Bumblebee jelly catfish

Care at a glance

Overview

The bumblebee jelly catfish is a stout, soft-bodied ambush predator that looks harmless but has a real appetite. Keep it singly, as it is a solitary fish, and pair it only with tankmates too large to fit in its wide mouth; small fish and shrimp will be eaten. It spends the day tucked under wood or in a cave and comes out to feed in the evening, so give it shade, driftwood, and a soft floor. Feed meaty foods such as frozen bloodworm, prawn, mussel, and earthworms once it settles. A single fish is comfortable in a tank of around 200 liters or more.

In the wild

This catfish lives in shady, slow-moving stretches of Amazon and Guiana rivers, hiding by day under branches, roots, and among leaf litter on the bottom. Recreate that with driftwood, caves, leaf litter, a soft substrate, and dim light. Warm water of about 23 to 28 C and a near-neutral pH of 6.0 to 7.5 suit it. Quiet water and plenty of daytime hiding places match its retiring habits.

Good to know

Batrochoglanis raninus is a member of the family Pseudopimelodidae, the bumblebee catfishes, and reaches about 20 centimeters. It wears loose, banded yellow-and-brown skin that gave rise to the jelly and bumblebee trade names. Both parts of its scientific name mean frog: the genus builds on the Greek batrachos, the species on the Latin rana. It has no recorded aquarium spawnings.

Did you know

Science stamped it a frog twice over. The genus name Batrochoglanis builds on the Greek word for frog, batrachos, while the species name raninus comes from rana, the Latin for frog, both nods to its squat, wide-mouthed shape.

Common questions

Related species

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