Hillstream Loach (beaufortia Kweichowensis)

[CBBP]

Anyone know anything about these? They are algea munchers I know that and they do well in tropical tanks or goldfish tanks I know that as well but what I wanna know is if they can go paracitic like a pleco or other catfish.. I have hear about otto's and plecos latchign on and suckign blood.. will a hillstream loach do that?

 

[Gankutsuou]

I actually have one. Suggusted range is 65-75 degrees i believe, so not EXACTLY tropical. but a lotta fish his that 75 degree marks... but probably not best. i dont think it'd be suited with goldfish....

Plecos sucking blood....
they don't do that. nor do hillstreams.

and yeah. they live off algea and a few other things. i suggust algea waffers!

 

[mikev]

Anyone know anything about these? They are algea munchers I know that and they do well in tropical tanks or goldfish tanks I know that as well but what I wanna know is if they can go paracitic like a pleco or other catfish.. I have hear about otto's and plecos latchign on and suckign blood.. will a hillstream loach do that?

Hillstream loaches. Neither tropical nor goldfish tank are suitable for hillstreams, you need

1> Lower temperature (<=75F is correct)
2> Lots of oxygen
3> Fast current (powerheads)

It is best to construct a proper tank, but if you have to chose between two wrong solutions, unheated tank is better than tropical. However, GF is wrong choice for a tank mate -- too large and too dirty, the best choices are WCMM's, as well as some Danios (Glowlight, for example), Rasboras and Barbs.

My four live in a "river" tank together with other hillstreams, WCMM's, Rasboras, and a couple of small plecos.

And no, they don't suck blood, at least if you treat them well. 8)


If you want to know more, go to www.loaches.com and read the hillstream articles there.

 

[CBBP]

Plecos sucking blood....
they don't do that.

n0w you can't tell me that... because I have seen pictures of pleco's attached to goldfish.. then afterward pictures of a dead goldfish with a hole going right to it's body cavity..

 

[flamingonhot]

I wouldn't keep them with goldfish to begin with, so many reasons why and most were already mentioned.

A few things though, they don't actually really eat algae, just the microrganisms living in it. Sometimes they'll take a bite out of it; but that's about it. They're more carnivorous than anything.

From my experience and understanding they don't latch onto fish and "suck they're blood" actually most fish that do this just suck the skin slime off and blood happens to show up. They don't have pleco like mouths, no scrapers, etc.

 

[pica_nuttalli]

Plecos sucking blood....
they don't do that.

n0w you can't tell me that... because I have seen pictures of pleco's attached to goldfish.. then afterward pictures of a dead goldfish with a hole going right to it's body cavity..

yeah, plecs are totally not blood sucking. hungry plecs will attempt to eat the slime coats of larger, slow-moving fish but they aren't after blood.

 

[CBBP]

oh ok.. was mistaken then.. why do they want thewir slime?

 

[tetras4me]

yeeeaaah, hillstreams dont suck blood

 

[highfire]

I had a hillstream loach a couple of months ago, but unfortunately it didn't do very well in my tank atall and died not long after I bought it. To be perfectly honest, I had it in totally the wrong circumstances. The poor thing just couldn't compete with my golden barbs and WCMM's for the food. Also, although I have two filters I don't think the water was oxygenated enough for the loach, and it was also probably a little on the warm side.

 

[Gankutsuou]

yeah. Sadly i found mine... oddly enough... belly down with a huge white spot. Dead. It hides too much to tell when it has a problem, and I think the False Flying Fox chased it off when it wanted food.... so it didn't have much of a chance... Sigh~...

 

[mikev]

The poor thing just couldn't compete with my golden barbs and WCMM's for the food.

You have to provide some sinking food. Most hillstreams will eat Pleco food and shrimp pellets. Keeping hillstreams with small barbs and WCMM's should be no problem.
(I dither with WCMMs and Rasboras in one tank and Danios in another)

However: occassionally hillstreams simply would not adjust and eat in your tank. Not an issue of competition, it just happens, even to people with lots of hillstream experience.

Sadly i found mine... oddly enough... belly down with a huge white spot.

Sorry to hear this. "Huge white spot" -- discoloration area? If yes, it is a bacterial infection, pretty bad if untreated.

 

[highfire]

You have to provide some sinking food. Most hillstreams will eat Pleco food and shrimp pellets.

Yes, thanks for that - I did feed sinking pellets, pleco wafers and also bloodworm, as I saw a tankful of hillstream loaches devouring bloodworm in the LFS where I bought mine. I even put veggies in there. Sadly though my hillstream loach just didn't show any interest in any food I put in.
I was very disappointed when he died because I thought he was an interesting and different fish.
I guess you can lead a horse to water but can't make him drink......

 

[mikev]

You have to provide some sinking food. Most hillstreams will eat Pleco food and shrimp pellets.

Yes, thanks for that - I did feed sinking pellets, pleco wafers and also bloodworm, as I saw a tankful of hillstream loaches devouring bloodworm in the LFS where I bought mine. I even put veggies in there. Sadly though my hillstream loach just didn't show any interest in any food I put in.
I was very disappointed when he died because I thought he was an interesting and different fish.
I guess you can lead a horse to water but can't make him drink......

IME they overall prefer shrimp (brine) to bloodworms, some species do not care for bloodworms much.
(You did not say what you had)
But the best food for most of them is to grow some algae in the tank, this way they have a chance to survive until they adapt to your food.

But even the people who have years of experience with hillstreams lose some who would not eat.

Give it a try again, making sure that tank is comfortable (cool/current/air/stones/plants/algae), hillstreams are IMHO very enjoyable.

 

[highfire]

Thanks for the advice, mikev.
I shall definately try another hillstream loach or perhaps a couple together, as I think they are really unusual and not something one would see in a tank very often.

 

[mikev]

Thanks for the advice, mikev.
I shall definately try another hillstream loach or perhaps a couple together, as I think they are really unusual and not something one would see in a tank very often.

Very welcome. IMHO, more than one (they need social life too, and it is very interesting to see them interracting), but make sure that the tank is totally suitable first. I *try* to make sure that every species I keep has at least four, but, unfortunately, I still have three "singles" in need of friends here (I have about thirty of them altogether).

Good luck!