Giant upside-down catfish

Care at a glance

Overview

The giant upside-down is a boisterous, mostly peaceful squeaker that grows large and deep-bodied, so it needs a roomy tank of at least 300 liters with robust tankmates rather than a small community. It genuinely spends much of its life inverted, cruising belly-up near the surface. It can be pushy at feeding time but rarely does real harm. Feed sinking pellets, frozen foods, and vegetable matter, and expect an active, hungry fish.

In the wild

The giant upside-down catfish ranges widely across the Nile and other northern and western African river systems, living in open water and along the bottom of large rivers and floodplains. It spends much of its time swimming inverted near the surface and among cover. Provide a big tank with open swimming space, wood and rock cover, moderate flow, and 22 to 27 degrees C.

Good to know

Synodontis batensoda is a deep-bodied squeaker that reaches around 30 cm and, according to some reports, close to 50 cm in the wild, making it one of the larger members of the genus. Because it swims upside down so much, its belly is dark and its back is pale, the reverse of most fish, which helps camouflage the inverted fish. It has the family's bony head shield and locking spines.

Did you know

Its counter-shading is upside down compared with normal fish, dark below and pale above, an adaptation to a life spent swimming inverted near the surface.

Related species

• 

  Decorated squeaker

  Synodontis decorus

  11.8 in (30 cm)53 gal (200 L)72–81°F (22–27°C)

• 

  Polka dot syno

  Synodontis angelicus

  11.8 in (30 cm)55 gal (210 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)

• 

  One-spot synodontis

  Synodontis notatus

  9.8 in (25 cm)53 gal (200 L)72–81°F (22–27°C)

• 

  Bigeye squeaker

  Synodontis alberti

  7.9 in (20 cm)40 gal (150 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)

• 

  Featherfin squeaker

  Synodontis eupterus

  7.9 in (20 cm)45 gal (170 L)72–81°F (22–27°C)

• 

  Ocellated squeaker

  Synodontis ocellifer

  7.9 in (20 cm)53 gal (200 L)73–81°F (23–27°C)