Old Pleco

[jossswonk]

Hello, I have a clown pleco that's about 18 years old. Is this old for his species or do they usually live this long? I'm just curious, thanks for any help you can give!

 

[MattW]

Never kept a pleco before but according to this page, they say 10 years. So your pleco must have some amazing workout or health care routines!

 

[anewbie]

Never kept a pleco before but according to this page, they say 10 years. So your pleco must have some amazing workout or health care routines!

That page is hardly authoritative; to the point of being junk. Having said that i doubt there is much reliable data available. Most people are poor fish keepers or have unsuitable conditions for optimal (or even good) longevity.

After a bit of searching i could find several references that suggest 20+ years in optimal conditions but 12 to 16 more common. The problem is that a lot of deaths of 'old' clown pleco occur for side reasons - died while moving or aquarium conditions changed or .....

I would guess he is fairly old but might have a few more good years left

 

[jossswonk]

We actually got him from a family friend. He was then transfered to my dad's tank at work, and then my dad gave him to me when I set up my own tank. So he's been passed around quite a few times and 18 is just an estimate of his age. He still seems to be going strong though

 

[TwoTankAmin]

I have been breeding the B&W plecos from the big bend of the Rio Xingu for years. I am retiring from this and have been selling off my breeding groups. I started with zebra plecos having been able to purchase a proven breeding group in Apr. 2006. These fish were on the age range of about 2.5 to 5 years when I got them.

One of the experienced breeders of plecos I consulted told me he had a 22 year old male zebra which had recently spawned. When I recently shut down my zebra tank I had two mature adults I gave a way along with two juvies. A fish frriend offered to provide the older ones with a retirement home until they died and the two juvies I sent were a TY and also meant the tank was empty and ready to be taken down.

I estimate the two oldsters were 19 a down about 22. I still have a group of L173 which I obtained as adults in Oct. 2015. They are still actively spawning today and I estimate their age range to be from 12 - about 14 years or a tsd older.

One of the nicest thing about our hobby is that fish properly cared for in our tanks should live much longer than their counterparts in the wild. No predation, good regular food and getting treated which sick or plagued by worms or parasites make this a likely outcome.

So. my belief is that a lot of plecos will live pretty long time in our tanks when we treat them right.

 

[jossswonk]

Well it sounds like my pleco is pretty old but not on his deathbed yet. I plan on moving in a couple of years and if he's still kicking by then is there any advice you could give that would help me move him?

 

[TwoTankAmin]

Basically bags the fish as if ot were being shipped but with one difference. When we ship we try to use the least amount of water possible, We are not shipping fish we are shipping water. But, when moving the fish tourself, none of this matters. You can use a bigger bag and punt in more water, Just remember the air in the bag should always be more than 50% of the contents.

Also, plecos being poop factories it is important to fast the fish for a few days days before the trip. it will be fine and this reduces poop in the bag. Depending on how long the trip is and how soon the fish will be back in a safe tank, you may want to take a few other steps to insure a safe trip.

 

[angiemike6]

Treating all fish right, extends their lifespan sometimes by many years. I do a 35% water change every 7 days, and only feed my fish once on 3 days a week. At water change I suction the fish poop off the surface of the gravel. Most of my fish are 5 to 10 years of age. My clown loaches are 14 years old. I lost a common plec recently which reached the ripe old age of 28 years, when if you google on the internet their likely age is 10-15 years. With a bit of luck and good water management your clown pleco may have another 10 years yet.

 

[raylove]

Yes, bigger fish like that are likely to live to at least 20 if cared for well. Even small fish can randomly live to extreme ages occasionally. My record used to be a solitary silver hatchet which I had for 17 years, but I think that's been beaten recently. Last month my last remaining red scissortail died. Unfortunately I don't have a note of exactly when I got those fish but I know I had them in a tank that I replaced in 2007, so that was over 17 years ago. I nearly always seem to end up with one fish from a group that far outlives the rest.

 

[anewbie]

Yes, bigger fish like that are likely to live to at least 20 if cared for well. Even small fish can randomly live to extreme ages occasionally. My record used to be a solitary silver hatchet which I had for 17 years, but I think that's been beaten recently. Last month my last remaining red scissortail died. Unfortunately I don't have a note of exactly when I got those fish but I know I had them in a tank that I replaced in 2007, so that was over 17 years ago. I nearly always seem to end up with one fish from a group that far outlives the rest.

However if you really want a single fish for the rest of your life I'd go with a group of clown loaches in a 200 - of course if you have a 2000 gallon aquarium you could get away with a single pacu.

 

[jossswonk]

Sadly I don't think I'll be getting any large aquariums any time soon. My first year of college is starting soon and I think a 200 gallon is out of my budget. And it's definitely not on the packing list lol.