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Hi, just wondering what raves and info and "mine did this awww" can be said about Gold Nugget Plecs and Bristlenoses. Due to everyones immense expression of how great bristlenoses are, and my boyfriends immense interest in them, I bought a nice little one, just starting to get his bristles. And I got one hell of a sweet deal on a Gold Nugget, only 39.99 Canadian!! And the guy gave me 10 bucks off on the plants I wanted too.
So rave on, rant on, advice on, and share your "awwww" moments!


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Oh and my first rave about my BN- my 10g tank was totally green. I mean every wall, plant (except the new borneo sword), heater, thermometer, etc, was green as grass and the algae was waving like grass too. One night with a 1 1/2 inch BN in there, and now everything, even the heater I thought would never be seen again, is crystal clean. In fact I gave him soem Zuchinni (sp?) last night cuz I think he doesnt have enough food left in there!
Great fish great cleaner of algae!


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I have never owned a bristlenose (BN), so I can't comment on it. Best I can say is that I've heard good stories about them, similar to yours, and they stay small.
As for the gold nugget GN), I can comment from experience. According to the L- numbers, there are 4 species of GN. But frankly, I can only distinguish two - the small dot GN and the large dot GN. But I'm no fish biologist, so what do I know?
Unlike the BN, the GN is not a pure vegetarian. I feed mine shrimp pellets and TetraMin Variety wafers. It prefers a more meaty diet, and in nature, no doubt grubs around for worms and such. I've read that it chews on pebbles for wahtever morsels there may be coating them. I have observed this (I think that's what it was doing). I don't think it can fulfill it's nutritional requirement chewing on rocks in a closed system. The GN is slow-growing and nocturnal in nature, so it is rather shy in the daytime. I've had mine for several years and it's only about 3.5 inches in length. They are also territorial, so more than one in confined quarters may not be a good idea.
-Wayne

Last edited by wayneta at 27-Sep-2004 21:12

There are various reports on how rapidly gold nuggets grow, ranging from fairly slow to lightning fast. However, there is no doubt that the absolute minimum size your gold nugget will reach is about 7", and depending on what species you have, it could very well reach a foot in length if not more. In my own personal experience, gold nuggets grow fairly quickly (3"-5" in about 6 months and so on for the last year or two, whereas my little guy doesn't seem to be gainning any length at all, but I've only had him for a month or so) and are INCREDIBLY territorial towards individuals of the same species and other bottom dwellers (to the point where, unless you have many hiding spaces, you won't want to keep another plec in the same tank). As aforementioned, they have an inclination towards meaty foods and will often starve when newly introduced into tanks, as they do not compete well for food. Thus, a tank divider may be necessary in order to wean your precious pleco onto bloodworms, veggies and pellet (hikari makes some good sinking pellets).

I've never kept gold nuggets but I have BNs in two tanks. Cool looking fish, they each have different coloring. They tend to be a bit shy, most likely they seem that way since they're nocturnal, but after having them for a while some of that shyness has gone away. And they do an absolutely fantastic job with algae. Watching them eat some fresh foods like broccoli is a treat



Last edited by Theresa_M at 28-Sep-2004 06:46[/font]

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