how to breed common plecos

[puckbag]

does anybody kno how to breed common plecos and to tell the difference between males and females

 

[bshockstubb]

I've heard that it is very difficult to do .... it must be outside (or ina very lage aquarium) and have muddy banks like a river. The male digs a burrow in the bank of the mud and the female lays the egsss, while both the parents look at after them.

 

[Tempestuousfury]

The books that I've read (mostly ten or more years old) say that it's never been done. However, it might be possible if you can keep two fully grown and sexually mature specimens in a tank with plenty of dark crevices for nesting or depositing areas...

 

[smithrc]

the only thing that limits breeding them is size of tank...

we had someone on here that had a female common thay started egg laying but died as the eggs got stuck to her and went mouldy.

 

[Oddball]

Difficult, especially as the term common pleco encompasses a multitude of very similar species, most lfs order them in and get 4 or 5 species in a shipment and sell 'em all as a pleco!
These large fish need space, and i could only recommend such an endeavour in a small heated pool But if you do actually have any success i would be interested in hearing about it