CAE vs. OTTOS

L

longhorn

AC Members
Dec 2, 2002
76
0
0
Bay area
Visit site
I bought a CAE and a OTTOS recently to treat the algae problem in one of my tank. Once get to their new home, the OTTOS get into work right away; however, the CAE does not seem to be too excited about working, and was hiding most of the time.

Does this mean OTTOs are better workers than CAE? Why people even bother to keep the CAEs if they are not working hard?
 
I can tell you from personal experience that Otos are the hardest working fish in my tanks. They are none stop algae eaters. On the other hand, I've never heard ANYTHING positive about CAEs. I'd never have one because I've heard they are lazy, get to be about 6" long and can get very aggresive. If you want another good algae eater get an SAE(siamese algae eater). Mine are wonderful at getting anything the Otos don't particularly like, and they are big eaters and friendly. Just make absolutely sure they are "true" SAEs. The CAEs are similar and there are about 2 other fish that resemble them very closely.
Len
 
I can second that, my tank is diatom free because of my Ottos they NEVER stop eating, they don't like hair algae though, just the nasty yellow-brown stuff on the sides of your aquarium.
They are great, and hardy if they can survive acclimation........
 
Just be careful when bagging Ottos for long trips. I lost one of mine, because, in typical plec fashion, one killed the other one due to confined space. Other than that, I love them, they do not stop eating, et cetera. An established tank with algae already there is the best place to keep them, though, or else you have to do a lot of supplemental veggie feeding.
 
Let's put it this way: my mother had good experiences with them when she was a girl, but she always had a 29g+ tank, and they always died prior to reaching 4". It is a crapshoot as to when they will get aggressive, but, from the reading I've done, they will, and they will go after stress coats of slow-moving fishes as well as attack anything in their territory. If someone out there has had a success story with CAEs and doing the job that they should, please let me know all about it, but I cannot recommend them in good conscience.
 
Out of 6 CAE's over 30 years, I only had ONE "bad" one. The two that were the most personable were the ones that lived the longest and grew the biggest (this includes my first CAE and my current CAE). Go figure. I have had them housed with: angel fish, pearl gouramis, black skirt tetras, platies, guppies, zebra danios. Mine have always done a great job eating algae, but of course you have to supplement their diet just like any other bottom dweller/algae eater. They are cute as can be. I like them, but I have come to realize I am in the minority.
 
Ottos are (in my opinion) the best algae eatters you can get. They are extremely hard workers. The only thing though...is that if there isn't enough algae and if you're not feeding them sinking food...they can try to eat the body slime off of other fish in the aquarium. So...keep their lil bellies full!!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom