algae eating fish - can they attack???

[LMOUTHBASS]

i've read a couple of different posts recently where people seem concerned or say their cae or pleco or even i heard one about the possibilty of an otto attacking fish or killing them if they are hungry. I suppose because these fish have the sucker mouths they coul stick onto the sides of another fish and take them down , but i thought they were peacefull and stuck to veggies-algae. But this makes me wonder because for some reason you can keep plecos with anything from community fish to cichlids without them getting attacked from aggressive fish(from what i've heard), is this because if they really want to they can take on just about any other fish with thier mouths, hence the other fish know not to mess with them??? whats the scoop

[Rocketman]

http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=14382

Towards the bottom you will find a 'debate' between me and Pink Pat upon whether the Pleco could have killed the missing fish.

[PumaWard]

Yes, common plecos do attack. They will when they are hungry, and also as they become older, they get aggressive tendancies. Last year I had about a 10in pleco in my 75g, he killed the other 3 plecos in the tank, one was 7in, the others 5. I used to have this plecos in with my oscars before the tank was made into a community tank, the oscars would start to pick on him and he would turn around, suck on their sides and push them around. This year, I bought a 2in discus at the lfs... the discus killed the algae eater..believe it or not. I also have a common pleco in a 10 gallon, he's at least once lunged (with intent at least to scare) at my Masked Julie... so yes, they do attack sometimes. So keep an on eye those sneeky fish :)

[LMOUTHBASS]

i find this surprising, i never thoiught they were aggressive but i guess this woul explain why my gourami who likes to chase everyone in the tank around, completly ignores the pleco , acts as though he doesnt even exist, nor does my pleco even budge when he swims by. so then these sucker mouth fishes are sorta tough i guess???

[OrionGirl]

Many plecos are not entirely herbivorous--they eat algae and plant matter as juveniles, but many will prefer a meatier diet as they mature. If not kept well fed, any fish will attack tankmates--right down to the most peaceful fish out there. Also, many bottom dwellers are armoured, and sport large knife-like structures in addition to spikes and hardened scales. Bristlenose are considered very peaceful, but my large male is a nasty tempered brute, and he has cut me with his gill knives on more than one occassion.

[Rocketman]

Someone once said that any fish in the wild that is herbavacious is really an oppurtunist in the Aquarium; whatever it can fit in it's mouth when it's hungry, it will eat.

[Clownloach458]

yes plecos can be..quitee agressive when they get older. same as siameese(or is it chineese?) algea eaters. My friends algea eater and his rainbow shark are constantly brawling over territory

[thom336]

The only times Ive heard of plecos killing is when finishing off a dying or ill fish. Most healthy fish can shake off the 'attacks'.

[anonapersona]

FAncy goldfish are very much at risk from plecos and even otos. I've seen the otos inthe pet store try to attach to a goldfish.

I know of people keeping goldfish, I don't know if fancy or not, that were observed while the pleco was attached to them.

[LMOUTHBASS]

they actually start eating the fish wehn the suck onto them??? sorta like a parasite??? this isnt a commom thing is it??? this is the first ive heard of this???

[anonapersona]

I understand they are attacking the slime coat, not actually eating the fish.

Of course, this allows parasites and bacteria to enter the skin and then the fish gets sick and may die.
Typically the story starts, "I don't know why my goldfish is so sick he has these red sores on him, the scales seem to have come off. The other one died." I read one thread where the poster was sure the pleco was not involved, until one night he saw him stuck on the goldfish.

Not that goldfish are all that nice, I've also read, "Help, help, the cory catfish is stuck halfway down the goldfish's throat with the spines holding him in place, which one should I try to save?"

I even see my oto following the zebra danios around like he'd like to suck up to him, but the zebras are too fast and the oto gives up.

FWIW, I gave up on goldfish, too difficult, I'll stick to tropicals and plants until I am a lot better at this aquarium stuff.

[RTR]

Any suckermouth catfish may attach to and eat from the slime coat of any fish wide- or flat-bodied enough for it to be done. BUT, >95% of the time, the sucker-mouth is not being adequately or properly fed.

CAEs are a different group of fish, they do change their diet as they mature.

Any large grazing animal or fish may become territorial as they mature and develop the mass in relation to tankmates to exercise that attitude.
Territorial fish should be kept together only with awareness of the keeper that it may not work.

[ConMan]

My CAE keeps a Jack dempsey, breeding cons, and a senegal bichir on one half of a 55g tank. Mean little SOB

[LMOUTHBASS]

so other fish know to beware of the suckermouths then ???

[RTR]

Nope, not at all. Loricariids are generally harmless fish when properly housed and fed.

[Mystroe_TheMyst]

This is interesting because a lady came into the store and actually said the algea eater (chinese BTW) ripped open the side of the goldfish. I thought this wasn't possible, adding more hiding places would help? but I see my algea eater brawl with my kribs....so I learnt a few lessons...but I don't think they attack to the point of death....I thought in only extreame cases...

[ConMan]

it doesn't try to kill my fish or eat them. it just tries to defend it's territory. the flagtail cats are allowed to be near my cae

[dave76]

I have a 4" CAE in with a Green Terror, a Juvi firemouth, juvi JD, a juvi texas, and with a 5" Pimelodus pictus. I used to have two CAE's in one tank but they fought constantly, and I do mean constantly. CAE attack behavior consists of ramming not attaching to the fish, but they will attach to fish as well. My CAE killed 7 tigerbarbs in the course of a week. Now my GT seems to keep him in check and he turns tail and runs anytime he they cross paths but he brawls with my pictus who is a tough son of a B as well.

[LMOUTHBASS]

kill your tiger barbs did he actually suck onto them and just pull them down n eat them or what??? just curious i think this is an interesting thread!!!

[dave76]

Well I am not 100% sure that he was killing them, but they all died in a 7 day span, 1 a day for 7 days. I think that when they would sleep is when they would fall victim. I lost several to a red clawed crab as well. I would either find them floating with thier mouths open, or I would find them at the bottom with a CAE attached to them. This is the only clue I had as to thier deaths. But if he could he would have killed that other CAE. He had about starved him to death so I went out and picked up a 10 gallon the put the other CAE in. He now resides in my 55 gallon with a pair of convicts and another firemouth.

[DanL]

I have a albino bristlenose pleco...

every so often I drop an algea chip in the tank for him and my algea eaters along with my cats...

If and when my bristlenose finds the algea chip he doesnt let any other fish near it at all... he even pushes away my bull shark... the bull shark is about 3" and the bristlenose is about 2". Other fish try getting a nip of the algea chip but if the bristlenose is there he pushes them all away...

[Tightdog1]

ive actually seen this, my friend who didnt know how to keep fish or how many fish to put in a tank and would do the opposite of what i told him had a 8" common pleco in a 10g, he eats only tubifex worms. my friend put in 2 oranda goldfish, about 3-4" probably and with in like 5 minutes the pleco was sucking on the side of one of themwhile the oranda was swimming. it just sat there sucking and sucking i immediately took the other 1 out and wee took it back. about 2 months later he gave the pleco to LFS.

it was crazy to watch a pleco jsut kill an oranda like that!