A pleco that doesn't like scampi... or still-growing salad.

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Wycco

Wycco

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Apr 19, 2009
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So... I'm about to upgrade from a 55 to a 125gallon tank...

My current tank has inhabitants of a smaller size... a bulldog pleco, cherry barbs, various shrimp species, dwarf crays, some yellow tylos (babies and adults), etc, etc.

Going to a larger tank I want some larger fish- but I'm not quite ready to give up my shrimpy and snaily friends. This may be a case of wanting my cake and eating it too. No, two tanks is not an option...

One option I'm considering is plecos... I love my bulldog pleco "fluffy", as do my kids... but she's not really all that big- I know bristlenose plecos would be safe too... again... they're small.

Are there any larger (not too expensive) plecos that would not eat inverts OR my plants? Or should I stick with bulldogs and bristlenoses?

I'm not looking for a "clean-up" fish or an "algae removal" system. I'm just looking for a fish that I can house and call "snuggles" (I always wanted a pleco called snuggles).
 
Wycco

Wycco

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BTW... By larger... I'm thinking in the 7 to 9 inch range... a mid-sized fish- I'm not looking for the loch ness monster.
 
GEV83

GEV83

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Well it depends. If you got driftwood you could try your luck with some Panaque's. There are some that don't get outlandishly big. You could also try some type of Hypostomus sp. since most max out at 9". Don't mess with the pleco's commonly seen at the LFS that others refer to as "commons" since most of them are from the Pterygoplichthys family and the one most seen is P. gibbiceps and P. pardalis which both can attain a size of 18".

Panaque's would be your best bet since they love wood and don't mess with plant's unless there is nothing there to eat. I would stick to the 7"- range with plants. Pleco's bigger then this tend to pull plant's out unintentionally while swimming around the tank.
 
Wycco

Wycco

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Apr 19, 2009
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Thanks, I'll look into them. Yeah, I know to avoid the common pleco. I've got LOTS of wood so that's no problem. When I got the bulldog/rubber noserd I read several places on line that that is one species that doesn't need wood.

Maybe she doesn't NEED it- but she sure did appreciate it once I got some though- I noticed a very quick change in her personallity- she even developed eggs that I could see inside her for the first time. (this was about 18 months ago).

Due to that- I think I'll always keep wood in the tank even if it is a pleco species that supposedly doesn't require wood.
 
lookit

lookit

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Jun 9, 2009
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I have a clown pleco who's about 8 years old, and he's only about 3 - 4" long. Minds his own business. In fact, I have to hunt him down to make sure he's still alive. So, if you want a fish that is out and about a lot, a clown plec is not for you. BTW, glad to see you back in the forum!
 
platytudes

platytudes

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If you have light colored substrate, the "wood ships" the Panaque produces are going to be very visible. With black, not so much...but you will notice, as the Panaque grows, a considerable amount of poop. It's just fiber, so won't pollute your tank or anything, but will be an eyesore.

Clown plecos do stay small, are not out and about much (not in my experience)...but aren't they more meat eaters than wood/plant eaters? I would think this would make them want to prey on shrimp...especially baby shrimp.

There are a bunch of fact sheets here:
http://www.scotcat.com/common_name.htm

Might give you some inspiration!
 
Wycco

Wycco

Eat more pine trees
Apr 19, 2009
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I have light-coloured sand... and plenty of the shreded wood from just my little plec in my 55 so I've seen the mess and can only imagine what a larger one would do. It's funny- my bulldog used to be very skittish- she's become quite tame now though... vacuuming the tank she even comes up to investigate my hand from time to time. A lot of the panaque's I've searched on so far seem to grow quite large- over a foot... unless that's just "wild size".
 
F

fishorama

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Hey Wycco, nice to see you again! I'm thinking of trying parotocinclus. Depending on temp, jumbo might be a good choice for lowish temp, spilosoma for higher temp. Cute & algae eating is a plus. For happy bulldogs I think jumbo, or of course, more bulldogs (not pitbulls as p. jumbo are called) would be a nice choice. Neither is hard to find ina GOOD lfs,... on occaision.
 
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