This past week I added a few Blue Eye Lemon Bristlenose plecos (Ancistrus sp.) to my main tank. These are smaller than the regular normal plecos (a good thing as my tank wouldn’t be able to hold a full-size pleco!) and make for interesting viewing. Although primarily nocturnal, these fish will go about their business during the day, mostly holding on tightly to the tank glass, a piece of wood, or a plant. Their unusual appearance is undoubtedly a conversation starter with those who are not familiar with the species.
I had read that these fish need wood in the aquarium to graze on as it is necessary for their digestion. It was very obvious that the plecos enjoyed the wood in my tank as every time I’ve looked, they’ve been busy grazing over the two pieces of wood. In terms of feeding, I’ll be feeding them bottom-dweller-specific food and they’ll also be able to eat the food that I feed to the other fish in the tank as it falls to the substrate. Some folk believe that plecos can survive purely on algae but this is absolutely untrue. I’m grateful that, particularly as juveniles, they do enjoy grazing on algae but it would be wrong to expect them to survive purely on this.
I haven’t kept plecos before so I’m looking forward to learning more about this fish. I’m hoping to breed them as part of my fishroom project. Once that process gets underway, I’ll post photos and share progress.