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Hi,

I have just come back from a friends house and thought i would say hi to my fish, turned on light and my BN Pleco is a really light colour, in fact almost white.

I am worried about him. I have recently bought a Black calus. When they first met, he didnt like the calvus, reared his dorsal fin and started hitting the calvus. Calvus just sat there took it for a bit then drove my little RTBshark out of his hiding place. It has been there ever since.

since i have been writing this, the plec rushed the Calvus hiding place and the calvus chased him out.

The Calus is lighter than usual in ciolour as well.

A couple of seconds after the Calvus came out, my RTBS has gone half white, he was normal before the Calvus came out. Is this normal or is there something more sinister a foot. I dont think theres a water problem as i did 45% water change today and stress coated the water. (tell me if you think this is the problem!!!


The Pleco's colour has come back in the last minute or so, the Calvus keeps chaning colour and the RTBshark is tentatively following him around....any suggestions. By the way RTBsharks has turned Black again, his tail isnt as red as usual still though. Oh no hes back to half pale half black again!!??! ]]

I think 45% is a very large water change to do. Very rarely do I know of people doing this unless there's an emergency.

Colour changes in fish occur for meny reasons, one of which is stress so with a new fish entering, stress could be part of the problem as they battle for territories. Perhaps moving around the decor in the tank may help.

I'm not familiar with Calvus so take what I say with a grain of salt but that's what I think.

Just a few more questions.

What are the water parametres?
How big is the tank?
What are all the inhabitants?

Hi Darthannihl8or.

Ok, I will be getting a bigger tank in 6 months, hower at the moment...

25USGal tank 25inch X 15inch X 13inch

1 * Redtail Black shark 2 1/2 Inches
1 * Black Calvus 2 1/2 Inches
1 * Bristle Nosed Pleco 4 Inches

5 plants, different varieties
1 * 12 Inch piece tropical hardwood
1 * Clay plant pot

One of my bristle noses is very dark, nearly black with gray spots. My other one however, sometimes has big white patches all over his body and is ALWAYS a lot lighter than my other bristle nose. He is perfectly healthy, I wouldn't worry about it really. Mine don't seem to have any problems.

He is stressed, from either tank mates, water quality or lack of hiding spots.

Two things that help when you own a pleco are... driftwood, they really like to suck on it. An algea wafer or two at least every other day.They can very easily starve if not fed, especially when they grow bigger. Just one note, if another fish is picking on the pleco then usually his days are numbered. Move him out once the fins start to get frayed. Good luck!

________________________________________
The calming qualities of a good aquarium are irrefutable

Thanks for all the advice, I have got some tropical hardwood, which he munches on.

He hasnt gone white since.

I have been watching the tank most of the day he just doesnt like the Black Calvus

Darthannihl8or, you may be surprised to learn this, but my Panda Fun Palace™ (which now has an infamous reputation among the regular FPilians) receives 50% water changes and deep gravel vacs twice per week. And my fish must like it, because my Pandas have spawned in there 78 times since May 5th, 2003, and I've recently had Lemon and Cardinal Tetras spawning in there too. The relevant threads should be easy for you to hunt down

As for the Plec, get some bogwood, a big bag of Hikari wafers, some Zucchini/Courgettes, and several terracotta flower pots. Once the fishes all have a surfeit of caves and a varied diet, the problems should go away.


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Thanks for all the advice, I have got some tropical hardwood, which he munches on.

He hasnt gone white since.

I have been watching the tank most of the day he just doesnt like the Black Calvus

Your right about corgettes, well close family memeber, the cucmber, he LOVES that.

I am fascinated by your Panda Fun Palace, what is this wonder? do you have link.

/:'

If you haven't yet noticed, loricariids are notorious for changing coloration. This is especially notable after a sudden change in lighting. In my less than professional opinion, I would think little of it, unless the lackluster coloration maintains over an extended period of time. Furthermore, driftwood plays no part in the ancistrus diet; their teeth are flat and plated, rendering them ideal for scraping off organic film from various surfaces. Wood eaters, or specifically, fiber eaters, on the other hand, utilize concave, saucer (or spoon) shaped teeth, which dig into surfaces and pull off chunks of material.

Last edited by Cup_of_Lifenoodles at 24-Apr-2005 11:48

Cheers noodles