L333 - King Tiger Loricarius "Special" - Hypancistrus sp. DNZ 5cm

The South American Hypancistrus sp. L 333 is a loricariid catfish from a southern clearwater tributary of the Rio Xingu. The New Queen Arabesque Harnish Catfish, also called King Tiger Harnish Catfish "Special", inhabits fast flowing waters there. Hypancistrus L 333 is in comparison to the also very variable Hypancistrus L 66 more bulky built and appears more stocky and also high-backed. The body base color of the New Queen Arabesque Catfish is dark brown, and it has white to cream, relatively broad worm lines and dark-light striped fins. The pattern is somewhat similar to the Queen Arabesque Loricariid L 260 and varies greatly from animal to animal, so each catfish has its own unique pattern here. The males have bristly odontodes all over their body, the females have only the so called interopercular odontodes.

Aquariums for Hypancistrus sp. L 333 do not require excessively bright lighting. The catfish like it somewhat shady and are very grateful for a good structure of stones and roots . Here the spectacularly marked catfish will find retreats and caves to rest in. When selecting plants, keep in mind that while adult Hypancistrus sp. L 333 will rarely eat aquarium greens, the juveniles of this Hypancistrus species may well view softer plants as a welcome change to their diet.

Under suitable conditions the breeding of the beautiful special king tiger loricariid is no problem. To stimulate spawning, the water should be quite soft with a conductance below 400 µS, and the temperature should be around 30°C. Frequent water changes simulate the rainy season and further stimulate spawning readiness as does a stronger current. Hypancistrus are cave breeders, the brood is cared for and guarded by the male.

The care of the L 333 should be done in rather soft to medium hard water humic Medium hard water. A water temperature of about 26-30 °C is ideal. The New Queen Arabesque Loricarius grows a bit larger with 13-15 cm and therefore needs more space in the aquarium. An edge length from 100 cm is the minimum for a group of the sociable large catfish.

Since the King Tiger Special Harnish Catfish are very peaceful, albeit quite large cat fish, they can be socialized very well with shrimp, snails, smaller ornamental fish and also other catfish (not with other Hypancistrus species, because of the risk of hybridization).

The New Queen Arabesque Hypancistrus are omnivores. Since these loricariids live bottom-oriented lives, they should be fed sinking live food or frozen food , or catfish sticks and other special food for catfish. The fry are also very fond of eating soft vegetables.

Our food recommendation: The NatureHolic Catfish Feed for all aufwuchs fressende Saugwelse in the aquarium is a balanced tablet food, which does not cloud the water and the fish eat gladly. The catfish tablets also contain NatureHolic active ingredient complexes that provide sucker catfish with everything they need for a strong immune system, healthy growth and great, contrasting coloration.

Our plant recommendation: For planting, use NatureHolic InVitros. These are free of snails, planarians and other unwanted co-inhabitants. Also free of algae spores, bacteria and fungi.

Expert Tip: We recommend for fish keeping the NatureHolic 3 Phase Liquid. The care set offers the best all-round protection for your animals. It ensures optimal conditions for successful breeding and keeping.