callichthys callichthys, around anywhere??

Sid Guppy · Post by **Sid Guppy** » 09 Sep 2003, 10:51

Since 1988-1991, I've never encountered it again, and those were contaminants in a Hoplo-shipment, so I begin to wonder....

Does anybody ever keep this species? are they available somewhere, or is it one of those mythology fishes....around in the books, but not in any LFS, or hobbyist tank?

And a question for the ones rooting around in the South American sludge (Jools, Siluris etc)
Is it a rare species, or common as dirt or do exporters simply know this species, or is it unknown for anybody??

just crossed my mind, it's boggling me a bit....

Sid

The only ones imported as such are always these:

Lepthoplosternum pectorale, NOT Callichthys.....

Post by **Silurus** » 09 Sep 2003, 12:55

Callichthys is not rare, but I guess the demand for them is too low to warrant importing the fish in any numbers.

Achim · Post by **Achim** » 09 Sep 2003, 17:14

Hi,

like Heok Hee said there is no demand for them, they are just too "ugly" for the common aquarium trade. However they are very intersting fish, totally different from Hoplosternum and related taxa.
The only ones i ever came across were two fish, a pair, i took photos of at Ingo Seidels place:
http://www.catfishes.org/public/img.php ... =00347.jpg
http://www.catfishes.org/public/img.php ... =00351.jpg

Greetings... Achim

Post by **Silurus** » 09 Sep 2003, 17:20

FWIW, there's definitely going to be more than two species (the number currently recognized) of Callichthys recognized in the near future.
Until the recent description of Callichthys fabricioi, there was only C. callichthys.

Caol_ila · Post by **Caol_ila** » 09 Sep 2003, 18:06

Hi!

I never saw any at the lfs but they had a tank that read C.c. it was a Hornbach hardware store and to my knowledge they get their fishes from Aquarium Dietzenbach. Maybe give them a call allthough they are a importer. Still theres the possibility that those were pepper and salt ones...

Post by **Silurus** » 09 Sep 2003, 18:09

it was a Hornbach hardware store

Is it common practice to sell aquarium fishes in hardware stores in Germany? ;)

Sid Guppy · Post by **Sid Guppy** » 09 Sep 2003, 20:58

Wish they did here!
recently we have those stores as well, and they have indeed a petshop area including tropical fish.

siluris; these stores are SO big, you could use them for 747 hangars....

The army would be quite happy if they got a hall that size, you could probably house the 44 airborne division in one, including the Tomcats.

The strangest fish I encountered in Hb were several Tangcichlids, Corydoras metae and C adolfoi and Synodontis nigriventris.

achim, those pics look EXACTLY like the fish I had in '88-'91!

Caol_ila · Post by **Caol_ila** » 09 Sep 2003, 21:19

@silurus i wasnt sure if the word "hardware store" was correct...they sell all kinds of machines and paint and so on you need when you renovate/build houses. Also they have a gardening and aquarium section as sid stated. In one of those close by works frank warzel (check some L# pics for this name), but usually the guys/girls there are pretty clueless...sometimes they get in really nice fishes and mislabel...thats how i got my S.decorus for 8 euro instead of 40. A little off topic i know...

Post by **Silurus** » 09 Sep 2003, 21:54

Ah, I see. These are what would be called "home improvement stores" in the US (something like Home Depot or Lowe's over here). Don't see these places selling fish over here (don't think they ever will).

Pectorale · Post by **Pectorale** » 18 Sep 2003, 11:22

They fish sold there aren't that interesting, but Hornbach's frozen food is cheaper than in any other LFS around. It's like a huge Home Improvement department store, no Tim Taylor though, thank Gawd

. No knowledgeable staff either, it's for morons, by morons.