite possible.

Somiki Antsistrusa is very unpretentious, even beginners will cope with their content. Since the fish is very active, you need to have an aquarium with a volume of at least 80 liters per 1 catfish. The comfortable temperature for Antsistrus is + 22–26 ° C, but catfish can withstand extremes from +18 to + 30 ° C (although it’s better not to experiment like this, because such stress can be fatal for a fish).

In nature, ancistruses prefer slightly acidic water (6.0–7.3 pH), but in an aquarium they are less picky and survive in any conditions. The only mandatory factor for this fish is constantly clean and oxygenated water. For this, air filters are installed, water often changes.

Somiki ancistruses lead a predominantly twilight lifestyle, so constant bright lighting is contraindicated.

Catfish prefer plant food. In fact, the main source of food for fish is algal fouling of the contents of the aquariums (walls, decorations, soil).

But be that as it may, feeding the catfish is still necessary. Most often, aquarists feed them with special feeds based on spirulina, designed specifically for chain mail (locarium) catfish. Such food will give the fish all the trace elements it needs, including protein.

Circles of cabbage, nettle, lettuce can be fed with boiled cabbage, circles of zucchini, cucumbers, pieces of broccoli will help to diversify their diet.

In the decoration of the aquarium, it is worth using snags, artificial caves and grottoes. One of these decorative elements, Somik Antsistrus will choose as his house and will constantly live and guard in it. Fine gravel or sand should be used as soil, laying it in a layer of 40-50 mm.

You can diversify the landscape of the aquarium with various plants, which can also become an additional source of vitamins and minerals for fish. Experienced aquarists recommend planting algae in the aquarium to the ancistrus. They grow rapidly and will be a significant addition to the diet of catfish. In order for the plants to develop normally, they will need additional lighting during the daytime.

The most characteristic feature that allows you to determine the sex of an adult is the presence in males of long growths, similar to horns, on the upper jaw. This dimorphism becomes pronounced only closer to the age of puberty (about 1 year). Besides, cat boys are sleeker and larger than females. Girls are smaller, with a more rounded abdomen. The horns on the nose of the females, if any, are short (about 1 mm long) and there are very few of them.

Antsistruses are unpretentious and can be easily bred even in common aquariums, which is fraught with eating eggs with other fish. therefore immediately before breeding, it is worth depositing the heterosexual couple selected for breeding into a separate container. Somics hide spawned eggs in various secluded places, for example, behind decorations, in decorative snags, and can put them in filters if they get there. The caviar of the ancistruses is yellow-red, rather large.

To preserve the stock of hatched fry, sucker fish of catfish-producers are usually sent to a special tank - spawning. In order to approximate the spawning time, stimulation is carried out: 2 parts of water from the general aquarium and 1 share of fresh are poured into the spawning aquarium, then the ambient temperature is lowered by 2 ° C. Future parents are transplanted into the prepared container.

Once in spawning, the male begins preparation for spawning. He clears the place chosen under the nesting place - usually this is some kind of snag, crevice or pipe. Selecting and cleaning a future nest can last several days. After this, the process of courtship and spawning begins.

From this moment, the male begins to guard the offspring and is aggressive to all fish, so the female may suffer.

After laying, and until the fry begin to swim on their own, the male Antsistrus takes care of the offspring. It cleans and airs the eggs, driving other fish away from the nest, including the female who laid eggs. Hatching on the 5th day, the larvae for some time remain hanging on the site of the nest in the form of a bunch. This period lasts up to 7 days until the yolk sac resolves.

When the primary nutrients are fully utilized, the fry begin to move independently. As soon as they become independent, the father is returned to his permanent territory.

After hatching, the larvae of ancistrus feed on the contents of the yolk sacs from which they were born. Then they can be fed with special dry food. It is most convenient to use feed tablets for catfish. It is advisable to provide abundant nutrition to small ancistruses, at least 3 times a day.

In addition to nutrition, it is necessary to ensure a daily change of 20% of water in spawning. With this care, fry will reach adult sizes in six months, then they can be transplanted into an adult aquarium.

Although Antsistruses are very unpretentious and quite peaceful creatures, their content can cause some problems. One of the main difficulties is that the home reservoir has a limited area. With a lack of free space, adult catfish can show aggression within their species to protect the territory.Their fights are rarely very cruel, but a stronger individual will not allow the opponent to calmly eat on their territory, which can lead to the death of a weak fish.

Another problem is an improperly selected neighborhood. Somiki-sticks are nocturnal creatures, they can “saddle” larger sleeping fish, for example, gold ones, and gnaw on their scales.

It happens that ancistruses can creep into the filter tubes, which can lead to their death.

Anticistruses are susceptible to various diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, as well as viral or bacterial diseases associated with the appearance. Worms can disturb catfish. To avoid most problems, you should not run new fish into a common aquarium right away. They are quarantined for several days and monitored for their condition. In case of manifestation of signs of the disease, you should consult a specialist to choose a method of treatment.

If you decide to run amazing cleaners in your home aquarium, then It is worth considering some nuances.

• In an aquarium with a volume of 150 liters, no more than 4 fish can be hooked.
• For every fish you need secluded place (the house where she will live) and her favorite snag, which the catfish will gnaw at.
• The water should be soft and slightly acidic, with a temperature of + 22–25 ° C. But some varieties of ancistruses prefer hard water.
• The aquarium must be equipped with a powerful aeration system.
• Sticky fish lead an active lifestyle at dusk, therefore, they do not need additional lighting. In the case of using the backlight, it is necessary to establish equal dark and light periods with short twilights of half an hour.
• There must be a sufficient amount of green space in the aquarium.
• A weekly change of 25% of the total volume of water is required.

If you ask those who have been keeping fish for a long time, then almost all will unanimously praise these unpretentious workers, fighters for the cleanliness of the aquarium. Everything in this fish suits the owners.

Of the shortcomings noted the slow growth rate of the fish, the difficulty in determining the sex of babies and the love of hiding in shelter during daylight hours, but at night the fishes can appetizingly crunch the food. Some owners of adult catfish ate snails, despite the fact that the former seem to be vegetarians, and the latter are protected by a shell. Also, the ancistruses dig up plants and make digs under the bottom decorations.

See the next video for more information on Antsistrus.