Bristle Nose Pleco?

[Gazpug]

Do i need to feed algae tablets to it? My tank is nice and free from brown algae just wondering if i need to suplement its diet.

Gaz

 

[stiffler69]

Yeah catfish pellets algae waffers fresh cucumber and zuchinni, peas, and he will clean up some of the flakes the fish leave aswell make sure hes well fed if your tank doesnt have much algae hes going to need to be substituted

 

[rocknurworld2006]

cucumber is the best food to feed if there is no algae but only substitute with it if no algae is present or it will not eat algae.
they also like bogwood or tuffa rock to graze on

 

[Darkstar]

cucumber is the best food to feed

Cucumber isn't terribly nutritious, you can certainly feed it but try other veg also as the first reply suggested, zuchinni and peas etc are far more nutritious.

only substitute with it if no algae is present or it will not eat algae.

Fish shouldn't be forced into eating one single food type just to solve your algae issue. Aim to give it as varied diet as possible and if you find you still have an algae issue then resolve that as a seperate issue.

they also like bogwood or tuffa rock to graze on

Bogwood is always a good addition to the tank but tuffa rock will raise the pH, which is the wrong direction pH wise for bn's...so don't use tuffa rock. Do get some bogwood though if you haven't already.

 

[rocknurworld2006]

cucumber is the best food to feed

Cucumber isn't terribly nutritious, you can certainly feed it but try other veg also as the first reply suggested, zuchinni and peas etc are far more nutritious.

only substitute with it if no algae is present or it will not eat algae.

Fish shouldn't be forced into eating one single food type just to solve your algae issue. Aim to give it as varied diet as possible and if you find you still have an algae issue then resolve that as a seperate issue.

they also like bogwood or tuffa rock to graze on

Bogwood is always a good addition to the tank but tuffa rock will raise the pH, which is the wrong direction pH wise for bn's...so don't use tuffa rock. Do get some bogwood though if you haven't already.

they are not forced to eat algae, this is what they eat!

bogwood decrease ph, tuffa rock increases ph

u would use what ever one depending on which fish you have (ie malawis) as they are tolerant to a wide range of ph and are not just acidic!

they will happily breed over and over in with malawis at a higher ph which u would use tuffa rock to graze on and not bogwood!

 

[Darkstar]

cucumber is the best food to feed

Cucumber isn't terribly nutritious, you can certainly feed it but try other veg also as the first reply suggested, zuchinni and peas etc are far more nutritious.

only substitute with it if no algae is present or it will not eat algae.

Fish shouldn't be forced into eating one single food type just to solve your algae issue. Aim to give it as varied diet as possible and if you find you still have an algae issue then resolve that as a seperate issue.

they also like bogwood or tuffa rock to graze on

Bogwood is always a good addition to the tank but tuffa rock will raise the pH, which is the wrong direction pH wise for bn's...so don't use tuffa rock. Do get some bogwood though if you haven't already.

they are not forced to eat algae, this is what they eat!

bogwood decrease ph, tuffa rock increases ph

u would use what ever one depending on which fish you have (ie malawis) as they are tolerant to a wide range of ph and are not just acidic!

they will happily breed over and over in with malawis at a higher ph which u would use tuffa rock to graze on and not bogwood!

oh dear....

 

[rocknurworld2006]

what do you mean oh dear??

 

[celaeno]

how does a fish graze on a rock? i thought bristlenose plecs require wood to graze on because they need it in their diet to help digest proteins?

 

[Darkstar]

they are not forced to eat algae, this is what they eat!

They are forced to eat it if you say "but only substitute with it if no algae is present or it will not eat algae" which means only give it other food types if algae is not present. Bn's it is also thought, eat the lignin from bogwood as stated here from planet catfish:

It is thought that elements in bogwood, particularly lignin, may form an essential part of Bristlenose diet. Certainly they have the immensely long guts common to vegetarians, and although they fall avidly on the occasional meal of live food or prawns, the bulk of their diet must be composed of vegetable matter. If a high protein diet is fed constantly, then they will become prone to stomach disorders. Vegetable roughage keeps the gut in working order, and bogwood is a valuable addition to this.

Either way, a varied and balanced diet is by far the better approach imo.

bogwood decrease ph, tuffa rock increases ph

yes, which is why i said use bogwood but not tuffa rock unless you have very very soft water and need to raise the pH.

u would use what ever one depending on which fish you have (ie malawis) as they are tolerant to a wide range of ph and are not just acidic!

yes they are tolerant but wherever possible you should aim to keep the fish in water that is most natural to them and I don't see any malawis listed in the o/p's sig.

they will happily breed over and over in with malawis at a higher ph which u would use tuffa rock to graze on and not bogwood!

Tuffa rock has no benefit for bn's other than providing hiding places, bogwood however has more than one benefit.

 

[rocknurworld2006]

they will graze on tuffa rock, i guarantee you!!! just like they do on bogwood!

 

[Davo86]

they will graze on tuffa rock, i guarantee you!!! just like they do on bogwood!

presumably though they are grazing on microscopic algae that may be growing on the rock and not the rock itself,
whereas soft bogwood (not mopani) is much needed in any omnivorouse plecs diet.

Gazpug: your corys and clown loach will also benefit from many of the same veggies that the plecs will love

 

[Darkstar]

presumably though they are grazing on microscopic algae that may be growing on the rock and not the rock itself,
whereas soft bogwood (not mopani) is much needed in any omnivorouse plecs diet.

Exactly, they'll eat the algae and the young may well comsume the bioflim also, but tuffa rock has no actual benefit for bn's. Bogwood is far better.

 

[smmetz]

they will graze on tuffa rock, i guarantee you!!! just like they do on bogwood!

presumably though they are grazing on microscopic algae that may be growing on the rock and not the rock itself,
whereas soft bogwood (not mopani) is much needed in any omnivorouse plecs diet.

Gazpug: your corys and clown loach will also benefit from many of the same veggies that the plecs will love

uh oh, I have mopani wood in my tanks, not soft driftwood / bogwood. Does this mean my plecs get no benefit from the wood in my tanks?

 

[Darkstar]

they will graze on tuffa rock, i guarantee you!!! just like they do on bogwood!

presumably though they are grazing on microscopic algae that may be growing on the rock and not the rock itself,
whereas soft bogwood (not mopani) is much needed in any omnivorouse plecs diet.

Gazpug: your corys and clown loach will also benefit from many of the same veggies that the plecs will love

uh oh, I have mopani wood in my tanks, not soft driftwood / bogwood. Does this mean my plecs get no benefit from the wood in my tanks?

The theory or assumption is that mopani is too hard a wood for them to graze on. I've never seen any evidence of it, but apparently it results in the wearing down of their teeth which in turn results in eventual starvation. So to be on the safe side, I'd switch to a softer wood.

 

[celaeno]

bristlenose plecs have teeth?