Phyllonemus is one of the few non-cichlids from Lake Tanganyika. The Phyllonemus group has only 3 relatives: typus, the much rarer filenemus and brichardi. The barbels of typus are somewhat thickened at the ends, while those of filinemus look more like threads. Unlike the others, brichardi has no teeth on the plate of the upper jaw. The outer chin barbels are also longer, up to twice the length of the head.
This species is nocturnal, they usually sleep between the rocks during the day and emerge as soon as it gets dark. From time to time, they will swim around during the day but soon disappear again between the rocks. They are fairly peaceful and quickly become suppressed if kept together with larger or very aggressive species. They do appreciate having a few others of their own kind around them. Do not keep the species with Synodontis catfish, because this species will then not be able to obtain enough food and will wither away.
Examination of the contents of the stomach shows that they mainly feed on small crustaceans, insect larvae, but also small fish. With its large mouth, it can and will also hunt the young in the aquarium. The diet should therefore consist of a mix of frozen food and wafers for catfish to keep them healthy.
There are a number of successful breedings known in the aquarium, like most Tanganyika species it is a mouth brooder. Both the male and female can hatch the eggs.
Copyright images
Matthijs Meindertsma
Ben Lee – Amiidae.com
