Synodontis Decorus

[merlyn2221]

I just got two of these little guys at an auction on Sunday. When I say little guys, I mean little. Each one is a little less than 1 inch long (body only).

What can I feed them to help them grow well? I fed them small spirulina flakes (which they ate) yesterday and some zucchini (which they ignored).
Today I dropped a few pieces of a broken algae disc in and they seemed to like that, but I think it was a little hard for their little mouths.

They are so adorable! They are currenly in a breeder container in the tank because they are so small. Don't want my mbuna (who are trying to eat them through the plastic, mind you) to kill them.

[SGypsyMermaid]

synos need protein, merlyn. i had one syno decorus--sadly, my experience was that this is one of the synos that cannot handle mbuna--they killed him after a couple of days. can you set up another tank?

[merlyn2221]

Yes, they are so small right now, as I said, that they are in the 20g "holding" ground. Was thinking of setting up the 55g as a Tang tank. Think they'd be ok in there?

And what about petricola, njassae, or multipunctatus? How would those be with mbuna? Ever keep them with mbuna?

Nothing I've read in the books I have, or online mentions their compatabilty with other fish, such as mbuna.

My mistake for thinking they were so cute and so cheap that I had to have them! Just glad I found this out from you now, rather than later.

[Frontosa29]

i keep a 6 cat school w/ mbuna haps and peacocks...not a single one died....synodontis nigriventis (upside down catfish) they tend to be a lot spinier then most other synodontis but still they are fine..also multipunctatus are fine w/ mycichlids ive had them in my tank as well....they are from lake tang. if memory serves me right...and njasse are malawi cats...correct me if im wrong...but let me get to the point here as for me.. i have broken every imagineable rule of cichlid keeping..haps/mbuna/alunacara..same tank...even taiwan reef and red empress same tank mind you both males they get along...maybe ive been lucky...but in my opinion it comes down to the fish YOU have YOUR fish..i dont know how much sense im making here but what the hell its late im tierd..goodnight everybody

[SGypsyMermaid]

Yes, they are so small right now, as I said, that they are in the 20g "holding" ground. Was thinking of setting up the 55g as a Tang tank. Think they'd be ok in there?

And what about petricola, njassae, or multipunctatus? How would those be with mbuna? Ever keep them with mbuna?

Nothing I've read in the books I have, or online mentions their compatabilty with other fish, such as mbuna.

My mistake for thinking they were so cute and so cheap that I had to have them! Just glad I found this out from you now, rather than later.

in the mbuna tank, i have syno. nigriventris, ocellifer, and eupterus. the petricolas are in with mbuna and tangs. my multis are in a tank with vics. i don't think that you can go wrong with any of the cats that come from the lakes since they are definitely used to dealing cichlid roughnecks. of course individual fish are different, but that particular syno couldn't cut it with my mbunas. as to whether or not they can make it with tangs, i can't say--maybe it depends on the tang species that are in the tank.

[merlyn2221]

Thanks to your posts and further reading, I have begun to see the light!

I have read that the problem with decorus and mbuna is the decorus' long and high dorsal fin spine, which cannot be fully flattened against its body like, say, the eupterus' can. It is then vulnerable to attack from that perspective on a constant basis. Not only that, but it is supposed to be the shyest of the Synodontis group, and prefers to live in true shoals than just 3 or 4 together. That way they are less shy and have a feeling of safety in numbers. I just read this yesterday somewhere on the internet, but didn't bookmark it so I have to go back and find it so I can post it for you guys to read. It was very interesting. Some people (I read this too) keep these guys in with regular tropicals at a pH of around 7-7.5. Seems they thrived pretty well.
I'll have to set up the Tang tank first and see how those fish are and make my decision, otherwise I can always get fish that are compatible with them for another tank down the road.
And Frontosa, I am with you. My fish are different than any one else's fish. I feel it is my responsibility to look after them based on my knowledge of them, and not just a book or another person. It is clear to me, that with my "brutes" these little guys would be persecuted constantly, and not just by the mbuna. My eupterus wouldn't like the competition. As it is the 3 of them harrass each other constantly. Apparently they don't prefer small groups like they're supposed to, according to what I've read. :shock:
Just goes to prove you can't believe everything you read!
Thanks for all the input!