''Synodontis angelicus'' is a species of
upside-down catfish commonly named polkadot squeaker, black clown catfish, whitespotted squeaker, pearl squeaker, or angel squeaker.
This species is native to the
Congo Basin
The Congo Basin (french: Bassin du Congo) is the sedimentary basin of the Congo River. The Congo Basin is located in Central Africa, in a region known as west equatorial Africa. The Congo Basin region is sometimes known simply as the Congo. It con ...
in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo and the
Republic of the Congo
The Republic of the Congo (french: République du Congo, ln, Republíki ya Kongó), also known as Congo-Brazzaville, the Congo Republic or simply either Congo or the Congo, is a country located in the western coast of Central Africa to the w ...
. It was originally described in 1891 by Belgian ichthyologist
Louise Schilthuis
Louise Schilthuis (16 December 1863, Groningen – 27 January 1951, The Hague), also known as Lubbina Schilthuis, was a Dutch zoologist and a curator at the Zoology Museum at the University of Utrecht. She was active in the late 19th century and p ...
after its discovery in the
Malebo Pool
The Pool Malebo, formerly Stanley Pool, also known as Mpumbu, Lake Nkunda or Lake Nkuna by local indigenous people in pre-colonial times, is a lake-like widening in the lower reaches of the Congo River. of the Congo River.
The
specific name Specific name may refer to:
* in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database
In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules:
* Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...
''"angelicus"'' means heavenly or divine, since juveniles of this species are remarkable for their bright coloring.
[
]
Description
Adult specimens between are grey to dark violet, with reddish-yellow to bark brown-red blotches on the head, sides, adipose fin, and partly running together on the ventral surface.[ These blotches are evenly distributed and have sharp, distinct edges.][ The blotches may be edged with dark violet. The fins are dark violet with brownish blotches and streaks.][ Juveniles between are strikingly colored, with white, round blotches on a red-violet background.][
The first ray of the dorsal fin and the pectoral fins have a hardened first ray which is serrated.][ The caudal fin is deeply forked with an extension on the top lobe.][ It has short, cone-shaped teeth in the upper jaw.][ In the lower jaw, the teeth are s-shaped and movable.][
This species grows to a length of SL although specimens up to TL have been recorded in nature.][
]
In the aquarium
The species is commercially used as an aquarium species.nocturnal
Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite.
Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...
.[ These catfish will excavate the substrate and may nibble plants. They eat smaller live foods and prepared foods. They prefer a water temperature of , a pH of 6.0–8.0 and a hardness of 5–19 dGH.][
]
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Synodontis Angelicus
angelicus
"Angelicus" is the first single from Delerium's album ''Nuages du Monde'' featuring singer Isabel Bayrakdarian.
The single was released only as a promotional single in 2007; Its release to DJs enabled the track to reach number one on the US Hot D ...
Catfish of Africa
Fish of Cameroon
Fish of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Fish of the Republic of the Congo
Fish described in 1891