Catfishes are a very diverse group of species, with many smaller species common in the pet aquarium trade. Catfish are named for their barbels, or “whiskers,” which they use to find food in the substrate. Some species of catfish swim in the aquarium like typical fish, but many dwell at the bottom of the aquarium. One species even swims upside down at the top of the aquarium water.

Tip

Many species have protective barbs on their dorsal and pectoral fins, so be careful when handling or netting.

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  • Pictus Catfish
  • slowmotiongli/Getty Images
  • The Pictus Catfish is one of the most common aquarium catfish species. Although they start very small when sold at the fish store, these catfish can grow up to a few feet long in the wild. The Pictus Catfish is a nocturnal fish, so don’t expect much activity during the day. Feeding should occur later in the day as the fish wake up for their evening activities.
  • Species Overview
  • COMMON NAME: Pictus catfish, Pictus catSCIENTIFIC NAME: Pimelodus pictusADULT SIZE: 5 to 6 inchesLIFE EXPECTANCY: 4 to 8 years
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  • Upside-Down Catfish
  • Besjunior/Getty Images
  • Don’t be alarmed; these catfish are supposed to be upside down! Named for their highly unique body positioning and swimming behavior, the Upside-Down Catfish is cleverly built for surface feeding—the exact opposite of most other catfish species. They are capable of swimming right-side-up and will demonstrate normal bottom-feeding behavior when food is present on the substrate. No one knows quite how this behavior originated, since their swim bladder and inner ear structures resemble other catfish.
  • Species Overview
  • COMMON NAMES: Upside-down catfish, blotched upside-down catfishSCIENTIFIC NAME: Synodontis nigriventrisADULT SIZE: 4 inchesLIFE EXPECTANCY: 5 years
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  • Bandit Cory
  • HannahBinky/Flickr
  • Named for their distinctive facial “bandit” mask, the Bandit Cory is a small, peaceful catfish species. Like other Corydoras species, these fish do best when kept in small groups. The Bandit Cory is also a nocturnal feeder, so don’t expect to see them much during the day.
  • Species Overview
  • COMMON NAMES: Bandit catfish, bandit cory, masked cory, meta river catfish, rio meta corySCIENTIFIC NAME: Corydoras metaeADULT SIZE: 2 inchesLIFE EXPECTANCY: 5 years
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  • Panda Cory
  • Miropa/Getty Images
  • A common Corydoras in the aquarium trade is the Panda Cory. Named for its distinctive white body with black markings, it very closely resembles the Bandit Cory. Water quality and maintenance is critical to good cory health, and be sure to give them lots of places to hide during the day. They are also nocturnal, so you may not see them much until it gets dark.
  • Species Overview
  • COMMON NAMES: Panda catfish, panda cory, panda corydorasSCIENTIFIC NAME: Corydoras pandaADULT SIZE: 2 inches (5 cm)LIFE EXPECTANCY: 10 years
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  • Bronze Cory
  • NERYX/Getty Images
  • The Bronze Cory is distinguished by its overall dusky metallic brown to grey to green coloration. Given this color pattern, these Corydoras are great at hiding—something that greatly benefits a nocturnal fish. As with other cory species, keep them in a group and feed sinking food that drops to the substrate. This is the species that is commercially available as an all-white fish with red eyes, sold as the Albino Corydoras. It is the most commonly available Corydoras catfish (in both the green and albino color varieties).
  • Species Overview
  • COMMON NAMES: Bronze cory, green cory, albino corySCIENTIFIC NAME: Corydoras aeneusADULT SIZE: 2.5 inchesLIFE EXPECTANCY: 5 to 10 years
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  • Suckermouth (Plecostomus) Catfish
  • DEA/Getty Images
  • More commonly known as the Plecostomus, these catfish are known to use their mouths as anchor points, hanging on plants or the side of the aquarium glass. Their specialized mouths can rasp surfaces, cleaning them of algae and other debris. Some Plecos can get very large, so be sure to correctly identify your species before adding them to your tank. The common pleco (Hypostomus plecostomus) can typically grow to 18 inches or more, but rubber-lipped plecos (Chaetostoma milesi) and bristlenose plecos (Ancistrus cirrhosus) will stay at 4-5 inches long.
  • Species Overview
  • COMMON NAMES: Suckermouth Catfish, Plecostomos, PlecoSCIENTIFIC NAME: Hypostomus plecostomusADULT SIZE: 3 inches to 2 feetLIFE EXPECTANCY: 10 to 15 years
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  • Three Stripe Cory
  • fotografieMG/Getty Images
  • The Three Stripe Cory is decorated by a maze of dark black to brown lines all over its translucent, iridescent body. Also known as the Leopard Cory, this species follows the care rules for many Corydoras, including nocturnal feeding, strict water quality requirements, and preference to being kept in a small school of 3-5 Corys.
  • Species Overview
  • COMMON NAMES: False julii cory, leopard catfish, leopard cory, three-line catfish, three-lined cory, three-stripe cory, trilineatus corySCIENTIFIC NAME: Corydoras trilineatusADULT SIZE: 2.5 inchesLIFE EXPECTANCY: 10 years
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  • Julii Cory
  • isoft/Getty Images
  • The Julii Cory is almost identical in appearance to the Three Stripe Cory (#7). The key distinction is the consistency of the lines on the fish’s head. The Three Stripe Cory will have a fully connected pattern, whereas the Julii Cory will have an interrupted pattern made up of dots. They can be very difficult to differentiate between when the fish are small.
  • Species Overview
  • COMMON NAMES: Julii catfish, julii cory, leopard corySCIENTIFIC NAME: Corydoras julii, Synonym Corydoras leopardusADULT SIZE: 2.5 inchesLIFE EXPECTANCY: 5 years
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  • Bristlenose Catfish
  • Getty Images/arrowsg
  • Also known as the Bristlenose Pleco, this catfish species stays relatively small and will not outgrow its aquarium like other plecostomuses. These catfishes are distinguished by the multiple bristles, or whiskers, surrounding the head, instead of just the mouth. The bristles are larger in the males. Although they will feed on algae and detritus, it is best to feed them a sinking pelleted food to ensure a well-rounded diet. This species also comes in an albino variation, which has darker yellow spots on it light yellow body.
  • Species Overview
  • COMMON NAMES: Bristlenose pleco, bristlenose catfish, bushynose catfish, bushy noseSCIENTIFIC NAME: Ancistrus cirrhosusADULT SIZE: 5 inchesLIFE EXPECTANCY: 5-10 years
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  • Pepper Cory
  • AG/Getty Images
  • The Pepper Cory is distinguished by its mottled black or dark brown body appearance. Although the underside, pelvic, and pectoral fins are white to translucent, the dorsal surface of the fish takes on a shadowed appearance—perfect for hiding out from predators during the day. This species is commonly confused with both the Three Stripe and Julii Cory.
  • Species Overview
  • COMMON NAMES: Blue leopard corydoras, peppered catfish, peppered corySCIENTIFIC NAME: Corydoras paleatusADULT SIZE: 2 to 3 inchesLIFE EXPECTANCY: 5 years
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  • Skunk Cory
  • Mirko_Rosenau/Getty Images
  • The Skunk Cory is named for its bold black band running along the dorsal ridge of the fish. It can be confused with the Adolfi Corydoras (Corydoras aldolfoi), which has a similar black band but is interrupted by a vivid orange patch on the head. Like other Corydoras species, the Skunk Cory does best in small groups and in a tank with lots of places to hide, given their nocturnal nature.
  • Species Overview
  • COMMON NAMES: Skunk cory, arched corySCIENTIFIC NAME: Corydoras arcuatusADULT SIZE: 2 inchesLIFE EXPECTANCY: 5 years

Pictus Catfish

The Pictus Catfish is one of the most common aquarium catfish species. Although they start very small when sold at the fish store, these catfish can grow up to a few feet long in the wild. The Pictus Catfish is a nocturnal fish, so don’t expect much activity during the day. Feeding should occur later in the day as the fish wake up for their evening activities.

slowmotiongli/Getty Images

Species Overview

COMMON NAME: Pictus catfish, Pictus cat

Upside-Down Catfish

Don’t be alarmed; these catfish are supposed to be upside down! Named for their highly unique body positioning and swimming behavior, the Upside-Down Catfish is cleverly built for surface feeding—the exact opposite of most other catfish species. They are capable of swimming right-side-up and will demonstrate normal bottom-feeding behavior when food is present on the substrate. No one knows quite how this behavior originated, since their swim bladder and inner ear structures resemble other catfish.

Besjunior/Getty Images

COMMON NAMES: Upside-down catfish, blotched upside-down catfish

Bandit Cory

Named for their distinctive facial “bandit” mask, the Bandit Cory is a small, peaceful catfish species. Like other Corydoras species, these fish do best when kept in small groups. The Bandit Cory is also a nocturnal feeder, so don’t expect to see them much during the day.

HannahBinky/Flickr

COMMON NAMES: Bandit catfish, bandit cory, masked cory, meta river catfish, rio meta cory

Panda Cory

A common Corydoras in the aquarium trade is the Panda Cory. Named for its distinctive white body with black markings, it very closely resembles the Bandit Cory. Water quality and maintenance is critical to good cory health, and be sure to give them lots of places to hide during the day. They are also nocturnal, so you may not see them much until it gets dark.

Miropa/Getty Images

COMMON NAMES: Panda catfish, panda cory, panda corydoras

Bronze Cory

The Bronze Cory is distinguished by its overall dusky metallic brown to grey to green coloration. Given this color pattern, these Corydoras are great at hiding—something that greatly benefits a nocturnal fish. As with other cory species, keep them in a group and feed sinking food that drops to the substrate. This is the species that is commercially available as an all-white fish with red eyes, sold as the Albino Corydoras. It is the most commonly available Corydoras catfish (in both the green and albino color varieties).

NERYX/Getty Images

COMMON NAMES: Bronze cory, green cory, albino cory

Suckermouth (Plecostomus) Catfish

More commonly known as the Plecostomus, these catfish are known to use their mouths as anchor points, hanging on plants or the side of the aquarium glass. Their specialized mouths can rasp surfaces, cleaning them of algae and other debris. Some Plecos can get very large, so be sure to correctly identify your species before adding them to your tank. The common pleco (Hypostomus plecostomus) can typically grow to 18 inches or more, but rubber-lipped plecos (Chaetostoma milesi) and bristlenose plecos (Ancistrus cirrhosus) will stay at 4-5 inches long.

DEA/Getty Images

COMMON NAMES: Suckermouth Catfish, Plecostomos, Pleco

Three Stripe Cory

The Three Stripe Cory is decorated by a maze of dark black to brown lines all over its translucent, iridescent body. Also known as the Leopard Cory, this species follows the care rules for many Corydoras, including nocturnal feeding, strict water quality requirements, and preference to being kept in a small school of 3-5 Corys.

fotografieMG/Getty Images

COMMON NAMES: False julii cory, leopard catfish, leopard cory, three-line catfish, three-lined cory, three-stripe cory, trilineatus cory

Julii Cory

The Julii Cory is almost identical in appearance to the Three Stripe Cory (#7). The key distinction is the consistency of the lines on the fish’s head. The Three Stripe Cory will have a fully connected pattern, whereas the Julii Cory will have an interrupted pattern made up of dots. They can be very difficult to differentiate between when the fish are small.

isoft/Getty Images

COMMON NAMES: Julii catfish, julii cory, leopard cory

Bristlenose Catfish

Also known as the Bristlenose Pleco, this catfish species stays relatively small and will not outgrow its aquarium like other plecostomuses. These catfishes are distinguished by the multiple bristles, or whiskers, surrounding the head, instead of just the mouth. The bristles are larger in the males. Although they will feed on algae and detritus, it is best to feed them a sinking pelleted food to ensure a well-rounded diet. This species also comes in an albino variation, which has darker yellow spots on it light yellow body.

 Getty Images/arrowsg

COMMON NAMES: Bristlenose pleco, bristlenose catfish, bushynose catfish, bushy nose

Pepper Cory

The Pepper Cory is distinguished by its mottled black or dark brown body appearance. Although the underside, pelvic, and pectoral fins are white to translucent, the dorsal surface of the fish takes on a shadowed appearance—perfect for hiding out from predators during the day. This species is commonly confused with both the Three Stripe and Julii Cory.

AG/Getty Images

COMMON NAMES: Blue leopard corydoras, peppered catfish, peppered cory

Skunk Cory

The Skunk Cory is named for its bold black band running along the dorsal ridge of the fish. It can be confused with the Adolfi Corydoras (Corydoras aldolfoi), which has a similar black band but is interrupted by a vivid orange patch on the head. Like other Corydoras species, the Skunk Cory does best in small groups and in a tank with lots of places to hide, given their nocturnal nature.

Mirko_Rosenau/Getty Images

COMMON NAMES: Skunk cory, arched cory

As with any fish species, do your research before adding any fish to a new or established aquarium. Be sure to properly quarantine all new additions, and be sure all fish have enough room and are fed an appropriate diet.