Tigrinus Catfish  Brachyplatystoma Tigrinum

Certainly one of the more spectacular, if not the most expensive catfish available to the home aquarist, this South American beauty does have a dark side to its character. 

A native of South America they are found in the major river systems of Brazil, Colombia and Peru such as the Rio Maderia and Caqueta.  They are a member of the Pimelodidae family with their distinctive long whiskers and can grow to 60cm (24") even in captivity, so a big tank is a must.   The are aggressive to others of their own kind but will live quite happily with any other fish large enough not to be considered as food.   On the subject of food: Feeding can be a problem, especially with larger wild caught specimens, and perspective owners should insist on seeing their investment feeding before they take it home.

Obviously in the wild the staple diet is live food, but in the aquarium they can be trained to accept frozen foods such as Whitebait, with the occasional earthworm and shellfish thrown in as a treat. (They are very aggressive feeders with BIG mouths, so watch those fingers).

They have surprisingly small eyes, placed laterally on each side of the head, suggesting relatively poor eyesight and an nocturnal nature.  Ours will feed during the day in the shop, but generally spend most of their time being lazy, and looking pretty.