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I was at a LCS and saw jet black upside-down cats. I was a bit surprised, because they were also built a bit differently than the S. nigriventris I'm used to. They were half-again longer than normal, but still the same width and height, if I can use those terms. I'm positive it was a Synodontis, so is there another species that swims upside down or have they just been selectively breeding for size and color?

I have personally kept the Asian Upside Down Catfish, Mystus leucophasis, which fits your description perfectly except for the fact it's a bagrid. They also have small, white flecks on their flanks. Synos have been hybridized, but I don't believe they've been selectively breeding these fish otherwise.

See PlanetCatfish's past Catfish of the Month article on these guys, but to sum it up these fish get big and are rather aggressive.

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

Thanks for the reply, Shini.

Looks similar, but the adipose fin was bigger and the pelvic fins were more anterior. Honestly, it looks sort-of like a mix of M. leucophasis and S. nigrita, which I know is impossible. Admittedly, I never even thought it could be a bagrid. The only bagrids I was familiar with was the genus Bagrichthys. I'll take a look through the others.

Check for barbel count and mouth structure. Should immediately differentiate between the two families.

Right, bagrids should have nasal barbels while mochokids lack these. Anyway, my first assumption was Asian Upside Down since I've actually seen these; however, it is the only species of bagrid that swims upside down (that I know of, anyway) so if isn't M. leucophasis it probably is a mochokid. How about Brachysynodontis batensoda?

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

The mouth definitely looked more Mochokidae than Bagridae. I can't remember the barbel count off the top of my head, but I do remember that some were branched.

Mystus do not bear branching barbels, so there you go.

i have a very dark upside catfish, and quite frankly it's extremely aggressive. most of the sites i've been on have stated that upsidedowns are peaceful- so either this one is a unique specimen, or it was hybridized with a more aggressive species. (and yes, i do realize that aggressiveness can come from other sources such as tankmates, tank size, water stress, etc)

-a solidary predator, the firetruck stalks its prey

very dark? there are other synodontis species that swim upside down and are not as peaceful.

The true test of character is not how much we know how to do, but how we behave when we dont know what to do.

im not sure of its scientific name, so idk what species it is

as for very dark, yes, its a dark black and depending on how the light hits it it is a very dark purple

-a solidary predator, the firetruck stalks its prey

The Asian Upside Down Catfish, Mystus leucophasis, are black and are getting more and more common. Do a google image search for "Mystus leucophasis". Is that your fish? If so then it'll get much larger than a normal upside-down catfish, Synodontis nigriventris.

I keep going back to this species identification because I have not seen many actual Synodontis I would describe as black, though of course I can be wrong.

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

Mystus leucophasis- thats the one

how large do they get?

hopefully not too large until i can upgrade

-a solidary predator, the firetruck stalks its prey

Having kept this species myself, I can tell you it's a big brute of a catfish; I once made the mistake of putting little guys of this species in a community. It seemed to be fine for a while but eventually I started losing fish. I personally sent mine back to the LFS after keeping them in solitary confinement for a while. These fish are tough and should be kept with, if anything, other tough fish. Like most catfish, it will eat anything that fits in its mouth. Well-fed, these fish will grow relatively rapidly. They reach about a foot long, which is too large for your 10 gallon and is not an option for a 55 gallon community tank as it will either eat or pick on most community fish.

Quite possibly the best catfish for an aggressive tank, but it has no place in a community. It's quite an attractive fish, and IMO looks better than your common Synodontis nigriventris, but it's behavior makes it the worse option for any of my types of aquaria where I prefer to actually have other more shy, more delicate fish. I treat this fish with as much distaste as any cichlid; sure, they're pretty fish, but not an option for my tank of gentle and peaceful inhabitants. I suggest trading it back to the LFS for something more peaceful and manageable for the long-term.

Go to www.planetcatfish.com and go to their Catfish of the Month (CotM) section. They have a past article in the archive about this species for some more information.

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

idk if walmart does trade-ins for fish(yeah, i know i should be ashamed of myself for buying fish from walmart

-a solidary predator, the firetruck stalks its prey

Hmmm... Well try to find the nearest reputable pet store near you. Most good stores will accept a fish for at least some store credit.

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.