Pls Help Id Plec!

[mumbakki]

Hi all,

Recently went to my lfs to get an algae eater, they said this was the only kind that didn't grow much bigger than it is right now (Later went back and found out they had otos! Would've been great for my setup, except are tiger barbs aggresive to them?). Only I'm not sure what it is. Thing with my tiny corner of the world (the Philippines), ALL plecos are called "janitor fish", so this one in particular is "somewhat albino dwarf janitor fish" to them. Can anyone tell me what species this is, specifically? Thanks!

Do these really come in dwarf?


I also posted these in another thread, but at first the post was cut short, and all replies till now were from BEFORE the pictures were actually up lol

the other post, with some background info


Once again thanks a lot and GJ making the world a better place for fish!

 

[Colin_T]

The plecos normally have colour and markings that are used to identify them. Unfortunately albino suckermouth catfish all look the same so there is no real way of identifying it.
I don't know of any dwarf varieties other than bristlenose and peckoltias but they aren't actually dwarfs. They are just naturally smaller fish than the common plecos.

 

[PRW1988]

that's an albino chocolate pleco, grows to the same size as a common pleco. All the care information is the same as the common pleco.

 

[mumbakki]

The plecos normally have colour and markings that are used to identify them. Unfortunately albino suckermouth catfish all look the same so there is no real way of identifying it.
I don't know of any dwarf varieties other than bristlenose and peckoltias but they aren't actually dwarfs. They are just naturally smaller fish than the common plecos.

ah. well. i guess il need to wait and see how much more this guy grows if it gets near 6" i'll complain to the lfs and either return it or....... been thinking of getting a much bigger tank...... heheheh.

at least i know about fishless cycling now. (the fish were a gift to my 4-yr-old daughter, I knew ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about keeping fish before that)

speaking of which, I've had these 5 tiger barbs for over 2 months now, no deaths or sickness or weird behavior or any injury since the first week when 2 died coz they were in a tiny bowl, after that first week they've been in a proper tank setup, they're now quite lively and playful, how long does it usually take before I can breathe easy and know they wont suddenly die from a nitrite or nitrate spike or something related to cycling?

It's been exactly 65 days since we got the fish, 58 days since getting the tank.

 

[mumbakki]

that's an albino chocolate pleco, grows to the same size as a common pleco. All the care information is the same as the common pleco.

oh man. those fish store boys, i tell you. probably gonna return it, met the owner a couple of days ago, seemed more honest than his workers he said it WILL grow but very slowly, his employees on the other hand insisted it wouldn't grow more than an inch more the day I was buying it.

was enjoying the tiger barbs so much was thinking of getting at least a 50G next, but with this kind of ppl doing the selling its kinda discouraging.

ah well i'll get over it.

do tiger barbs and otos get along? they have otos at the same shop (another thing the employees didn't point out) (sadly its still the best fish store around; this time il talk to the owner ONLY). I've seen a lot of sites saying tiger barbs can be very aggressive to other small fish.

 

[PRW1988]

Tiger barbs can be very agressive towards other fish, but as IME, so long as you keep the shoal of tiger barbs large enough they tend not to bother other fish. Myself, I have a shoal of 15 tiger barbs in a tank with a couple of angelfish and cory catfish and they don't bother anybody.

 

[Colin_T]

I've had these 5 tiger barbs for over 2 months now, no deaths or sickness or weird behavior or any injury since the first week when 2 died coz they were in a tiny bowl, after that first week they've been in a proper tank setup, they're now quite lively and playful, how long does it usually take before I can breathe easy and know they wont suddenly die from a nitrite or nitrate spike or something related to cycling?
It's been exactly 65 days since we got the fish, 58 days since getting the tank.

it usually takes about a month for the filters to cycle and after a couple of months they are normally pretty stabile. However, they can be damaged or wiped out if you wash the filter materials in tap water or water that is different to what the filters have been living in, (basically if they are cleaned in water other than the tank water).
Also if you have a power failure for any length of time it could kill some of the bacteria and you might get an ammonia or nitrite spike.
But assuming nothing like that happens you can breathe easy now. Just do regular partial water changes (using dechlorinated water) and gravel cleans, and monitor the water quality, and they should be fine.