Help my clown pleco is starving

AtomicFish said:

Im not a pleco expert so Its hard to say why he stays on the filter. I know plecos can get quite big.

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AtomicFish said:

Im not a pleco expert so Its hard to say why he stays on the filter. I know plecos can get quite big.

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Colin_T said:

Have your lights on for longer each day (up to 16 hours) to encourage algae to grow on the glass. The pleco will graze on that.

Get some driftwood when you can and they eat that too.

Add an algae wafer or bottom feeding pellet at night after lights out and the fish should eat that.

As others have mentioned, most plecos are nocturnal and sleep during the day, and spend the night looking for food.

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Koglin said:

Some fish have to get use to the sinking wafers or pellets if they haven't had them before. You might call the place you got your pleco from and ask them what theyre being fed, and try that if it is different from what you've been feeding.

Adding more hiding places (driftwood/live plants, or even just making little rock caves) could also make him feel safer which will encourage him to move around and explore more, which will help him come across food more often.

Seems like having more hiding spots makes them feel more confident to roam because they know they can run/hide at any moment if needed. Like having the security to move around more freely because you always have a safe spot nearby.

And luckily, adding deco and mixing things up is always fun!

The other big thing, is since your tank is only a month old - really need to test your water. If your tank wasn't quite done cycling adding the fish may have wonked it out a bit. If it IS still cycling, this could be adding to why he just stays there. Toxins could be affecting him 1 way or another. Lotta bad things can happen to fish from a cycle, sometimes they'll even stress themselves to a sad and tiny watery grave.

If you can't get a test kit yet, call some of your local fish stores and see if any of them will test your water for free if you bring them a sample.

Either way, I hope everything works out! Best of luck

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Deanasue said:

He has to have driftwood in order to digest his food. You can use cholla wood or even dried out oak branches. Feed him at night with a quality pleco wafer after lights are out. They love cucumber too.

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Metalhead88 said:

Clown plecos get about 3 inches and can be timid....even more so than some other plecos.

They are nocturnal so will graze on algae at night. As mentioned before, feed algae wafers at night.

Can you post some more pictures? I know it's probably hard to get a good one of him, but he looks ok in that one pic.

If this is a newly set up tank, there may not be much for him to chew on.

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PheonixKingZ said:

My Pleco also likes to graze on the filter. I believe he is eating all of the microorganisms in and on the filter.

I would do what we have already suggested. Drop a wafer in there at night. Are there snails in that tank?

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Fishiemang said:

The lil guy is eating. You just don't see it.

Plecos are cool fish. They eat algae, yes, but they also survive on bio film. For those who see them on the glass, even when they don't see anything, there is a bio film that develops all over the surfaces in the tank. They feed on this too. It is probably hanging out on the filter pump due to water flow. They like some water flow, plus there is probably something nummy there too. They will clean the rocks, glass, tank decorations....everything. If you are dropping food in, and it ain't getting ate, don't add any more. A pleco wafer every couple days is enough. It is probably also scavenging the leftover food for the other fish as well.

Plecos are a fish that will trip you out at first, but, you stop worrying about them after they survive for a long time without seeming to eat anything. They are pro's at spookin.new owners out.

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Gypsum said:

Clown plecos *need* driftwood. It's not optional. And you need to make sure you're buying soft wood and not a hard wood like mopani.

I'm not 100% sure that's a clown pleco. It does not look like any Panaqolis maccus I have ever seen.

This is what they normally look like (pic from the internet... my clown plec isn't very photogenic): View attachment 119159

Sign up to this Facebook group, https://www.facebook.com/groups/897864020606715, or if you don't have Facebook, this forum, https://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/index.php, post your photos, and get yourself a definitive ID. Someone there will be able to tell you what it is. Different species of pleco have different dietary and care needs, so you really need to know what it is.

It might be another Panaque species similar to Panaqolus maccus, in which case, you still need wood. So buy that anyway ASAP while you're waiting for an ID.

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