Giant bumblebee catfish

Care at a glance

Overview

The giant bumblebee catfish is a heavy-bodied ambush predator, the bumblebee-patterned catfish that outgrew the small species sold under that name. Keep it alone, as it is solitary and predatory, and it will eat any tankmate small enough to fit its wide mouth, so house it only with large, robust fish or on its own. It sits in cover by day and hunts at night, so give it a cave or hollow, driftwood, a soft floor, and dim light. Feed meaty foods such as whole frozen fish, prawn, mussel, and earthworms. Give a single adult a tank of at least 400 liters.

In the wild

This catfish lives among stones and submerged wood in rivers of northern South America, including the Magdalena and other trans-Andean drainages of Colombia, wedging itself into cover to ambush prey. Recreate that with rockwork, caves, driftwood, and a soft substrate under low light. Target soft water near 23 to 28 C, held at a pH of 6.0 to 7.5. Secure hiding spots matter most.

Good to know

Pseudopimelodus bufonius is an ambush predator in the family Pseudopimelodidae, reaching about 25 centimeters, with a broad flattened head and a very wide mouth. Its species name means toad-like, from the Latin bufo for toad, matching its squat build and plain, blotchy look. It wears the yellow-and-dark banding of a bumblebee at ten times the size of the small bumblebee catfishes. Captive breeding of it is undocumented.

Did you know

The name bufonius means toad-like, from the Latin bufo, and it fits: a squat, wide-mouthed, blotchy catfish built to sit still and gulp down prey that blunders past its cave.

Common questions

Related species

• Apure jelly catfish

  Cephalosilurus apurensis

  Freshwater

  11.8 in (30 cm)106 gal (400 L)73–82°F (23–28°C)

• 

  Bumblebee jelly catfish

  Batrochoglanis raninus

  Freshwater

  7.9 in (20 cm)53 gal (200 L)73–82°F (23–28°C)

• 

  South American bumblebee catfish

  Microglanis iheringi

  Freshwater

  3.1 in (8 cm)20 gal (75 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)

• 

  Chameleon loach

  Syncrossus beauforti

  Freshwater

  9.8 in (25 cm)106 gal (400 L)73–82°F (23–28°C)
• Spotted algae eater

  Gyrinocheilus pennocki

  Freshwater

  11 in (28 cm)53 gal (200 L)72–82°F (22–28°C)

• 

  Barton's cichlid

  Herichthys bartoni

  Freshwater

  8.7 in (22 cm)79 gal (300 L)75–84°F (24–29°C)