Chameleon Loricaria

Loricaria catfish are close cousins of the whiptails, with the same elongated, armor-plated body but a notably flexible ability to shift shade to match its substrate — not true color-changing like a chameleon lizard, but enough pigment adjustment to blend convincingly into sand, gravel, or driftwood depending on where it settles. It spends most of its time motionless on the bottom, grazing biofilm and algae at its own unhurried pace.

Care level: Moderate · Temperament: Peaceful · Max size: ~6" · Min tank: 20 gal · Diet: Herbivore, algae + vegetable matter