Red witch catfish - Rineloricaria sp. - 4cm - DNZ

The slender body shape and the thin and long backward extended abdomen give the red witch catfish or red dwarf catfish Rineloricaria sp. from South America a very special appearance. Besides the unusual shape, this red color variety also has a great intense coloration. Red witch catfish have pretty red rays in their otherwise transparent fins in addition to their red body color. They belong to the large family of loricariid catfish. Red witch catfish grow to a length of 12 cm all told. A small group can be kept already in an aquarium from 80 cm side length. In nature, Red Witch Catfish are often found in clear, clean streams with low water levels but a strong current. An oxygen-rich, well-filtered current biotope or stream aquarium is perfect for Witch Catfish, but you can of course keep them in your standard aquarium as well. Make sure they have good flow and clean, preferably uncontaminated water.

The Red Witch Catfish is a peaceful group fish and needs the security that several conspecifics can provide. Not suitable for single keeping! In an aquarium with Red Witch Catfish there should be enough hiding places: especially caves are important for the beautiful ornamental fish. The males need the possibility to avoid each other if necessary, so that it does not come to territorial disputes. Rineloricaria sp. gets along very well with the company of peaceful fish and with dwarf shr imps or fan shrimps . Since crayfish and crabs occupy the same areas of the tank as the Red Witch Catfish, caution is advised here, socialization with crayfish and also with dwarf crayfish or crabs is not recommended.

In an aquarium for Red Witch Catfish it needs soft wooden roots such as bog pine roots. Here the catfish rasp off wood fibers and thus provide themselves with much needed fiber for a smoothly functioning digestion.

The males of the Red Witch Catfish can be easily recognized by their whiskers - these appendages grow on the side of their head. Furthermore, the male Witch Catfish have bristles on their body, which the females lack. The Red Witch Catfish can be successfully bred in the aquarium. Red witch catfish are Cave breeders, with the females preferring fairly narrow tubes for spawning. Once the eggs, which can number up to 200, are laid, the males engage in brood care, watching over and cleaning the clutches. Young witch catfish are raised with artemiauplia and with worms, but they also help themselves to the accompanying fauna and eat biofilms from the surfaces.

Red Witch Catfish like soft to medium hard water in the aquarium and a water temperature of 25-30 °C. If they have clean, oxygen-rich water available, they prove to be robust and extremely durable.

Red Witch Catfish are typical omnivores: they like to rummage through the substrate in the aquarium for food and graze on biofilms. They are not as active as algae eaters as other loricariids. Rineloricaria sp. will readily take frozen foods, sinking live foods and of course special wafers or tabs for loricariid catfish in addition to over-brooded greens, soft vegetables and brown autumn leaves .

Our food recommendation: The NatureHolic Catfish Feed is a professionally formulated complete diet especially for all sucking catfish. The food tabs contain important dietary fibers such as chitin and plant fibers, which are essential for the survival of catfish for a well-functioning digestion. With strong proteins from insect larvae as well as carbohydrate-rich vegetables NatureHolic Catfish Feed provides all sucking catfish optimally with all important building materials for a fast and healthy growth. The extra hard chips can be scraped off by the catfish close to nature - here they really have to do something for their food! An occupation like in nature.

Our plant recommendation: Use for the planting 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.