Hillstream loach fundamentals

fancytail

fancytail

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Aug 25, 2011
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Hi guys!
I plan to put some hill stream/butterfly plecos in my aquarium. I have some greedy fish in my tank and I'm afraid that they will hog the algae wafers I put in there. With the combination of snails eating algae and greedy fish, I don't want my hill stream loaches to starve. Is there any other way I can feed them?

Also, another question is that I was wondering if Hill Stream loaches have thick armor like Plecos.
 
I have a bunch of sewellia lineolata loaches in my community tank. They are in with red ancistrus plecos (4), 3 x L104 plecos, a very large SAE, several different corys, a humminhbird tetra that eats everything in sight, some Bolivian rams, some badid badis, some pygmy corys, some neons, some sids, and some L340s. I haven't had 1 starve to death yet. In fact, they spawn on a fairly regular schedule. Good luck.
 
Well, according to everything you read, they prefer cooler water and lots of flow. The only flow I have comes from 2 AC 70 filters, and my water temp is between 80-82°. AND, they have spawned multiple times in that environment, so don't believe everything you read ! (The tank is a 46BF)
 
From what I've heard about them it doesn't seem like they really need the flow itself. They are supposed to need high oxygen exchange. High flow setups accomplish this, but so does moderate flow with a lot of surface agitation.

And a lot of the river loaches seem to be listed as "cold water" when they can withstand tropical pretty well. Sort of like how a lot of tropical fish can withstand cooler temperatures pretty well. A big thing with loaches is they are similar to puffers when it comes to advice on "ideal" circumstances. Much of it is based on where they breed or where they are commonly found, not necessarily on how they are kept in aquariums.
 
I currently have a dozen Sewellia lineolata and reticulata in a 20 high. Filtration is an aquaclear 200, aquaclear mini, and an air-driven sponge filter. Also 7 little Ancistrus claro in the tank, and probably 100+ ramshorn snails. Staple diet is NLS Grow pellets, occasionally spirulina flake or canned greeen beans.
 
So I'm able to confirm that Hill Stream Loaches have armor that has a rubbery texture (Just got 4 of them yay). I'm glad to know this because now I know they are able to endure nibbles from my other fish. They're small and some times get targeted, but most of the time during the day they hide under rocks but occasionally come out. They also seem to eat a little of the fuzzy white small algea growing on the walls but leave spot algae alone. They're very cute and look like miniature hyperactive stingrays!

I have yet to witness a Scuffle match but I'd love to see one!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aKt4Hb03tj8
 
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