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how big does the peppermint grow? or should i just stick with ottos?

There is also another peppermint catfish which is a speceis of ancistrus and very closely related to the common bristle nose.
Here is the link: http://www.planetcatfish.com/core/index.php

If I'm not mistaken, catfishes are a type of fish that are characteristically bottom-dwelling, have a few pairs of barbels, have some form of body armour (scutes) etc...catfishes can range from anything to the smallest of Pygmy corys to the largest of carnivorous catfishes like redtailed catfish, or Pseudodoras niger, and even bigger catfishes from Thailand, and the River Mekong in particular.

in the case of pleco, this is a type a catfish, therefore its anatomy is more specialised in relation to its natural habitat...plecos (and all other loricarridae) have a sucker-like mouth...it is this "sucker-like" mouth that sets plecos and loricariids apart from any other catfish...

Cup_of_Lifenoodles

So is there anyway from telling the difference from a Pleco to a Catfish. Say you see a fish in a lfs without its common or family name. Can you tell if it a Pleco or Catfish just by looking at it? ***Tiger

"You are right, they are different.
Can you tell me what is the difference between a pleco and a catfish? Not just in there family names but actual comparisons."

Plecos, as they're commonly called, actually belong to a family of catfishes; the loricariiade. Both ancistrus and parancistrus come from this family.

Fish_lovers quote:"i'm not looking for an 'algae-eatin' pleco" ***Tiger

I was just clearing up the fact that it wasn't such a great algae eater, as opposed to it's apparently common namesake, the peppermint "BN".

Hmm....looks like we're getting a lil side-tracked here...but oh well....thanks so much for all the replies guys~!

Well, the bristlenose is a pleco. "Catfish" is just part of one of the BN's common names, and is interchangeable with "pleco" in this case.

Plecos are a type of catfish, which is why many plecs have "catfish" in their common names. There are many other types of catfish though, far too many to go into their differences!

---

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

Cup_of_Lifenoodles
Planet Catfish states: Common Bristlenose is a catfish.
Peppermint Bristlenose is a pleco.
You are right, they are different.
Can you tell me what is the difference between a pleco and a catfish? Not just in there family names but actual comparisons.

Fish_lovers quote:

i'm not looking for an 'algae-eatin' pleco

***Tiger

Last edited by TigerAngel at 03-Mar-2005 02:55

Peppermints aren't actually bristlenoses--instead, I believe they are of the genus parancistrus--plus, they're not so great at eating algae.

I had a Bristlenose in a 17 gallon. No problems. The Pepperment does grows a bit bigger.


TigerAngel attached this image:

Fish_Lover, there is so many species that a description is hard. Phone the lfs and ask them the plecos names, either the common name, or their scientific name.
This is a site with heeps of Plecos/corys/catfishs.
http://www.planetcatfish.com/core/index.php
Go into cat-e-log.
Once you know their common name, click on the right under species with common names - or if scientific name click on species scientific name.
eg: Peppermint Pleco (bristlenose).
http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/loricari/parancis/189_f.php

Zebra Pleco
http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/loricari/hypancis/168_f.php

Magnum Pleco
http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/loricari/baryanci/191_f.php



Last edited by TigerAngel at 02-Mar-2005 23:04

Peppermints grow to at least six inches in length (mine never really grew past that). I would get a zebra if you can.

Hey all -

ok I haven't been a real hardcore fan of plecos...and the only ones I've ever bought are the basic plecos used for algae cleaning, ottos, and once i bought a farlowella....so now that my lfs has got an enormous surge in variety and availablity of new and diff plecos...I'm not sure whcih one to choose due to price, size of the adult fish etc....

so if possible, can you guys just give me a few suggstions for a good pleco?

P: My current tank isnn't a huge one...onli abt 2ft long and 1ft wide....I was thinkin zebra plecos since they only grow to abt 8-10 cm....?

I'm not sure about the identity of the third species, but neither the peppermint nor the magnum pleco (the orange rimmed on) can fit in your 17 gallon (thank for the correction, Tiger).

When browsing thru my lfs..the few that caught my eye were the peppermint, the pleco that has a dark/black body with dorsal and its tail fins having a mango-orange edge to it. Another was the one that (as i mentioned before) sorta looked like a zebra except it had a greyish body and had black wavy stripes.

You'll note that i don't know any of the exact names of hte plecos, hence i can only describe them to my best ability, albeit an amateur one (where loricariids are concerned )

hm...i'm not too sure if there are parotocincluses here in sg...hafta go lfs huntin to check it out (should be fun tho heheheh)

Fish_lover:
Go back to the LFS and list the ones you like.
That way we know what is there and what you like as well. We then can advise on that specie of fish.
Also what PH are you running your tank at?.

Cup_of_Lifenoodles
2 footer is roughly 17 (us) gallons.***Tiger.

Get Parotocinclus maculicauda if it's there. Stays small enough to live in your setup, and has nice red markings on its fins contrasting with a leopard spot pattern. Nice fish, and rare beyond belief here in the UK. I want some.

Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Royals become far too large for a 2 footer. Assuming that you're ready to dive into the world of loricariids (seeing as how you keep farlowella, you must not be a shabby aquarist), there are everal smaller species open to you. I believe a 2 footer is a ten gallon, correct (not sure on this)? Therefore, you are quite limited in your selection of fish. My personal opinion would be to obtain some prettier specimens of the genus parotocinclus; they are small, relatively carnivorous, and fairly attractive, perfect for small tanks of around this size range.

oops sorry i meant royal pleco...not emperor pleco...anyway...i'm not looking for an 'algae-eatin' pleco...i'm lookin for somethin other than the ordinary BN..sumffin small (approx 10cm), low maintenance etc...the zebra pleco is cool coz it doens't eat algae, is small and relatively easy to keep...but its juzz so damn expensive

And i live in singapore now..and when i can get baby raphael catfish for 2bucks...i dun see why the zebra's are so expensive....

ok...well currently i've got guppies (only for colour and occupyin the top section of the tank), 3 stripe loaches, 4 Corydoras sterbai and 3 baby Raphael Catfish (impulse buy, but i've got a bigger tank to put them in later).

At my lfs...i saw a pleco that sorta looked like a zebra pleco..except it had a greyish body colour and black stripes...saw another pleco that had a dark/black body colour and its pecs and tail had a mango-orange colour...those were the 2 that caught my eye...and i also saw a couple of emperor panaques as well...