This might be a silly question.. I have a clown pleco in my tank. He currently has a piece of driftwood in the tank as I have read it is necessary for their diet. He doesn't seem to hang around it much but I assume he comes out at night to munch on it. I recently decided I want to put in a bonsai driftwood as a new centerpiece and didn't realize how expensive they are. 200 dollars later, I'm expecting a sizeable piece of bonsai driftwood to come in the mail. My question is, given that my new driftwood was not cheap, and is intended more for the aesthetics of the tank.. I really want to avoid a situation where the new wood gets damaged. Given that clown pleco's eat wood.. Is there a chance it will get ruined over time from him munching on it? TIA.
Will clown pleco destroy driftwood over time?
- Thread starter wigwillis
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- clown pleco driftwood
Probably. I am not familiar with bonsai.
Your pleco doesn't need the wood. What he is actually eating is " these fishes live from the rotting bacteria, not from the wood itself"
read here https://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=324889&hilit=wood+eating#p324889
The harder the wood the slower it will rot in water. But unless it is sealed, all wood rots over time.
Here is wat Planetcatfish says re feeding clowns
Your pleco doesn't need the wood. What he is actually eating is " these fishes live from the rotting bacteria, not from the wood itself"
read here https://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=324889&hilit=wood+eating#p324889
The harder the wood the slower it will rot in water. But unless it is sealed, all wood rots over time.
Here is wat Planetcatfish says re feeding clowns
Thank you for this information! I'll keep reading up on it. I should have realized that all wood will rot overtime in an aquarium. That makes sense. I guess my main concern here is keeping the wood in good condition for as long as possible (I'd like it to be a good long while before I have to spend another 200 bucks). It also makes sense that the pleco wouldn't be eating the wood directly, however I have read that they use their.. Teeth? Or something, to rasp at the wood. I'm not sure to what extent this rasping would do damage or how much sooner the driftwood might deteriorate because of it. If it's not going to make any noticeable difference in how quickly the wood will eventually need to be retired, then I don't think I'll worry about it and I'll just keep him in there and let him do as he pleases with it.
I'm of the opinion clown plecos "like" wood but if they have other foods to gnaw on they don't really "need" wood. They are nocturnal, so you may not see them grazing on any foods or tank sides. I would guess thin branches would break down & be grazed upon by the clown plec.
As 2tank said, I'm not sure what "bonsai wood" means. It sounds to me like a fake wood decoration but it could be almost anything. They may "graze" on many things. I've never spent $200 on wood over 40 years of fish keeping...Might be different where you live. I hope not!
As 2tank said, I'm not sure what "bonsai wood" means. It sounds to me like a fake wood decoration but it could be almost anything. They may "graze" on many things. I've never spent $200 on wood over 40 years of fish keeping...Might be different where you live. I hope not!
If I remember it right, the name the local fishermen call the wood eating plecos translates as canoe eater because they would latch onto the underside of their canoes and rasp away.
