When Redtail Catfish are young, they can be kept with other fish as long as the tank mates are too big to fit in their mouths. They can be fed beef or chicken heart and raw hamburger which is a bit more economical. These live foods are expensive so it can become very costly to keep a Redtail Catfish on this diet. There will come a point in time where feeder goldfish and minnows will not be sufficient to sustain the Redtail Catfish. Shortly after emerging from the fry stage, young Redtail Catfish is fed larger live food such as river shrimp, minnow, and feeder goldfish. They also will eat flakes, pellets, and vegetables. In captivity, the babies are fed live and frozen foods such as brine shrimp and bloodworms. Eating HabitsĪs it matures, this species develops a voracious appetite and will eat virtually anything that it can put in its mouth! At maturity, it can reach four to five feet long.
As juveniles, these catfish will grow to one or two feet in length. This makes this fish a desirable addition to a home aquarium.īaby Redtail Catfish are four to five inches long so they appear to pose no threat when sold in a retail store. The most striking features of the Redtail Catfish are its white throat, speckled body, and deep red tail. They are used as a source of food in South America. The average life span of this catfish is twenty to thirty years because their large size scares off predators. Its Latin name is Phractocephalus Hemiopterus.
The Redtail Catfish habitat is in the Amazon and Orinoco river basins of South America. This beautiful South American catfish is appealing to the home aquarist but is not really practical.
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