No Sting In This Bumblebee
The Bumblebee Catfish is a perfect Cat for the home aquarium, they are super hardy, tolerant of a wide range of conditions, peaceful with anything they can't eat, very easy to feed and have super cool patterns! As an added bonus, they don't get that big! The world record for the species is 18cm (a smidge over seven inches for us Americans) but they are extremely unlikely to achieve this length, a much more common adult size is between four and five inches. Side note, yes, in the whole world, it's only us and Myanmar who still use English measurements... I digress. Even though they stay small, they are still a common food fish throughout their native range and are harvested commercially as such.
The scientific name (binomial nomenclature) for the Bumblebee Catfish is Pseudomystus siamensis. You will occasionally see them incorrectly listed / sold as Leiocassis siamensis but this classification has been updated. If you're looking for more material to read on this fish, you'll find some articles that haven't been updated using this name; it's the same fish. They are also sometimes called Barred Catfish, or Asian Barred Catfish, though we think Bumblebee sounds cooler and is more commonly used. They are either dark colored fish with yellow splotches or yellow fish with darker splotches, you decide. The yellow on some fish will be faded, and can be nearly brown, but will never be completely missing.
Bumblebee Catfish are native to Indochina and are a common fish in the Mekong and Chao Phraya River systems. They have also been reported from smaller river basins in Southern Thailand and the Malay Peninsula. They prefer the lower and slower portions of these rivers where water is warm, and cover is dense.
Keep all this in mind when planning your display, they will like lots of driftwood or plants (which they won't bother) or both. Floating plants are a great way to get some light filtered out making for a more dimly lit, and nocturnal fish friendly aquarium. Obviously, they won't have needs in the way of lighting, and are super adaptable in regard to all water parameters. In the wild they generally come from water that is slightly acidic and soft but are not picky at all. When it comes to water hardness and pH they will be just fine in the full range commonly available parameters for hardness and in a pH anywhere between 6.0 and 8.0. They will do best in water that is at least 74 degrees Fahrenheit and up to 80 degrees. They can be kept in stained water but won't require it.
A single Bumblebee Cat won't need that much space, we suggest 55 gallons for one. They can also be kept in groups and obviously you're going to want to get into 100 gallon plus territory if you have more than three or four. Give each fish a cave to call their own and use a lot of décors to help break up the sight lines in the aquarium. If you see territorial behavior or hear a lot of grunting during the night, you may have too many Bumbles for your display and will need to add décor or perhaps remove one. They will get along with just about any other fish you put them with, with one caveat; they are opportunistic predators and won't hesitate to eat anything they can fit in their mouths. Small fish and invertebrates are all at high risk for becoming snacks. Larger peaceful fish that prefer higher portions of the tank are great choices for tankmates, think about placing them with things like large Barbs and Tetras, Sharks or some peaceful Cichlids. If your fish are reproducing in the display, the fry are almost certainly going to end up as food.
This “I'll eat anything” attitude makes these cats incredibly easy to feed in the home aquarium. They have a preference for meat, and will happily take down chopped fish, mussels, clams, shrimp, bloodworms, earthworms, you name it. Bumblees easily segue onto prepared foods like Nutramar's Freshwater Complete Sinking Pellets. Quality food will help them retain their most brilliant coloration. When new in the aquarium, Bumblebee Catfish will be very active at lights out and before the lights come on, and initially this is when you should feed them. Over time, they will learn to come out for daytime feeding. They'll be a little reclusive until they figure this out, but this makes it all the cooler when you do see them!
Bumblebee Catfish are very rarely spawned in captivity. In the wild they spawn at the beginning of rainy season, and small fish start showing up in fishing nets about four to five months later. (April to August). Triggers may include an influx of high protein food as well as larger and cooler water changes. Males have been observed guarding eggs in the wild. Males and females may have different patterns and always have slightly different body shapes with the females being the thicker of the two. There is very little information available on this topic as there has been very little success both commercially and in the home aquarium with getting this to happen. As a result, pretty much all of the Bumblebee Catfish you see in your LFS are wild caught. For those of you looking for a new breeding challenge, a great opportunity awaits you!
The Bumblebee Catfish (Pseudomystus siamensis) is an amazing home aquarium fish, with the looks, size, temperament and ease of care that everyone is looking for. It's hard to find a prettier catfish that stays anywhere close to this size! If this all sounds like it might be a good addition to your aquarium, head to your Local Fish Store and ask them about sustainably sourced Bumblebee Cats from Aquatropic today!