anarchis destroyed?

[vaderbanger]

my one small anachis has been eaten by mr and mrs otto. they ate the leaves but now they ate the whole plant down to the roots. so should i just leave the roots intact? will a new one grow? or should i just throw it away?
im glad the ottos got a good meal out of it but i think i should supplement them with zuccini for now on lol
they hate algae wafers, is this typical of them? to refuse wafers? the cory cat is the only one eating it lol

 

[reiverix]

Are you sure the otos are the culprit here? It just seems unlikely that an oto could munch through an anacharis.

 

[vaderbanger]

yes 100 percent possitive ill give you a little bit of their history
and a picture if you want?
i had the ottos in a 10 gallon tank for a short time with alot of algae growing, when the algae disapeared the ottos started to starve, there were no plants in this tank. i tried to feed them wafers, flake food and shrimp pellets they refused it. the water quality was fine as i do tests and water changes often.
last week i bought a 26 gallon bow front tank with several plants one of those plants was a anachis. the ottos were very week when i added them to this tank. as i watched them through the day they finally noticed the anarchis plant. right away they perked up, they stayed nibbling on this plant all day that by the end of the night the ottos bellies were finally full. by the next morning the anachis was almost gone, pretty much stripped, the leaves were gone and pretty much only bare stems were left. its been a week now and all that is left of this plant is a skeleten and roots.
im going to try feeding them soft boiled zuccinni and see if they like it, if not i will buy another anachis just for them. there is no algae in this tank its too new.
ive enclosed a pic of before and after photos of the anachis, it was stripped clean in 24 hours. i watched them do it so that is my proof, and their full bellies. i only have a few lemon tetras, zerbra danios, white clouds and a cory cat in the tank with the ottos.
the before pic you can see the anachis in the back left next to a moneywort(?) it was very full and lush. in the after pic you can see the one otto on the bare stem

 

[RTR]

If the otos were guilty as charged, they would have eaten the new tender growth at the top first. I'd suspect the crowded together stems lacked sufficient ferts and light and dropped their leaves, which the otos world definitely help clean up. Are you adding ferts?

 

[vaderbanger]

If the otos were guilty as charged, they would have eaten the new tender growth at the top first. I'd suspect the crowded together stems lacked sufficient ferts and light and dropped their leaves, which the otos world definitely help clean up. Are you adding ferts?

ok you realize that this tank is only a week old? and i saw the ottos do it? i watched them tear off each leaf by leaf chewing as they go and their bellies getting fuller? i did not add any food because i wanted the fish to adjust first so how else would the ottos bellies get full?
whats so hard to believe? lol
im a very observant person the ottos ate this plant and their is nothing anyone can say different because i was there, i watched it for hours. you see the pic with the otto on the stem? see his fat belly? he didnt get that way from prepared food and certainly not from algae.
anachis is eaten by many fish its one of the main plants that gets attacked. its very soft and edible. the other plants in the tank have not been touched, they are stuck on this anachis like glue, they love it.
you have to consider the fact that these ottos were starving. well fed ottos im sure would not have bothered. they saw an easy meal and to stay alive then went for it.
please do not say this didnt happen, its an insult on my judgement, and my own two eyes. and the camera doesnt lie. they never went for the top growth they started at the base of the plant.
my question was not did my otto do this....my question will this plant return from its roots or should i just pull it out, i see your taking it the wrong way and feel i am bad mouthing ottos when of course im not, no fish is 100 percent plant safe when in starvation mode.
would you like me to disect the otto and have its digestive tract analyzed?

 

[vaderbanger]

it wasnt to hard to find info on oto's
while they are plant safe it is certain they are not 100% plant safe.
here is just one paragraph i pulled off the web, note it says will eat soft bodies plants

"The oto can be difficult to acclimate to the home aquarium, but provided the water conditions are correct and there is some green food they should be OK. The set up should be well established with a sand or gravel substrate, Densely planted with live plants or an established algae growth is essential. While they will take flake food and sinking pellets the natural greens are needed to provide proper health. If no algae is available they will eat the softer bodied plants. Provide good water circulation and filtering. Best keep in groups the actual number will vary upon tank size. Fine with most fish except the larger predatory species."

 

[Galaxie]

Ottos only eat diatomaceaous (sp) plant matter though. The anacharis stems must have been dying or the ottos wouldn't have touched them.

Since your first picture was very dark, I brightened it up and zoomed in on the anarchis. It doesn't look deep green, the leaves look to be becoming translucent, which is a sign that they are either dying, or in shock. (see attached picture) Since they are new, this could be the case. Did you treat them with something before putting them in your aquarium? Anyhow, having said this, I don't think anyone is arguing that you did not see the ottos eating your anarchis.

...on to the topic... the chutes at the top of the anarchis still look pretty healthy, so they are going through a transition, but I think they will survive.

 

[reiverix]

Ok lol nobody is saying it didn't happen, nobody is insulting your judgement and nobody wants you to dissect the oto

If the anacharis are in good health they will keep growing and you can cut the healthy tops and replant them. The stems also may grow offshoots which can also be propagated.

We will still have to disagree on the cause though. I think that the plants were weak, either from lack of ferts or the shock of replanting. This caused the leaves to be shed. The otos were able to take advantage of the weak tender leaves. The growing tops were left because they are healthy and too tough for the otos.

 

[vaderbanger]

LOL
ok yeah i do think the anacharis wasnt in great shape when i bought it. the picture you see the one that looks dark i took that minutes after the tank was filled, so the plants are only about an hour old in that tank and about 20 minutes in the bag from petco.
i got them at petco and they had the plants in a dark tank with small koi. all the anacharis looked like you said sorta translucent darkish green. i thought it was the ugliest plant in the tank so maybe im glad its gone lol. but if it will provide the oto's with food id be happy since i seem to have a fussy pair.
so i do agree i bought this plant on its last leg. its a good thing i didnt buy more the whole batch looked like that.
it was the best thing i did though for the otos since i really think if i waited any longer they would have perished.
now i have to train them to eat zuccini lol
the first picture was so dark im sorry i took it without the flash on.
no hard feelings i thought yall were callin me a liar or something lol

 

[Galaxie]

Those ottos are so fat from the anacharis, they probably won't eat anything for a while. lol

Honestly, I don't feed my sole otto anything special. With 2 15watt CFL bulbs (on for 12 hours) over a 20g tank, there is always a bit of algae growth for him to munch. On a new tank, there is no algae, so a 1/4 algae tab every couple days, or a tiny bit of veggie should be fine.