PlanetCatfish.com - Pseudopimelodus bufonius (Pseudopimelodidae) Cat-eLog

Male
Female
Pair - female above
Collected in the Venezuelan llanos.
Collected in the Venezuelan llanos.

Cat-eLog Data Sheet
Scientific Name	**Pseudopimelodus bufonius** (Valenciennes, 1840)
Common Names	Giant Bumblebee Catfish Jello Catfish, Jelly Catfish
Type Locality	Cayenne, French Guiana [probably Paramaribo, Suriname].
Synonym(s)	Pimelodus bufonius
Pronunciation	sue doh pim EE low duss - boo fawn ee iss
Etymology	Greek, pseudes = false + greek, pimele = fat + Greek, odous = teeth False pimelodus.
Species Information
Size	245mm or 9.6" SL. Find near, nearer or same sized spp.
Identification	A species with an incredibly wide distribution, these fish are likely a group of species.
Sexing	Males have a pointed genital papillae.
Habitat Information
Distribution	South America: Rivers of northeastern South America from Lake Maracaibo to eastern Brazil! Guyana Waters, Coastal Rivers of Guyanas, Suriname Coastal Rivers (click on these areas to find other species found there) Lake Maracaibo (click on these areas to find other species found there) Orinoco (click on these areas to find other species found there) Login to view the map.
IUCN Red List Category	Least Concern , range map and more is available on the IUCN species page. Last assessed 2020.
pH	5.6 - 7.6
Temperature	24.0-28.0°C or 75.2-82.4°F (Show species within this range)
Husbandry Information
Feeding	Not a fussy feeder, doesn't require but will greedily accept feeder fish, crustaceans and all meaty frozen or live foods. Will also readily accept sinking pellets. User data.
Furniture	Requires a shady retreat such as a pipe or large piece of bogwood. Doesn't require a specific substrate although, in nature, is found over sand substrate in leaf litter deposits matching its colouration pattern. In situ it is an adept ambush predator.
Compatibility	Not aggressive territorially, generally skitish during the day and prone to hiding away until darkness when it becomes very predatory with tankmates of equal to smaller size.
Suggested Tankmates	A larger fish tank. Silver dollars, larger armoured catfish and bigger south American cichlids are best. Essentially tankmates should be 25%-50% larger than this fish.
Breeding	Unreported.
Breeding Reports	There is no breeding report.
Further Information
Reference	Histoire naturelle des poissons v. 15, pp 154.
Registered Keepers	There are 19 registered keepers, view all "my cats" data.
Wishlists	Love this species? Click the heart to add it to your wish list. There are 4 wishes to keep this species, see who wants what.
Spotters	Spotted this species somewhere? Click the binoculars! There are 12 records of this fish being seen, view them all.
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	LFS label creator ARN ref:1.31.243.955
Last Update	2025 Jan 02 01:36 (species record created: 2002 Oct 19 00:00)