Talking Chocolate Catfish

fish description – Talking Chocolate Catfish Care Guide ($Hoplosternum\ littorale$)

Category	Detail
Scientific Name	$Hoplosternum\ littorale$
Common Name	Brown Hoplo, Talking Chocolate Catfish (misnomer), Port Hoplo
Origin	Swamps, floodplains, and slow-moving rivers across Northern South America
Adult Size	6–8 inches (15–20 cm)
Temperament	Peaceful, generally gregarious, mostly nocturnal, predatory to small fish
Lifespan	4–8 years
Care Level	Easy

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Appearance and Sexual Differences

 

• Short Description: This is a stout, heavily armored catfish with a dark brown or olive-brown body. Its armor consists of bony plates that run along its flanks. It uses its large, sensitive barbels to sift for food and can be seen gulping air at the surface.
• Coloration: Dark brown or olive-brown, often with darker blotches (though patterns vary widely). Males grow larger and, during the breeding season, develop a thickened, enlarged, and often reddish pectoral fin spine. Females are smaller and fuller-bodied.
• Fins: Short, strong fins. The male’s pectoral spine is the key sexual differentiator.
• Behavior: Highly gregarious, often found in groups in the wild, though it can be kept alone. It is primarily nocturnal and enjoys digging/sifting through soft substrates. It is known to produce squeaking sounds (the “talking” trait, common among armored catfish).

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Tank Requirements and Water Parameters

 

• Minimum Tank Size: 40 gallons (150 liters) is the recommended minimum for a single fish or small group of juveniles. A 55-gallon tank or larger is better for adults.
• Schooling: Best kept in groups of 4–5 individuals or more to encourage natural social behavior.
• Temperature: Tropical range: $71^\circ$–$80^\circ\text{F}\ (22^\circ$–$27^\circ\text{C})$. They are extremely hardy and tolerate lower oxygen levels due to their ability to breathe atmospheric air.
• pH Level: Highly adaptable: 6.0 to 8.0. They are tolerant of a wide range of hardness but require a clean, well-maintained tank.
• Aquascape: Requires a soft sand substrate to protect their sensitive barbels. Provide ample shady hiding places using large driftwood pieces, rocks, and hardy plants (Anubias, Java Fern). Floating plants are essential if breeding, as the male will build his bubble nest underneath them. Filtration should be strong to maintain water quality, but the current should be calm, particularly at the surface where they nest.

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Diet and Feeding

 

The Brown Hoplo Catfish is an omnivorous scavenger.

• Staple Diet: Accepts all sinking foods. Use high-quality sinking pellets, wafers, or granules as the staple, ensuring they get a balanced diet.
• Supplementation: Offer a variety of meaty and vegetable matter. Provide frozen or live foods regularly: Bloodworms, Brine Shrimp, and chopped earthworms. Include occasional blanched vegetables.
• Schedule: Feed once daily, preferably in the evening/night, as they are most active then. They are enthusiastic eaters, so ensure food is distributed to allow other fish to feed.

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Compatibility

 

• Caution: Peaceful but opportunistic. Will consume any fish or fry that can fit into its mouth (e.g., Neon Tetras, Guppy fry) when it is most active at night. Males become aggressively territorial when guarding the bubble nest and must be watched carefully (the female often needs to be removed after spawning).
• Good Tank Mates: Peaceful to semi-aggressive fish too large to be eaten. Examples include Angelfish, Rainbowfish, larger Tetras, Dwarf Gouramis, and other large, peaceful Catfish species.