Can You Suggest A Farowella Sp.
 

Hi all, can you suggest a good farewell species for a thirty eight gallon fish tank. It is a planted tank and it is starting to acquire some green alga and love the look of the farewell species.

If you want a true Farlowella, the species in our profile is ideal. It notes there are two usually exported species. Twig Catfish takes you there. Avoid the "Royal" so-called species, they can get quite large.

Byron.

how large is quite large

Depends upon the species. Most are likely in the genus Sturisoma, and similar to Farlowella there are many species and more than one is believed to be imported from time to time under a "common" name of Royal Farlowella. Some Sturisoma are reported to reach a foot. I had one once that was about 7-8 inches, and it was amazing how much of a nuisance it was in my 90g; I returned it.

Species in the genus Farlowella max out at 5-6 inches but are very thin so they don't create the impression that a normal 6-inch fish would. My trio in the 70g are frequently hardly noticed--except at present when the male is again guarding a clutch of eggs on the tank wall. A truly neat fish for a peaceful soft water tank.

... okay. I like the H. melini species. They get 5 inches long, aren't territorial and look cool... i check my lfs for ten or and others

That's a Whiptail catfish, commonly called. Also interesting, but not at all a Farlowella, which is what you initially asked about. I have a Whiptail in my 115g. Nice fish too. The one I have is Rineloricaria parva. It's in our profiles, and it mentions there that this genus also has a lot of confusion. The most commonly-seen is likely this species, though R. lanceolata and R. fallax are very, very similar and also imported.

By the way, Hemiloricaria melini is probably Rineloricaria melini, at least according to the California Academy of Sciences Catalogue of Fishes. In the profile of R. parva I reference the issue of Rineloricaria and Hemiloricaria. R. melini occurs in Brazil, in the Rio Amazon proper (or more correctly, Rio Solimoes as the river is called at that locale) and is very rarely exported.

Byron.

I don't need exactly farlowella, but any catfish like them.