[F][Q] Clown Pleco or Tiger Pleco

[Scott A. Janisch]

I have fairly heavily planted fw tank and want to add a couple of plecos.

I would like to find one that will not get too large and destroy the plants.

Yesterday I saw clown pleco's and tiger plecos, the store manager
claimed they did not get very large.

Is this true ?
Which would you choose ?
Are these prices reasonable (3.99 for the clown, 7.99 for the tiger) ?

[Justin G Tolmer]

In article <3oak16$d...@post.gsfc.nasa.gov>,
Scott Bramhall <sbra...@eos.hitc.com> wrote:

>is actually a peckoltia vittata (I think I'm spelling it right). Supposedly a
>nice, placid fish that does not grow beyond 4" and is a good algae eater. I
>bought one a few weeks ago, and he's finally gotten accustomed to his new
>surroundings; I actually see him once in a while! He doesn't seem to be quite
>the algae destroyer I'd hoped, but he's still small (1.5") and perhaps now that
>he's used to his new home he'll pig out some more.

I just bought a clown pl*co and he's doing a wonderful job of cleaning the
algae from my Anubuis nana. However, he's scraping some of the leaves too
closely. These leaves were heavily covered so they were probably long
dead anyway.

Justin

--
Justin Tolmer "Whichever I choose it amounts to the same,
University of Pittsburgh Absolutely nothing.
jgt...@pitt.edu I'm alive. I'm dead.
http://www.pitt.edu/~jgtst5/ I am the stranger..." The Cure

[Scott Bramhall]

I also wanted a pleco that stayed small, and was told the same thing you were
about the clown plecos. After a bit of research I found that the clown pleco

is actually a peckoltia vittata (I think I'm spelling it right). Supposedly a
nice, placid fish that does not grow beyond 4" and is a good algae eater. I
bought one a few weeks ago, and he's finally gotten accustomed to his new
surroundings; I actually see him once in a while! He doesn't seem to be quite
the algae destroyer I'd hoped, but he's still small (1.5") and perhaps now that
he's used to his new home he'll pig out some more.

I don't know anything about tiger plecos; the FAQ lists "Tiger Sailfin Pleco" as
an exotic species but it does not say how big they get. It does say that a 3"
specimen should cost about $9.00, so that tells me they probably get big. If you
go with the clown, I think $3.99 is a great price! I paid $8.99 for mine - of
course I really didn't shop around, so I don't know if that is average for
this area or if I just got taken :( .

Good Luck!

[R3...@vm1.cc.uakron.edu]

In article <sjanisch....@rsmke.cle.software.rockwell.com>

sjan...@rsmke.cle.software.rockwell.com (Scott A. Janisch) writes:

>I have fairly heavily planted fw tank and want to add a couple of plecos.
>I would like to find one that will not get too large and destroy the plants.
>Yesterday I saw clown pleco's and tiger plecos, the store manager
>claimed they did not get very large.

...
I've had a clown pleco (assuming we are talking about the same species)
for about 7 months. It has not grown any larger than when I originally
bought it (about 3"). It also does NOT eat algae. Won't touch the stuff. In
fact, about all it does is hide all day and poop a lot. Comes out at night
on occasion. Loves romaine lettuce though.
Just my experience...
-kevin

[A.K.]

In article <sjanisch....@rsmke.cle.software.rockwell.com> Scott A. Janisch wrote:
>I have fairly heavily planted fw tank and want to add a couple of plecos.
>
>I would like to find one that will not get too large and destroy the plants.
>
>Yesterday I saw clown pleco's and tiger plecos, the store manager
>claimed they did not get very large.
>

>Is this true ?
>Which would you choose ?
>Are these prices reasonable (3.99 for the clown, 7.99 for the tiger) ?
>
>

I know the clown plecos stay small - I have 4 of them bttween a couple tanks.
They don't get any bigger than 4 inches - if that. They are a bit territorial - but aren't a problem if they have a good hiding place. They do sand down wood pretty quickly - seem to really need it in their diet.

Anne