Whats My Plec?

[architempest]

I have aquired the plec in the photo below. As i aquired it off a friend i do not know what it is. Any ideas gratefully recieved.
Cheers Arch

 

[JenCliBee]

Not the best of pics, side on full body with tail would make it much easier but it's either 66 or 333 would probably be more inclined to go 333 unless the tail is folked like.

Looks to be a nice fat female from that shot aswell

 

[architempest]

Thanks for your susgestion, i'll try and get a better photo when i clean the tank tomorrow. bit stumped of how she would have become pregnant ( i don't need the birds and bees talk LOL) shes been in a tank where shes the only plec and then put into my community tank thats on got 201's and a common in.

arch

 

[JenCliBee]

Thanks for your susgestion, i'll try and get a better photo when i clean the tank tomorrow. bit stumped of how she would have become pregnant ( i don't need the birds and bees talk LOL) shes been in a tank where shes the only plec and then put into my community tank thats on got 201's and a common in.

arch

It wouldn't become pregnant, she may just be well fed or 'IF' female just be plump with eggs, she will just absorb them if no is male present but it may well just be the shot angle which makes her (if indeed female) look much fatter than she really is lol

Either way she is either a 66 or 333 and a very nice one at that

 

[Big_eyes]

Aye, my vote goes for a king tiger plec too

 

[pinkdolphin_113]

Aye, my vote goes for a king tiger plec too

aye! definately an L066. the white markings are too thin to be an L333.
nice fish these! i cant beleive you got it for free lol jammy!


Pink.

 

[JenCliBee]

Aye, my vote goes for a king tiger plec too

aye! definately an L066. the white markings are too thin to be an L333.
nice fish these! i cant beleive you got it for free lol jammy!


Pink.

Unfortunately that cant be anyway close to IDing correctly, between the 2 species the markings can vary way to extremely. The picture shown below is a 333 pretty much same markings as the OP's pic, note the none folked tail.


Most of the time the defining part to ID would be the tail been folked and without that it would be almost impossible to ID from that picture shown, the plec from the OP's pic seems to have a tail like the picture ive added and if the tail isn't folk like the picture then it will be a 333.

It could turn out to be either from that picture so i would be interested to see what the new OP's picture brings.


Picture courtesy of planet catfish

 

[pinkdolphin_113]

Aye, my vote goes for a king tiger plec too

aye! definately an L066. the white markings are too thin to be an L333.
nice fish these! i cant beleive you got it for free lol jammy!


Pink.

Unfortunately that cant be anyway close to IDing correctly, between the 2 species the markings can vary way to extremely. The picture shown below is a 333 pretty much same markings as the OP's pic, note the none folked tail.


Most of the time the defining part to ID would be the tail been folked and without that it would be almost impossible to ID from that picture shown, the plec from the OP's pic seems to have a tail like the picture ive added and if the tail isn't folk like the picture then it will be a 333.

It could turn out to be either from that picture so i would be interested to see what the new OP's picture brings.


Picture courtesy of planet catfish

this is true, markings can vary a lot in fish. ive only had experience with 4 L066s and 3 L333s in my life because they're just way too expensive for my liking lol i was just going by my experience.
i forgot to mention that i also came to my conclusion due to the size of the first dorsal fin ray and the density of the membrane of the dorsal fin.

im not quite sure what you mean by "folked" though. however, both species have the same shaped tail.
but i do agree, more clearer photos would be ideal here


Pink.

 

[JenCliBee]

first picture is a 66 second is a 333

Notice how different the shape of the tail ... ie 'folked'

From the OP's picture you will not id anything by the fins nor tail. As far as im aware the rays nor desity of them are a way of distinguishing the two species.

One is meant to be a slightly slimmer/ not quite so heavily bodied plec but from the amount ive kept the shape, size and length is virtually the same between the two.

As i said the way it is usually distinguished is the folk tail and without a better picture that is virtually impossible.

 

[pinkdolphin_113]

ohh forked! im following you now. so the L066, is its tail always forked?
couldn't it just be similar to some L204s having extended finnage on their tails and some not?
i still personally beleive its an L066 because theres just not enough white on it (going back to the markings).

lol lets get some money involved



Pink.

 

[JenCliBee]

ohh forked! im following you now. so the L066, is its tail always forked?
couldn't it just be similar to some L204s having extended finnage on their tails and some not?
i still personally beleive its an L066 because theres just not enough white on it (going back to the markings).

lol lets get some money involved



Pink.

Tail shape on a 204 is completely different the tail has end trails (shall we call them lol) but some are just not so pronounce as others the general tail it self would be the same shape on every 204 species.

The plec cant be ID'ed on pattern, whiteness nor the amount simply becasue colour and pattern varies so much on a few similar species, not just 66 and 333's.

Some will say the 333 has more of a yellow tinge rather than white but ive also had 66 with exactly the same colouring.

The tail shape between a 66 and the 333 is completely different as you can see within the photo.

No money will be involved sorry, got none left after buying Xmas prezzies lol , and simply becasue the OP's picture just isn't clear enough to actually ID, it could turn out a 66 but without a better photo i wouldnt fully guarantee which species it is.

If you want to go by colour markings etc etc i would say 333 simply becasue it has more of a yellow tinge (again just by that photo), but as we all know photo's are to deceiving to make that sort of positive ID

 

[Jonathangerous]

tail forking has nothing to do with what number they are. l-333 are just chunkier fish. L-66 is more streamlined. Both fish have marginally forked tails. The reason the fish above look different is because one has a frayed caudal.

 

[JenCliBee]

tail forking has nothing to do with what number they are. l-333 are just chunkier fish. L-66 is more streamlined. Both fish have marginally forked tails. The reason the fish above look different is because one has a frayed caudal.

Im sorry mate but you disagree with literally every thread becasue it isnt what you think lol, the fact that many many threads on PC have been made for IDing the 2 species and the most likely way of IDing them much more accuratley is from people mentioning time and time again about the forked tail difference, infact even you on occasions have actually commented on it aswell amongst alot of other much more experience plec keepers than YOU and ME. So just to dismiss literally much more and far more experienced keepers than you is poposterous

Ive mentioned the fact that ID'ing is also done by the actuall size in relation of the 333been apparently chunkier but fish size, fatness etc etc isnt a full and definitley way to correctly and posstively say yes its a definite way to ID unless the difference is very much apparent.

 

[kenny fish fanatic]

hi,i have a half a dozen of these,mine are shy and i dont see much of them,they not all the same
2 of them are like the 2nd photos but the white are really white,another 2 are really fine like a jigsaw type of pattern
and the other 2 are different again,more white, that's when i see them,and they aren't that big,about 3 inches
they were only an inch and a half when i got them,i liked them when i seen them and was told they where L numbers
my friend didn't know what they were,he gave me them for a couple of discus,i wanted rid of
i think i got a good deal,like i say they are really shy.i will try and take some photos when they come out,,kenny

 

[Jonathangerous]

"Im sorry mate but you disagree with literally every thread becasue it isnt what you think lol"

Yes you are correct. I disagree with something when it is contrary to what I think--as opposed to what? Agreeing with something I disagree with? In any case, true, I may not have the credentials that some fishkeepers have, however, I can say that I've kept and bred 333s from porto de moz. I've also spawned 2 variants of L-66 and have seen many of both in my fishkeeping lifespan, so I feel I know my stuff (I could of course, be off base, but that's why this is an opinion, not a fact) I have not seen a notable discrepancy in tail forking (at least not in a sense that can be easily teased out as a definitive measure of identity), especially given the high degree of polymorphisms nascent within each respective number.

"333been apparently chunkier but fish size, fatness etc etc isnt a full and definitley way to correctly and posstively say yes its a definite way to ID unless the difference is very much apparent."

I'm not sure exactly what you're trying to say here, but body structure is THE best way to tell these two numbers apart. Plumpness due to proper feeding and stockiness and sheer girth are different matters entirely.