Zebra Pleco

ecotank

ecotank

Superstar Fish
#1
Aug 30, 2003
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#1
Well our new LFS apparently listens to me alot, I told him that Zebra's are become hard to find and the price is skyrocketing. I also mentioned that if he found one for $50.00 I'd take it in a heartbeat!!!!

Well no $50.00 Zebra for me, but he did manage to get one and I'm sure someone will end up buying it, even at the $129.00 price tag. What a great looking pleco...was hard not to buy it even at that price.
 

Purple

Purple

Superstar Fish
#7
Oct 31, 2003
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#7
I have a similar dilema with zebras - should i pay the asking price and perpetuate the high prices and inevitable drain on natural rescouces that would result ?

Or should i grasp the opportunity to revitalise the market by paying over the odds for a breeding couple and perpetuate the high prices and inevitable drain on natural rescources that would result ? (cos everyone else wants to do the same thing for either money or altruistic principles).

Either zebras go out of fashion - or they go out of reach - perhaps for ever. But unless those in the hobby realise and account for this in their actions, reality may make the choice for us all - by which time it may well be too late to redress the balance.

We the buyers, are having a direct effect on natural rescources with these fish - and unless we opt for a bit of self-control now - we will have no control whatsoever in the future.

Yes - I want one . Yes I want more than one to breed and restore that balance - and yes, by doing so I contribute to the inevitable problem of wild stock diminishing.

Think hard - be hard - but on yourself first - and on zebra popultions last. It's the least we can do - we have to care about the fish first, and the money last. The sellers have a different agenda, and we don't have to dance to their tune, nor should the fish have to dance to ours.
 

ecotank

ecotank

Superstar Fish
#8
Aug 30, 2003
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#8
I would love to find a breeding pair as they aren't very difficult to breed, which also makes me wonder why they are so hard to find. And if we breed and distribute them amongst other fishkeepers, does that not save the wild population by eliminating the need to pull from the wild?

Next out-of-the-blue bonus check is probably gonna go towards finding a pair!
 

catfishmike

catfishmike

Superstar Fish
#9
Oct 22, 2002
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#9
greed,someone seen a zebra plec for a 100 dollars once and said "oh yea,i bet i can make a fortune off this"
after learning the breeding trigger i have been trying to obtain
a small colony to breed and distribute amongst my mft friend and a few local fish people.'m never going to get that clony at $150 a fish though:(
 

C

Cichlid-Man

MFT Staff
#10
Jul 9, 2003
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#10
They are hard to find eco, because once you breed them it takes months to raise the fry to sellable size. Therefore not many people keep them in stock very long. And people only buy 1 at a time so you don't get a lot of breeders. Also the egg clutch is very small.

Same idea i have mike. Once.....lol IF i get a colony i am going to breed and distribute among my MFT/fish friends for a very small price, a price like a normal fish.

 

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W

wayne

Elite Fish
#15
Oct 22, 2002
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#15
Cichlid man hits the nail on the head. Zebras are not commercially attractive to breed - specific (non pond) conditions, fish need to be 2 plus years old, small broods, slow growing....
and then add in supply and demand.
However people do breed them, and those fish are sold. However the numbers are so low they are not usually offered up for general sale, but rather go out thro' catfish study groups, catfish contacts and auctions. People who breed them would rather sell them to other enthusiasts, not some random who's going to pop them in his community tank or whatever. So all in all, expect the price to stay up there.
On the upside there are projects in S America near the Rio Xingu where L numbers are being 'farmed' using diverted river water and the correct climate which is obviously good. This is why you can now see large orders of adonis plecs amongst others that all come in in exactly the same size.
 

W

wayne

Elite Fish
#20
Oct 22, 2002
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#20
No guarantees on pairs anyway. That's why people use groups of 6 or 7. Unless you're very, very lucky and find a breeder who's dropping his group and says 'tes that's the male, and that's the female'.
They're easy enough to sex, but ....
Most are imported. You don't know how old they are, but they're typically small and too young. Then
It seems most males don't participate in spawning, and nor do most females. You need to get a bunch of thme to actually get a functioning male and female.
So sorry, but that seems to be a reality. Getting a male/female pair and expecting results seems to be pretty optimistic. Even the most experienced L number breeders seem to still be going for groups, and not single pairs
 

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