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My experience with pleco's has been I always end up with a species that gets large. I'm currently in the process of setting up another tank which will be a 29 gallon, heavily planted 2.2 WPG lighting, 2 or more large pieces of driftwood, etc..

My question is what are some smaller pleco's that would be appropriate for this setup? I would like to have 1 or more (possibly a pair) of the more fancy or elaborately patterned species, but again I'm not that knowledgeable of the smaller species. Suggestions??

Jim

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Water, taken in moderation, cannot hurt anybody. -- Mark Twain

There are a lot of choices, and most of them come from three genera- Ancistrus, Peckoltia, and Hypancistrus. You'll find that a lot of the nice looking species can be expensive, but they are worth it to a lot of people. If you want some ideas, there are plenty of websites with lists of plecos for sale, many of which are smaller species.

Some of the more common ones include:

L066

L260

L134

Ancistrus dolichopterus

The aforementioned sites with pleco lists:

http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/loricari/INDEX.PHP
http://fish2u.com/wild-south-american-plecos.html
And one I've just been introduced to- http://www.exoticfinds.net/plecos.html


Last edited by sirbooks at 29-Dec-2005 11:26

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And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

Take a look at some of the Hypancistrus species at

[link=http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/loricari/INDEX.PHP]http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/loricari/INDEX.PHP" style="COLOR: #FF00FF[/link]

Seems most of them stay small. I recently purchased what I thought was a L-129 Hypancistrus (scribble pleco) turned out to be a L-318, another rarer species, but still very cool looking! This fish is doing well in my 29 and will only grow to 3 inches max.

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~~Melissa~~
"Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder."

JINX....Sirbrooks. We posted alomst the same thing at the same time.

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~~Melissa~~
"Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder."

You can't jinx me. I'm unvulnerable.

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And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

Thanks for the info. I know that sexing of pleco's is difficult, however is the best way to get a pair is to buy 5 or 6 and see what happens, or is there a simpler and obviously a less expensive way?

Jim

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Water, taken in moderation, cannot hurt anybody. -- Mark Twain

heheheh...sirbrooks the unvulnerable!

On Hypancistrus, the males have what called odontodes, small hard spines, all over their bodies. They look furry. I'm not to sure about other genus.

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~~Melissa~~
"Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder."

Ancistrus are fairly easy- the males have bristle growth, females have fewer smaller bristles or none at all. Size and number depends on the species, but males will always be more bristly than the females.

Hypancistrus males should have more odontode growth than females, though sexing varies by species. Some can also be sexed by size and pattern. I *think* Peckoltia species are about the same.

If you are going to buy fish from a shop, it can be difficult to sex them. Many store plecos are quite young, and won't have all their bristle or odontode growth. If you buy online, the a reputable dealer should be able to sex them for you.

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And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

Depends on the species. If you can get me a specific loricariid, I can help you from there.

I'm looking at the L333 or the L177 (or does this get too large). Thanks.

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Water, taken in moderation, cannot hurt anybody. -- Mark Twain

I'd go with L-333. Easier to sex (interperc. odontodes are longer in males, longer hard pectoral odontodes also, from above, males are wider in the pre-gill region), breed more readily, and are just easier to keep alive.




Last edited by Cup_of_Lifenoodles at 30-Dec-2005 13:41

Thank's COL. As I'll have to obtain these through one of the on-line supplier's, in your experience are most willing and able to determine the sex prior to shipping or do you just need to take your chances with what they pick out.

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Water, taken in moderation, cannot hurt anybody. -- Mark Twain

Depends on which supplier. If you're really concerned you can expressly ask them about such matters.