The Great Algae Eaters Tropical Fish Tank: Blue Panaque Pleco

The Great Algae Eaters Tropical Fish Tank: Blue Panaque Pleco – L239, or the "blue panaque pleco," is a small loricariid (suckermouth) catfish that had been formerly put briefly in the tribe Ancistrini, which identified it as a ancistrine-sort catfish, using the physical characteristics of one or more related general. It's a different teal blue colour, which can be said to darken with age, and also the fins are edged in ice blue.

Photo copyright from segrestfarms.com

The Great Algae Eaters Tropical Fish Tank: Blue Panaque Pleco

One important physical feature of the species is the fused dorsal and adipose fins, which are joined with a section of fin tissue called the interradial membrane (see picture below).

So while Blue Panaque plecs are widely sold and inexpensive, discerning aquarists may want to hold off from purchasing them until they’ve full explored the marketplace. There are plenty of medium to large suckermouth catfish offered to aquarists that are far more colourful and interesting compared to the common plecs. These choices to the Blue Panaque plecs are not very much more difficult to keep up as we’ll see in this informative article, and since they’re so far more attractive, they can simply be centrepiece fish instead of mere scavengers or algae-eaters.

Tank furniture contains several pieces of bogwood, large smooth rocks, and a few vertical pieces of slate. Some of the leaves of several Echinodorus species plants are scraped fairly vigorously, and plant tissue is lost. A heads up for aquatic gardeners that are serious: broad leafed plants may be eaten by L239.

Habitat

The type series was collected from spaces between granite bedrock and boulders.

Diet

Relatively few blue panaque suckermouth catfish are alone vegetarian and none of the big species feeds completely on alga. This implies the aquarist will need to give a number of foods for these catfish beyond whatever alga they see in the tank. There are algae wafers and good value catfish pellets on sale that make basics that are useful, and these can be augmented with all sorts of other things.

Among the green foods that are good are courgette, carrot, sweet potato, cooked peas and blanched lettuce. Meaty foods include white fish fillet, mussels, prawns, cockles and small portions of beefheart. Wet-frozen foods including bloodworms, krill, minced squid and lancefish is going to be easily accepted by all suckermouth catfish and are widely sold in pet shops.

Behaviour and Compatibility

Comparatively peaceful although not recommended for the general’ community that is ‘ aquarium owing to its somewhat fragile nature.

Keep it alone or possibly alongside some small characids that is not going to compete for territory or food with it.

It’s territorial with conspecifics and similar-appearing species, with this behavior being particularly pronounced among males, but in many instances several may be kept together because of its modest size.

Breeding

The Blue-Black Panaque continues to be bred in the home aquarium, but it is extremely challenging and reports are few and far between and sketchy. This species would make a superb breeding project for the serious hobbyist.

Essential for success with one of these cave-spawners is good-conditioned, sexually mature fish of both sexes kept in warm (~28 deg C), soft, acidic water with a high degree of oxygenation, along with a choice of several comparatively close clay or slate front-opening caves (ideally just a couple centimetres longer, wider, and higher compared to the fish and with just one entry hole).

Attention

Like many species that naturally inhabit running waters it requires water that is spotless at all times and ’s intolerant to the collection of organic wastes to be able to boom.