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In this case it is not a mistake. The zebra pleco does often die in captivity. This carniverous pleco needs to be observed feeding before being purchased. I know two people who have dished out the money and gotton a pleco that wouild not eat for them that eventually died of starvation. You need to ask what the current feedings are, if they are eating in captivity, were they wild-caught or from captive bred plecos? etc. But this is common sense stuff. Most expensive fish purchases should be done carefully being sure to take into account who and where you are getting them from and being sure the fish itself is healthy and eating.

Koi

Empty chairs at empty tables, the room silent, forlorn.

I sit and watch the tank alot, just to monitor things you know. It's obvious that the Rhino is by far the culprit of the majority of my waste problems. I guess the problem is waiting to get my new home. That is killing me right now. Once I'm moved in, my house might as well be one big aquarium by the time I get done with it....

Last edited by 1tankneverenuff at 24-Mar-2005 23:53

These are the years where fast growing hypostimid species such as p. scrophus grow most intensively. At 3.5", it is already rapidly increasing in girth and length and will begin to stunt soon, if not already. They can literally double their TL in a year. Believe me, they would much rather have a 150 gallon to themselves as opposed to a crowded 30 something gallon tank.

Most animal meats are too fatty for loricariids. That could be another factor leading to the fouling of your water. Having bred maccus clowns before, I can personally vouche that they don't produce much solid waste. The most likely culprit is your scrophus, who is heartily rasping away at algae to obtain the nutrients needed for the extensive growth it will attempt to achieve during it's adolescent years. The other fish are mostly carnivorous or fibre browsing (which is not to say they don't enjoy a bit of vegetable matter themselves), and thusly produce considerably less waste.

Last edited by Cup_of_Lifenoodles at 24-Mar-2005 21:27

Sorry I didn't mention upgrading in the future...I hope you didn't really think I would make any of my Plecostomus sufer like that. I upgrade my tanks along the way. I don't want to have a 2" fish in 150 gallons...I will never find them nor will I know how well they are eating. And when it comes to feeding, they receive various frozen meats and cucumbers along with the pieces of driftwood in the tank. And you make it sound as if I feed them three times a day! Try once every three days!

It doesn't matter how large your fish are currently (of course, disregarding the fact that they probably won't grow much more than that in such a small tank) are, but rather, their potential size that determines the stocking of a tank. A ten gallon tank with a two inch oscar is overstocked. But you are right to the extent that certain species of plecostomus produce excessive amounts of solid waste. However, this mulm isn't nearly as detrimental to water parameters as is ammonia, which loricariids tend to produce moderate amounts of. No plecostomus? In my own tanks, I've kept nearly 30 species of loricariids, and have had first hand experience with countless more including the ones in question (yours included) . No need to worry about lack of experience here. Seeing as how most of my current loricariid stock is fed only once every two days, you're right, there isn't too much waste in my tanks.

Last edited by Cup_of_Lifenoodles at 24-Mar-2005 21:04

To what extent, might I ask, is, say, a one hundered dollar scobancistrus different from 5 dollar pterygoplicthys, physiologically? Not terribly much. And seeing as how nearly all plecs are at least partially detritus feeders, diet is rarely the underlying issue. Starvation usually results from stress, among other factors--not the variety of foods offered. Perhaps the reason you're needing to change your water so frequently is because you're so horribly overstocked. Of the four species listed, two grow larger than your tank can hold: the gold nugget to approximately 8-14" (depending on the species), and the Rhino well past that. It is a common misconception that plecos are dirty. They are not. Gill movement and metabolism is considerably less than smaller, more active fish, thus less ammonia--the chemical that really counts.

Overstocked? Ha...none of the four Plecostomus are longer than 3.5"! Mearly babies! And not dirty you say? I guess you don't have 2"-3" strands of waste appearing in your tanks or you just don't have too many Plecostomus if any at all ...

To what extent, might I ask, is, say, a one hundered dollar scobancistrus different from 5 dollar pterygoplicthys, physiologically? Not terribly much. And seeing as how nearly all plecs are at least partially detritus feeders, diet is rarely the underlying issue. Starvation usually results from stress, among other factors--not the variety of foods offered. Perhaps the reason you're needing to change your water so frequently is because you're so horribly overstocked. Of the four species listed, two grow larger than your tank can hold: the gold nugget to approximately 8-14" (depending on the species), and the Rhino well past that. It is a common misconception that plecos are dirty. They are not. Gill movement and metabolism is considerably less than smaller, more active fish, thus less ammonia--the chemical that really counts.

Not reccomended for beginners? Why not? Hypancistrines are relatively hardy, and easy to feed. It'd be a mistake to equate price with delicacy.

From my experience, the majority of exotic Plecostomus cannot just be thrown in like your standard $3 regular. And if you're paying $100+ for a fish, I would hope you'd keep a close eye on it. I say these things because most people have no idea what kind of diet the more exotic specimen require. They also have no idea how messy most Plecostomus are and usually have a poor filtration system in their aquariums. I have ONLY a Gold Nugget, Leopard Frog, Clown, and Rhino in my 33L gallon and the water must be changed CONSTANTLY because of how dirty they are. They're absolutely beautiful, but keeping their tank clean is a ********!

Last edited by koi keeper at 24-Mar-2005 14:20

Most starvation cases in hypans results from aggressive tankmates getting there first or stress. Of course, whence buying such a pricey fish, it is not a good idea to place them in a tank with CA cichlids and other heavy, aggressive feeders. It is often reccomended to feed such fish during lights out and simply walk away from the tank for the first few days of acclimation. During this period, even some good willed meddling can result in stress enough to scare the fish into starvation. Zebras are not known to be snubbish and will feed on most foods offered to them. As with other loris, they have poor eyesight, supplemented, however, by peerless smell and sensory abilities. This being the case, one needs not even place food near the plecos cave. Tossing in a few pellets is all that is neccesary. Needless to say, one does not buy a zebra wth sunken eyes and bellies (even then, I've bought wild caught queens with such appearences and still weaned them onto pellets in half a week--they have now nearly doubled in size). Wild specimens may appear thusly, however, with the current ban, one can be assured tank raised specimens are being purchased, and consequently, they will be of a generally better health. Out of three and two on the way, I've yet to own a zebra not accept food on the second day.

EDIT: FP needs spellcheck X^(



Last edited by Cup_of_Lifenoodles at 23-Mar-2005 12:11

I was just looking around online earlier and was looking specifically at plecos and came across the zebra pleco...and I must admit...I think it is a really cool fish...

Has anyone every kept any or seen them...also the website put the cost at 249.99...

Not reccomended for beginners? Why not? Hypancistrines are relatively hardy, and easy to feed. It'd be a mistake to equate price with delicacy.

oh dont worry...it will be quite some time before I go for the more expensive fish...I need time to learn more...

Moonlighting will fix your problems . All of my Plecostomus love to creep around at night and they don't even know I'm watching them. Also, I would definitely NOT recommend the Zebra Pleco for beginners...

They're inactive, and rarely visible out of the cave.

would they make a good centerpiece fish or are they pretty inactive...I have never owned a pleco so I do not know as to their personality and nature...

hmmmm they sell z.plecos ova here for 150bucks (singaporean dollars)...which makes it approx 60bucks us....not sure if thats considered ex or cheap in us

The yellow ones are different species. There are several Hypancistrus species that are yellow and black striped. Usually, the true zebra pleco (Hypancistrus zebra) is worth a lot more than the "look-alikes".

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I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.

Zebra plecos are pretty rare and cost a lot of money, but not that much. Here are a few auctions from aquabid:
http://www.aquabid.com/cgi-bin/auction/auction.cgi?fwcatfish&1111799389
http://www.aquabid.com/cgi-bin/auction/auction.cgi?fwcatfish&1111983286
Also, i have a question, why are some zebras yellowish while others are pure white? Are the pure white ones worth a lot more? Can they interbreed and throw each color when they breed?