Never see my clown pleco! Whassup?

J

jrice77

AC Members
Feb 5, 2007
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I have a 30g live planted tank with:

4 Neon tetras
3 Otos
1 Betta
2 Florida Flag Fish
1 Clown Pleco

It has enough plants to provide decent cover, and a large piece of driftwood. I keep the lights on about 12 hours a day.

I never, and I'm talking NEVER see the pleco. And I rarely see the FFF's. We have to lift the driftwood occasionally to ensure the Pleco is still alive. Is this normal?

Also, I regularly feed it algae tabs, (although I'm not sure it's eating them) and have tried blanched zuchini on several occasions, but don't think it is eating it. To "blanch" it, I nuke it in some water for about 30 seconds which softens the outside, which is the goal of the blanching right? Will I actually see some of the zuchini missing? Sorry if this is a stupid question.

Jim.
 
Completely normal. Clown Plecos are naturally very shy, and nocturnal to boot. You might try feeding only in the morning, to coax him out. Maybe turn the lights out while its still daylight so you can see him.
 
also try to arrange your decorations so that he is sheltered, but still visible, making both of you happy.
 
I see mine daily. Sometimes it's just sneaking about the aquarium looking for something to eat, but most often I see it when I feed bottom feeder foods (the tank is mostly bottom feeders - 3 corys, 4 dwarf cichlids, the clown pleco, and two angels who are the only ones to primarily eat from the surface). The clown pleco is the most assertive and always gets his choice of food bits.

That said, I didn't see it much for about the first two years...I think I've had him for over 5 years and he grows bolder each year.
 
nickmcmechan said:
Just to check, you have driftwood in there for him right?

Also, they are fine in multiples, so get another 2 or 3...
Click to expand...

Yeah, like I said in my original post, I usually have to lift the driftwood, and he is attached to the bottom of it.

Are you saying he will be braver if their are more than 1 pleco?
 
He might come out a little more with more clown plecs in his tank. They will bump and jostle for position without damaging each other. Another tactic you might try is turning off the lights in the early evening, and turning on the room lights. In the dim, you may well see your clown peek out and land on an algae wafer...
 
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