What could be chomping on my bucephalandra ?

[Richee]

Noticed yesterday that the leaves looked chomped on , looked at it today and they are completely gone , and it really looks like it was chewed on. I’ve got phoenix and porkchop rasboras as well as cherry and ghost shrimp, one nerite snail , and who know if there are any snails from plants in there but I have no idea what could be doing it .

 

[PygmyPepperJulli]

Having never kept rasboras or shrimp (pretty sure it wouldn't be the shrimp), not sure about them, but I do know that it wouldn't be the snails, they only eat dead or decaying plant matter (unless the buce was decaying...).
If it was the fish, was the plant new, or have you been feeding them less recently? Hwo many rasboras? That's a lot of plant for some pretty small fish in one night...

Hope this helps!

 

[Richee]

Having never kept rasboras or shrimp (pretty sure it wouldn't be the shrimp), not sure about them, but I do know that it wouldn't be the snails, they only eat dead or decaying plant matter (unless the buce was decaying...).
If it was the fish, was the plant new, or have you been feeding them less recently? Hwo many rasboras? That's a lot of plant for some pretty small fish in one night...

Hope this helps!

Right that’s what I was saying it was maybe 3 nights , I’ve got 10 of each rasbora so 20 total , and I haven’t changed feeding , and the plants about 2 weeks old . Idk it’s got me stumped because it was there one day and then gone and those fish are tiny lol

 

[PygmyPepperJulli]

I've read that rasboras are omnivores, so it could have been them? I mean, 20 is a lot, and I get the impression it isn't the world's biggest plant... maybe they just liked the taste? I'm not sure, it's got me stumped too. the only thing I can relate it too is when something just ate all the leaves and just left the stalks in my open terrarium a few months ago, but seeming I doubt my fish jumped out of the aquarium and flipped over to the plants and ate them, that probably won't help...

 

[Essjay]

Phoenix rasboras (Boraras merah) and porkchop rasboras (Trigonostigma espei/hengeli, not sure which) wouldn't do that. Neither would cherry shrimps or nerites. That leaves the ghost shrimps. They are definitely ghost shrimp, not something like amanos? My amanos are experts at shredding my plants. (I'm seriously considering rehoming them)

 

[WhistlingBadger]

I was just reading up on buces, thinking about ordering some. I read that they can develop holes in their leaves when there is a nutrient deficiency, like many other "soft" plants. I suspect that's what is happening. I agree that none of the species you mentioned will eat holes in a healthy plant.

 

[Magnum Man]

@Essjay ...I had a thread on Armanos shredding plants, & was told they won't do that... you be the judge...

Lettuce for catching pond snails in an aquarium... oops... catching more Armano Shrimp than snails

so... I have one tank that is difficult to work on, because of the way it's built into the wall... it's heavily planted, & along with the plants came pond snails, which have been reproducing like crazy... I put a couple assassins' in the tank, but they are highly outnumbered & I have several...

www.fishforums.net

 

[Sgooosh]

I was just reading up on buces, thinking about ordering some. I read that they can develop holes in their leaves when there is a nutrient deficiency, like many other "soft" plants. I suspect that's what is happening. I agree that none of the species you mentioned will eat holes in a healthy plant.

It could also be shock to new environment or change
my crypts which are sort of similar melt and lose a few leaves whenever I just do something small like mix the sand or put in a root tab. delicate plants, but kind of hardy when established

 

[Essjay]

.I had a thread on Armanos shredding plants, & was told they won't do that... you be the judge...

I somehow missed the amano bit

Shortly after I got the amanos, I found them chomping on the leaf stems of Nymphoides heterophylla Taiwan and they destroyed the plants. There are bits missing from the edges of several crypts, and no it's not crypt melt as most of the leaves are fine, just bits missing from the edges. Two of my sword plants look like the lettuce leaves in your thread - though in this case I suspect they were eating algae from the leaves, damaged the surface and then ate the damaged bits. They've damaged the leaves of the small anubias (I can't remember if it's bonsai or nana petite) and the leaves of Schismatoglottis prietoi which I thinned out from the cherry shrimp tank (where they remain pristine).

However, my buces and only the buces, haven't been touched.

 

[sonofagun]

Still cannot get the Amano plant eating bit....but who knows.
Anyway I have been looking for more examples of of this and have read they seem to indeed like and scoff tissue cultured plants.(someone else's theory who has had this problem)
Tissue cultured plants is another thing I've never heard of.
If all this is true I have know idea ....all past my clockwork mind.
Have you heard of tissue cultured plants?and have you bought them?

 

[Essjay]

I have bought tissue culture plants. They are grown in a type of gel and are disease and pest snail free with no chemicals used on them.

This is a description from one company which grows them

Benefits of In-Vitro Plants and reproduction in the Laboratory - Dennerle Plants

dennerleplants.com

 

[sonofagun]

I have read through the link but will have to read it again.All very interesting and perhaps a little worrying.

 

[Richee]

I was just reading up on buces, thinking about ordering some. I read that they can develop holes in their leaves when there is a nutrient deficiency, like many other "soft" plants. I suspect that's what is happening. I agree that none of the species you mentioned will eat holes in a healthy plant.

The thing is I’ve got 5 other buce green in there and they are flourishing as well as all the other plants . Iron rich substrate , tabs and flourish is dosed into the water column weekly , idk anything that would chomp them like that

 

[Richee]

I've read that rasboras are omnivores, so it could have been them? I mean, 20 is a lot, and I get the impression it isn't the world's biggest plant... maybe they just liked the taste? I'm not sure, it's got me stumped too. the only thing I can relate it too is when something just ate all the leaves and just left the stalks in my open terrarium a few months ago, but seeming I doubt my fish jumped out of the aquarium and flipped over to the plants and ate them, that probably won't help...

20 is about 3/4 of the way stocked in my opinion, with the tank parameters and how heavily planted it is . It is a 20 long and in about a month or so I’m going to add another 8 most likely , 4 of each