Catfish Corner
Rambling With Synodontis: Part 2
Synodontis Species
of Malebo Pool and
Nearby Downstream
The hobby has historically gotten
Synodontis catfishes from three main areas
in Africa: West Africa (mainly Nigeria),
the East African Great Lakes (Victoria,
Tanganyika, and Malawi), and the Congo
River Basin. More recently, small shipments
of fishes from Cameroon and Gabon have
included Synodontis species—these Congo-based species are of particular interest.
Into the Congo
The Congo River (which was known
as the Zaire River for a period of time) is
almost 3000 miles long, and its overall
basin covers almost a million and a half
square miles. We will narrow this down
quite a bit for our purposes. About 350 miles
upstream from where the river empties into
the Atlantic Ocean, there is a very large
expansion of the river which forms the area
known as Malebo Pool (formerly Stanley
Pool). This area is about 22 miles long
and 14 miles wide. There is one very large
70-square-mile island in the pool, as well
as numerous smaller ones.
Two countries border on the pool and
have their capitals on its shores. To the east
is the Democratic Republic of the Congo
with its capital Kinshasa, and to the west
is the Republic of Congo and its capital
Brazzaville. It is from these two cities that
most of the hobby-bound Congo River fishes
originate. In 1953, Pierre Brichard, based in
Kinshasa, started collecting and shipping
fishes from this area. There were many new
and exciting fishes that flowed into the
hobby in what became known as the “Congo
Bonanza.” Although we still see fishes from
this area, imports over the last decade or so
have not been up to past standards. Many
factors have been involved, including war,
politics, bad business practices, and, at least
in part, poor shipping techniques. But let us
remain positive and hope for improvement
in all of these areas.
Malebo Pool has been the traditional
anchor for collecting. At the downstream
end of the pool, the land immediately
starts to drop away and there are nearly
250 miles of river that are dominated
by rapids. These rapids have a fantastic
fauna of all kinds of fishes (including
Synodontis). So between the pool itself,
the tributary rivers that run into the pool,
and the river itself and the rapids, there is
wonderful potential for the hobby.
The Inhabitants
Breaking from our Synodontis ramble
point, I would now like to take a look at the
species that are known from this area.
Lee FINLEY
Lee Finley has been active
in the aquarium hobby for
40 years. For the last 25
years, catfishes have taken
up the majority of his time.
In addition to being just a
fun-loving hobbyist, Lee has
also been involved in the
aquarium industry as an
aquarium store owner, writer,
and wholesale/retail breeder.
He is a familiar presence
and presenter at aquarium
conventions. Lee is also
interested in the literature
and in the early history of the
aquarium hobby, and works
on projects in these areas.
SYNODONTIS ACANTHOMIAS
BOULENGER 1899
This is one of the larger of the Synodontis
species and is known to reach a maximum
size just short of 24 inches, although I
have never seen an aquarium specimen
approaching anywhere close to this.
Typically the fish is gray in base coloration
with the head and body being covered
with numerous small black spots. Smaller
fish when properly fed often show a nice
greenish cast to the body. This species may
get a bit aggressive as it grows.
S. ALBERTI SCHILTHUIS 1891
Exceptionally long maxillary (upper lip)
barbels are a highlight of this attractive but
not overly colorful species. These barbels
are proportionally longer in young fish and
