Types of common

[phOOey]

my friend has a common pleco . He has been reading about the 2 different types there are, apparently one type get to 12 inches and the other gets to 18. Is there any way you can tell the difference between the 2?

 

[Lotus]

Here's something from www.planetcatfish.com

"Due to the number of species in the genus, identification is very difficult without exact provenience of the specimen. Most "common plecos" are now exported from Peru and Brazil. Photos of the real H. plecostomus are common in aquarium literature from the 1960s and 70s when "common plecos" were exported from Venezuela, Suriname, and the Guyanas."

Basically, I don't think there's any way of really being able to tell. Either way, he will need a large tank eventually.

Even a standard 55g tank gets small, as it's only about 13" wide, which makes it hard for the pleco to turn around. Ours got to about 14" in three years.

 

[catfishmike]

common plecos are just that,common the taxinomic name tends to be irrelivant when looking at them.they are shipped under generic names.most tend to be liposcarus,not hypostomus in my area.

 

[Managuense]

most of what they sell around here as "common" plecos are really the "sailfin" plecos that grow to 18+ inches.....monsters they are

the taxonomy related to "plecos" is very hap-hazard as mike pointed out, as they were being imported years ago the name "pleco" just caught-on, and people began calling every catfish with a sucker-mouth.....

planetcatfish.com explains it much better, so read on!

 

[phOOey]

oh well, do large plecos ever pose o threat to small fish like neons??

 

[Lotus]

Our large pleco never bothered anyone. He was a little destructive for the plants, though. He was big and clumsy and often uprooted things when he was swimming. The sucker mouths make it hard for them to really "attack" smaller fish.

 

[wayne]

Actually it's pretty easy to tell the difference - count the rays in the dorsal 8 - 10 = Hypostomus 16 - 20 Liposarcus. Hypostomus to about 12 inches, Liposarcus to 18. Sailfins look a bit different in colour and finnage, and supposedly hit 18, but there are too many good sources who've seen them 24 inches plus.