Short-finned tandan

Care at a glance

Overview

A mid-sized eel-tailed catfish and the most compact of its group, it patrols the bottom after dark, nosing through sand and leaf litter for anything edible. It lives alone rather than in a shoal, so keep a single fish, or a pair only if the tank is large. It is not aggressive, but it will swallow small fish given the chance, so keep tankmates on the larger, peaceful side and pick them with care. Feed sinking catfish pellets, frozen bloodworm, chopped prawn and earthworms once the lights are low. Even at this smaller size it wants floor space to roam, so give it a tank of at least 300 liters.

In the wild

The short-finned tandan lives in the warm streams, lakes and swamps of Cape York in far northern Australia and across southern New Guinea, from clear flowing tributaries to turbid backwaters. Keep it warm, about 21 to 28 C, in neutral, moderately hard water around pH 6.5 to 7.8. A soft sand floor, driftwood, some rounded stones and shady cover suit it, along with steady filtration and clean, well-oxygenated water.

Good to know

Neosilurus brevidorsalis is a plotosid, or eel-tailed catfish, that grows to about 24 centimeters. Its name means short dorsal, for the small first dorsal fin set well forward on the body, ahead of the long fin that runs around the tail. It is a bottom-feeding omnivore, and breeding is not recorded in aquaria. As with the rest of the family, its fin spines can give a venomous sting, so handle the fish carefully when netting or moving it.

Did you know

It lives on both Cape York and southern New Guinea, which were joined as one landmass whenever ice ages dropped the sea and drained the shallow Torres Strait, letting freshwater fish spread between them without ever meeting the ocean.

Common questions

Related species

• Yellow eel-tail catfish

  Neosilurus hyrtlii

  Freshwater

  13.4 in (34 cm)106 gal (400 L)70–82°F (21–28°C)
• Southern tandan

  Neosilurus equinus

  Freshwater

  14.6 in (37 cm)106 gal (400 L)70–82°F (21–28°C)
• Soft-spined tandan

  Neosilurus mollespiculum

  Freshwater

  17.3 in (44 cm)106 gal (400 L)70–82°F (21–28°C)
• Narrow-fronted tandan

  Neosilurus ater

  Freshwater

  17.7 in (45 cm)119 gal (450 L)70–82°F (21–28°C)

• 

  Marbled tandanus catfish

  Tandanus tandanus

  Freshwater

  31.5 in (80 cm)185 gal (700 L)61–79°F (16–26°C)
• Silverspot eartheater

  Geophagus argyrostictus

  Freshwater

  9.4 in (24 cm)119 gal (450 L)77–84°F (25–29°C)