Royal whiptail catfish

The royal whiptail is an elongated, armored South American catfish of the family Loricariidae, native to river systems of Colombia and the surrounding region. It has a slender, stick-like body, a pointed snout, and long trailing filaments extending from the tail and fins, with a mottled brown and cream pattern that camouflages it against wood and leaf litter. It is a peaceful, calm bottom- and surface-clinging fish that spends much of its time attached to driftwood and broad leaves. It can be kept singly or in small groups and mixes well with other gentle community species; it should not be housed with aggressive or nippy tankmates that stress it. It requires clean, well-oxygenated water and plenty of driftwood, on which it grazes biofilm and aufwuchs. Diet should be largely vegetable-based, with algae wafers, blanched vegetables, and some sinking foods. It is a substrate spawner: the male guards eggs laid on wood or glass.