View Full Version : surface feeding pleco?
Mr.Midas
12-14-2008, 8:54 PM
Hey, I noticed my pleco eating flake food off the surface tonight. They seemed to have learned that the water is slower moving where the intake hose goes into the tank so they hang out there and wait for food to pass by. They started a few weeks ago by just staying on the glass and waiting for the food to bump into their heads, but now the bigger one is going out into the middle of the tank looking for floating food. It's really neat, I tried to get a video and some pics but my camera was dead, I'll get some soon though. Has anyone seen this kind of behaviour before?
blue2fyre
12-14-2008, 9:06 PM
The last pleco I had use to do the same time. Whenever the other fish were fed he would swim upside down at the surface and eat the flake food! It was really neat to watch
stezatois
12-15-2008, 6:05 AM
its not uncommon, my plec has a taste for some floating ball food stuff that we feed now and then and he does a similar thing. And yes its great fun to watch.
powerkit
12-15-2008, 6:20 AM
yes!!! yor pleco is "growing up" an has learned the secret art of surface feeding! wat other fish do u have in his tank? try givin him anemerald entree cube an watch how long he'll stay upside down for that yummi goodness!!!
cant wait 2 C yor vid!
BadFishPa
12-15-2008, 7:22 AM
My pleco scores pellets all the time. He grabs them on the surface and falls backwards eating them until he hits bottom then flips over.
Mr.Midas
12-15-2008, 8:12 AM
yes!!! yor pleco is "growing up" an has learned the secret art of surface feeding! wat other fish do u have in his tank? try givin him anemerald entree cube an watch how long he'll stay upside down for that yummi goodness!!!
cant wait 2 C yor vid!
In with the plecos are a rainbow shark, albino rainbow shark, redtail shark, golden gourimi, female pink convict and a female jack dempsy im trying to nurse back to health.
my gold nugget skims across the top of the tank eating the duckweed that is on top. unfortunatly he can't seem to keep it in check....
Rbishop
12-21-2008, 6:16 AM
Happens with mine pretty often...funny to watch.
wataugachicken
12-21-2008, 1:38 PM
i have one planted tank with duckweed (after 5 tries i can finally get it to grow) and i put handfuls of it in the other tanks when there gets to be too much of it. my big common pleco will eat it off the surface every time.
Pookberens
12-21-2008, 8:25 PM
Man I hope I can one day be able to get all of this cool fish that you all keep talkin about. They sound like a lot of fun.
Mr.Midas
12-22-2008, 11:54 AM
Man I hope I can one day be able to get all of this cool fish that you all keep talkin about. They sound like a lot of fun.
All fish are alot of fun IMO :)
excuzzzeme
12-22-2008, 12:05 PM
I guess I have the worlds laziest plecos as they don't surface feed. Maybe because the Oscar is such a messy eater and waste falls to the bottom where he hoovers it up as fast as it lands!
bazil323
12-22-2008, 6:30 PM
Some plecs do learn to eat off the surface. I think it partly depends on the species, though. Some are more prone to learning that than others.