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i've just brought one to help with my alage problem in my 70G planted tank.

i've always been a fan of the shark/barb families.

i had a RTS but had to exchange as he became to aggressive.

what do i need to know about my new fish,

now about 1inch in size.

shekoi

www.blooming-brilliant.co.uk

I have 8 SAEs, and they are a great deal of fun to watch. Very active, not shy, and they're great for hair algae, which most algae eaters just aren't interested in. You might consider getting a few more, as they do like to school and unlike many other shark-type cyprinids, they won't attack and kill each other, even with age (though there will be some chasing and competition for dominance, but this very rarely results in any damage). I've had mine for about a year and a half now, and the largest ones are about 4 inches, and their growth has really slowed down (I got them at about 2 inches) You can expect them to reach that size in the next two years, and I think they top out at around 6 inches.
Unfortunately, mine appear to have been raised on flake food, so they prefer that to algae, so you'll want to be careful what and how often you feed them if you want to keep them interested in algae as a food source. Mine still nibble what little aglae I have, but they are the first to the top of the tank when it comes to feeding time, and will eat absolutely anything I put in there, so don't worry about them starving if you have no visible algae. I've read that as they get older thy may start rasping the slime coats of other fish, but I havn't noticed this kind of behavior yet.

Hoping that there must be a word for everything I mean...

I've read that as they get older thy may start rasping the slime coats of other fish, but I havn't noticed this kind of behavior yet.

I believe this is much much more common with a chinese algae eater, CAE than an SAE. CAEs have sucker mouths, and commonly become aggressive with age. Until this post, I have never heard of an SAE attacking another fish.

I have 2 SAE's in my 75g tank.
Have always had a problem with hair/beard
algae, but the SAE's keep it to a minimum.
They are great peaceful fish, have the occassional
squabble, but no harm results.
They are tough and hardy.
Mine are also about 4 inches, and their
growth has slowed a lot.
I expect they will reach around 6 inches
over many years, as was said above.
Very cool fish. Always active and on the go.
Get very lovely as they age, very golden
and shiney.


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