Phantasia catfish

Cetopsorhamdia phantasia

Also known as Fantasy catfish

FreshwaterFish

Care at a glance

Temperature: 73–82°F (23–28°C)
pH: 6.0–7.5
Adult size: 1.8 in (4.5 cm)
Minimum tank: 14 gal (54 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Solitary
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Medium
Breeding: No record
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Upper Amazon, Ecuador and Peru
Family: Heptapteridae

Overview

The phantasia catfish is a tiny, peaceful, bottom-dwelling catfish that is content in a modest tank. It is not a shoaling species, so keep it singly or as a pair rather than in a group. It spends its time working the substrate and sheltering among wood and roots, so give it fine sand or smooth gravel, gentle flow, and plenty of cover. It gets along with small, calm community fish, though the tiniest tankmates and shrimp may be seen as food. Feed small sinking foods and frozen items such as bloodworm and daphnia. It suits a tank of around 54 liters or more.

In the wild

This little catfish lives in small, fast streams of the upper Amazon headwaters in Ecuador, working sandy and gravelly beds among sunken wood and leaf litter. Recreate that with fine substrate, smooth stones, driftwood, and a gentle current. Hold it in soft, warm water of about 23 to 28 C at a pH of 6.0 to 7.5. Clean, oxygen-rich water suits a fish from flowing headwaters.

Good to know

Cetopsorhamdia phantasia is a three-barbeled catfish in the family Heptapteridae, described in 1985, and one of the smallest members at about 4.5 centimeters. Its Latinized name comes from a word for fantasy or apparition, unusual for a genus of plain little streambed catfishes. It is known from a small range in the Napo basin, and its breeding is not documented in aquaria.

Did you know

Described only in 1985 and known from the Napo headwaters, it remains one of the least documented catfishes in the trade, carrying a name that translates roughly as fantasy or apparition.