Synodontis membranaceus (Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1809)

About

A large African catfish with a genuinely unusual look, Hemisynodontis membranaceus is the sole member of its genus and has bounced between several genus names over the years due to its morphological quirks. The most immediately obvious feature is a broad membrane running along the maxillary barbels, creating a drooping moustache effect that gives adults a distinctly comical face. That same anatomy is functional. Those barbels sweep food toward the mouth while the fish feeds at the surface, often in an inverted position, using densely packed gill rakers to filter plankton in a way that sets it apart from most other synodontid catfish. Wild populations are spread across a huge swath of West and North Africa, from the Nile basin through the Senegal, Volta, Niger, and Chad systems, where adults favor deep nearshore zones. Juveniles are nicely spotted, but expect that patterning to fade as the fish grows. And grow it does, eventually reaching a size that will unsettle smaller tankmates. Young fish can be kept in groups, but adults turn territorial with their own kind. Despite that, they are broadly peaceful toward larger robust species, and big cichlids from Africa or the Americas make sensible companions. This species is a reasonable choice even for less experienced keepers, provided the tank is large enough to accommodate a genuinely substantial adult.