Farlowella acus
| Farlowella acus | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Siluriformes |
| Family: | Loricariidae |
| Genus: | Farlowella |
| Species: | F. acus
|
| Binomial name | |
| Farlowella acus (Kner, 1853)
| |
Farlowella acus is the type species of the armored catfish genus Farlowella. Members of this genus are commonly known as twig catfish or whiptail catfish. The specific name of the species, acus, means “pointed” or a “needle” or “spine”.[2]
Distribution
Farlowella acus is native to South America, where it occurs in the drainage basins of Lake Valencia and the Torito River in Venezuela.[3]
Appearance and anatomy
Farlowella acus reaches 16.0 centimetres (6.3 in)
odontodes. The females' thinner snouts will remain smooth at all times.[2]
Ecology
These fish feed on plants and roots.[3] Twig catfishes spawn from between November and March.[2]
In the aquarium
F. acus is one of the most commonly exported species of Farlowella for the
characins (tetras), rasboras, or Corydoras catfish. Aggressive fish such as barbs, cichlids, and larger catfishes should be avoided.[4]
Feeding
These fish will primarily feed on algae and
wafers or tablets; though they might accept worms or such meatier fare, they do not do well on this type of diet.[2][4] It is quite difficult to get a right balance in feeding these species because of their herbivorous preference.[2]
Breeding
Twig catfish can be induced to breed at any time, if in good condition, in captivity.
References
- ^ "Farlowella arcus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Farlowella acus". Scotcat.com. Retrieved 2007-05-20.
- ^ a b Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2011). "Farlowella acus" in FishBase. December 2011 version.
- ^ a b c d e Hulme, Kerry (2004-11-27). "Twig catfish, Farlowella acus". Practical Fishkeeping magazine. Archived from the original on 2007-09-29. Retrieved 2007-05-20.