后翼多鳍鱼 · West African Bichir

Overview

The infrequently traded Polypterus retropinnis is nocturnal and locates food mainly by smell. Historical classification questions make identity worth checking carefully; a generic speckled-bichir sales name is not sufficient confirmation.

Distribution & habitat

Records span western and central Africa, including Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, the Republic of Congo, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, among other countries. It uses marshes, swamps, inundated areas, and small rivers.

Aquarium setup

Allow a footprint around 120 × 45 cm, prioritizing floor area over extra depth. Soft substrate, wood, and rounded stones provide retreats. Plants are optional.

A close-fitting cover must prevent escape while leaving the fish able to reach air above the water. Its air-breathing capacity makes surface access necessary; complete denial can cause drowning. Containment and breathing space must be planned together.

Diet & feeding

This carnivore commonly refuses dry diets, though some individuals learn to accept pellets. Suitable live or frozen foods include prawn, earthworm, mussel, and appropriately sized fish.

With poor vision and strong reliance on smell, it may need time to locate food. Observe consumption rather than interpreting failure to find a meal as satiety.

Behaviour & compatibility

It is generally placid with fish too large to swallow. Anything fitting into its mouth is vulnerable. Select companions by adult size, mouth capacity, and environmental needs; even another bichir is not automatically compatible.

Sexual dimorphism

Males have a thicker anal fin than females, a feature best compared in mature fish.

Breeding

Confirmed captive reproduction is unrecorded, and the proposed method is based on relatives. Natural rainy-season breeding suggests that temperature and chemistry changes may be cues, not that a proven induction procedure exists.

The comparative approach uses spacious accommodation, soft slightly acidic water, and plants or mops. Males chase and nudge females, receive eggs using the anal and caudal fins, fertilize them, and distribute them among plants. Adults are then separated from eggs. Hatching after roughly three to four days, free swimming about three days later, and initial microworm or brine-shrimp feeding belong to this related-species framework, not a confirmed schedule for this fish. Possible low mobility of fry makes actual feeding response important to observe.

Notes

It is an upper-jawed bichir. Historical subspecies changes and discussion of a broader species complex should not be treated as an automatic change to the identity of a particular specimen.

External gills disappear as young fish mature. Monitor new arrivals for health and parasite problems during the first weeks without assuming that an older description of trade sources applies to every fish.