Breeding Plecs

[bak2nature]

I am interested in trying to breed Plecs. Has anybody tried this or been successful?

What kind of environment/conditions do they like/need to be happy enough to breed?

Are certain varieties easier than others? I was thinking of trying with the common ones first, how do you sex them?

Any help or info would be very much appreciated.

 

[smithrc]

all depends on the plecs your looking at...

My girlfriend and i are going to be trying to breed some soon....
not sure which yet though.

have you decided yet?

 

[bak2nature]

Just thinking of going for the bog standard common 'Ford Cortina' of plecs, the ones that most shops have loads of in various tanks for £1.95. My last one grew to just over a foot in length, well impressed!

Will move on to the more exotic ones depending on how successful (or not!) I am at this.

Is this something that you have done or tried before?

 

[Tempestuousfury]

to the forum. Introduce yourself in the newbie section.

As far as I know, most plecs haven't been bred in captivity. Who knows? You might be the first.

 

[Cheese Specialist]

Seems like Bristle Noses are easy to breed and don't get massive. Hmmm are they actually plecs?

tempestuousfury - I thought that many plecs (the kind we're likely to come across) have been bred sucessfully.

 

[smithrc]

I woundnt try the common plecs... thats a lot of fry that you'd have to give away (due to the fact that they are only 1.95 retail and the shop pay less that half for them.) there are quite a few of the 'rarer' plecs that have been bread reliabily.

we're looking at
king tiger plecs - L066 - about £20 each
leopard frog plecs - L134 - about £20 each

they can have upto 40 fry so if i can bear to part with them i should be able to make a little bit back on them

we also intend to have a species tank breeding Zebra plecs - L046
but at the moment they are £75-£120 each retail.

 

[smithrc]

oh - and bristle noses are where we have started... although the female isnt old enought yet... the male looks eager though

 

[bak2nature]

OK, maybe I will opt for a couple of the L numbered species after all. I'm not bothered about making any money out of the breeding, I would just like to do it (nice idea though!).

Did you buy your bristlenoses as a pair or just get lucky? How do you sex them?

 

[smithrc]

i bought one very small and let 'her' grow up... no bristles at 2" and she was a she...

then went out and bought a slightly more mature male (just getting bristles)

hopefully they will get things together soon... but the temporary clowns in there have nicked their cave

 

[Max]

you need a fast moving current, caves to the back and plants (leafy woks best no grass)