Bristlenose Pl*co

[ct-death]

Okay, so I have been begging my LFS to get some in for me...FINALLY he called me last night.

I picked him up and after a slow drip acclimation overnight I added him into the tank this morning.

I really want to be 110% crystal on dietary needs. Sorry, usually I read up on this stuff first, but the LFS kind of caught me off gaurd. I will search Google and this forum all day, but I would love to hear from everyone here with any suggestions (large and small) on these little guys.

I have him in my 75G (see sig), which is lightly planted with java fern, java lace, and dwarf vals. I also have a LOT of caves setup. I keep the tank at 81-82 degrees, pH 7.2 and do 50% PWC weekly w/ vac. I think that's it...

Thanks

 

[drgold]

they're not that hard to care for, after they get settled. If you have a wild fish, they usually arrive at the LFS in poor shape. if you have one of the 1.5" farm bred fish, you'll be fine. Drop in a slice of zuccini at night every few days and he'll be happy. If you can keep the otos happy, the BN will be fine, too.

 

[ct-death]

Cool, thanks.

He's actually 3-3.5" now. So he's almost full size. He looks to be in very good shape. However, he was dark brown almost black when I first got him, and after I released him into the tank and observed him for about a hour before work he was a light brown and had green/tan areas <-obvioulsy a sign of stress.

I hope he adjusts well, and thanks for the zuccini tip. I only had cellery yesterday; but I doubt he'll eat it (heck I can't stomache the stuff either! )

 

[drgold]

3-3.5" is about half grown. You'd be surprised at what a full grown BN looks like. I've seen them up to 6" in the body, 8" overall. Still much smaller than a common plec, but decent sized.

 

[Ulan]

Mine absolutely loves blanched zucchini. He also eats all kinds of sinking wafers, whether vegetarian (Wardley) or not so vegetarian (Hikari sinking wafers). He also loves rasping on the driftwood, which might be necessary for his digestion.

I'm not sure whether the color changes are a sign of stress. I thought it might also be an adjustment to the background. Mine has bigger light spots and has a more brownish appearance when he's lying in full light on the light green rock. He gets dark on the dark driftwood.

 

[Vortex]

I remember reading that driftwood is necessary for proper digestion in the bushynose. I've had mine for about a year now. He seems to be doing fine on the occasional algae wafer or chunk of veggie, if the snails don't swarm it first. He's about 3.5" and hasn't grown much since I first got him. I'm guessing it's a "him" based on the amount of bristles. He does change color when he moves to a different background or lighting.

 

[RoseFishWatcher]

Definately a him. Lol

I was thinking of breeding these guys once upon a time, but my LFS was unable to identify and give me a female (so I have 3 males).

I think having wood is preferable. If the fish needs it, it will use it, and if not it still looks good. Mine live mostly on zucchini.

 

[ct-death]

I have a few images - Not great (can't post them atm - AC is giving me an error that their servers are down??)

I have never seen him touch the veggies I've put in the tank (Zuccini, cucumber, summer squash and celery)? :huh:

He likes to rasp at the driftwood and attach to the glass and sea shells I have. I also saw an Oto riding his back and cleaning him! :thm:

He sure does POOP!!! Sheesh I do a quick syphon just to get some of the poop every 4 days!

But my wife and I love him. It's really cool how much they change color! One day I seriously could not find him - He was on the gravel (tan) and he was completely camoflouged! Very cool!

 

[ct-death]

Not the greatest I know...

P.S.

Thanks Mods for the quick fix on the uploads!