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Okay...I keep getting confused at work with all these algae eaters...can you guys just set me straight?

There's SAE...

There's CAE...

There's flying fox...

There's golden algae eater...

I know that some can get VERY big and are known to be nasty and suck the slime coats off other shishies but I don't remember who does what. Help?

-Formerly known as the Ferretfish

you forgot bn on your list

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''All the clown fish and yellow tangs in the world cant save you now!''

I know Golden Alage eaters get big and supposedly eat slime but my 4 didnt when I had them

The golden algae eaters are a color variation of the Chinese algae eaters, which are also known as "algae eaters". The Chinese algae eaters are the big ones that get nasty, and they also stop eating algae at a certain point.

Flying foxes can become aggressive as well, but they do not grow as large as the above fish. They don't really do much in the way of algae eating, though they are often confused with Siamese algae eaters. I think that the difference has to do with the mouths. The SAE has a sucker mouth, while the flying fox does not. Also, the flying fox has barbs either above or below its mouth.

The Siamese algae eater is the most peaceful one by far, and are true algae eaters. They are probably the best algae-eating Cyprinids, as they will even eat red algae, which other fish will not touch.

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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."

Errr...no I didn't.

I know what a BN pleco is, I've kept them before. They're one of the smaller, easier plecos to keep, and breed readily and can be sexed by the nose bristles.

SAEs, CAEs, Flying Fox, and Golden Algae eaters aren't really plecos...

EDIT:

*posted at the same time*

Ahh, thankies Nick, that's what I was looking for. Anymore info is still appreciated though folks.

Last edited by Ferretfish at 07-Feb-2005 14:03

-Formerly known as the Ferretfish

CAE- chinese algae eater - these are the big nasty guys who will suck slime coats. their bodies are long and snakelike and can grow to near a foot(ish)

SAE - siamese algae eater. this is where the confusion starts. the term SAE commonly refers to two different fish, one of which is a better algae eater and less aggressive than the other. here's a link:

http://www.azgardens.com/algae_eating_fish.php

the top half of this page has some pretty good info on the differences between True SAEs and Flying Foxes. they also list the scientific names so you can do some further research if you wish.

hope that helps a little!

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Back in the saddle!

i disagree with the statement that flying foxes don't eat algae very well. my foxes are crazy for algae, and will scrape it off the glass from time to time. also, they are similar in size, shape and temperament to rtbs. if you decide to keep them, they are more aggressive to each other than other fish, so make sure they have enough room to be more than 1 in your tank.

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"That's the trouble with political jokes in this country... they get elected!" -- Dave Lippman

Hmm, I didn't know that. From what I've read on the 'Net, they aren't much for eating algae, and aren't super nice fish. I guess I'll have to start taking everything I read with a grain of salt.

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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."

The ultimate article on Algae-eating carps of all types:
[link=http://www.thekrib.com/Fish/Algae-Eaters]http://www.thekrib.com/Fish/Algae-Eaters" style="COLOR: #4040FF[/link]

It's all you need, basically.

-Molly
Visit shelldwellers.com!

wow, LittleMousling has the winning link. great info there . I withdraw my puny, inferior link...

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Back in the saddle!

Thankies Molly and others

*reads*

I gotta share this with work.

-Formerly known as the Ferretfish

The SAE has a sucker mouth, while the flying fox does not.

Actually, it's the opposite. SAEs are distinguished from their look-alikes in that they do not have "sucker mouths", like flying foxes and CAEs do.

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I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.