Algae Wafers

[ronald0127]

hey guys
a question about algae wafers and my pleco, (10 gal ) ive actually never seen anything eat on them, my snail the vacum cleaner moved on top of one turned around and went the other direction.my 2 blues eat everything but them.
is there anything else that i could feed him.i tried the squash and cuecumber thing,he didnt touch them.
ron

 

[Akasha72]

my plec is fussy too. He likes New Era plec pellets and JBL's plec pellets. He won't touch tetra's pellets or hikari. It's a case of trying different one's until you find one he likes I'm afraid
 
Have you tried apple or courgette? (Zuccini in some countries). I've tried apple but he's not keen on that but he likes courgette and cucumber. It's trial and error I've found

 

[RRaquariums]

So just a question for you what kind of pleco his he?

 

[ronald0127]

thanks
dwarf, other than that i dont know.ive had him 2 yrs, he's 2 1/2 inches. tried the squash. i will try the apple
and some of the other pleco foods.
ron

 

[TwoTankAmin]

Not all plecos eat algae, some eat meat, some eat wood many eat a mixture.. Dwarf is no help as it is a size description not a type of fish. Can you might post a decent picture?

 

[ronald0127]

thanks
when i bought him thats all they said. taking a pic might be hard. he loves to hide.
ron

 

[ronald0127]

hey guys
see if you can tell anything with this.
ron

 

[Byron]

That appears to be a Clown Pleco.  There are several species described, all sharing the stripe patterning though it can vary even with age among the same species.  They are quite secretive, so not surprising he likes to hide.  As they remain under four inches, they are often commonly called "dwarf."
 
These fish are in the genus Panaqolus (some sources till use Panaque but this is incorrect) and these are wood eating pleco.  They must have plenty of chunks of bogwood (real wood, not artificial).  They may not actually digest the wood as nutrition (I believe I have read both opinions on this) but they certainly do need to "eat" the wood for a healthy digestive tract.  They will graze the biofilms (called aufwuchs) and thus eat algae, microscopic critters, etc.  They are primarily vegetarian, and some sources mention that too much in the way of meaty foods can cause digestive issues.
 
Yams are said to be liked, and the other veggies already mentioned by other members (cucumber, zucchini, eggplant).
 
Byron.

 

[attibones]

EDIT: posted at the same time as Byron. Haha! But yeah, I agree on it being a clown pleco

 

[Akasha72]

sounds like he needs a large lump of bogwood so rasp on. These types of plec's I know nothing about but I'm sure I've seen pellets somewhere that are made from wood ... or then perhaps I dreamt that 

 

 

[Byron]

One other sinking "algae" food not mentioned yet is the Omega One Veggie Round.  All my bottom feeders relish these.  My Farlowella and Whiptails really grab onto one.
 
While the natural veggies are fine, it is always good to get the fish eating at least one prepared food, to ensure all the necessary vitamins and minerals are in the diet.  Between those Akasha and I mentioned, you should find one the clown likes.  Just make sure it has wood.
 
Byron.

 

[NickAu]

I have 2 Pleco's in the tank with my betta and they love Hikari tropical mini algae wafers, I just drop 2 or 3 in the tank and they always seem to find them fast , so do the 2 snails I have. They also get any brine shrimp that the betta misses, He never misses 1 bit of blood worm.

 

[betta fish]

Hi what brand algae wafers are you trying? my bristlenose loves Hikari then so does my angels so I have to be careful otherwise they gorge on them, she is also partial to blanched cucumber and courgette.

 

[Akasha72]

I forgot to mention broccoli stalks ... I've heard that all pleco's like them. I've not tried my ancistrus on them though

 

[RobRocksFishTank]

What food group is wood in?