Lancer Catfish

About

Found in large, turbid rivers stretching from Thailand down through Indonesia, this Southeast Asian bagrid catfish, Bagrichthys macracanthus, takes its informal "lancer" nickname from the dramatically elongated dorsal spine that defines several members of its genus. It's a solidly built fish that reaches a respectable size in adulthood, with a shape well suited to cruising along the bottom after dark. Despite being listed as aggressive and territorial, its relatively small mouth means tankmates of any reasonable size are safe from being eaten outright. The real tension is with other bottom-dwellers, particularly its own kind. Males are especially intolerant of one another, so a single male kept with several females is the practical approach for anyone wanting to keep a small group. In a community context, this catfish tends to leave fish that occupy mid-water and upper zones alone, and you'll see it out more often if there are active schooling fish like larger rasboras or barbs in the tank to coax it out of hiding. In the wild it moves into seasonally flooded forest areas to spawn when the rains arrive, though breeding in captivity has not been documented. Its diet in the wild leans toward crustaceans and small benthic invertebrates, so meaty foods should form the core of its aquarium diet. A reasonably experienced keeper with the right setup should find this an interesting and rewarding catfish.