The fish in the tank, and the name nobody can confirm
A bristlenose pleco is the algae eater our sources will actually recommend, at 4 to 6 inches instead of the two feet a common pleco reaches. It is also, according to the most technical source we hold, a fish with no confirmed species, no known origin and a habitat field that reads Unknown.
Seriously Fish files it as Ancistrus sp. '3', with the authority not recorded, and explains why: this is the ubiquitous bristlenose catfish in the aquarium hobby and is bred commercially on a large scale although its precise origin is unknown, with some of the opinion that it may be a hybrid. It adds that the fish is often misidentified, with Ancistrus dolichopterus, A. temminckii, A. hoplogenys and others having been applied to it.
Our other six sources bear that out by disagreeing with each other. aqua-fish uses Ancistrus triradiatus. Shrimpy Business uses Ancistrus cirrhosis. Advanced Aquarium Concepts and Wikipedia stay at the genus. Aquarium Co-Op gives a binomial for the common pleco and none for this one.
The names it is sold under are worth knowing before the taxonomy. Wikipedia: fish of this genus are common in the aquarium trade where they are known as bushynose or bristlenose catfish, and Seriously Fish lists the common bristlenose catfish and the German Antennenwels. It is a catfish in the family Loricariidae, and the reason that matters in a shop is the fish beside it. Aquarium Co-Op names the common pleco Hypostomus plecostomus and gives the warning this record exists to make unnecessary: that 3-inch baby eventually grows up to be a nearly 2-foot beast, which should probably start in a 75-gallon tank and eventually move up to 180 or even 500 gallons. A bristlenose catfish stops at 4 to 6 inches. Two catfish in adjacent tanks, and a difference of about 480 gallons.
This is the second record on this site whose scientific name row cannot be resolved, after java moss, and it is the same failure for a different reason: java moss is two species nobody can tell apart, and the bristlenose may be a hybrid of several. In both cases what you buy is defined by the trade rather than by a taxonomist.
Why this record was written now
- The gap
- Our amano shrimp record already names the bristlenose pleco as a tank mate its source recommends, and the fish had no page. At 14,000 searches a month it was tied with the discus for the most searched fish left in our keyword map, and that record is written now too: Aquarium Co-Op names this fish as one of the few tank mates it will put in a discus tank, though the two temperature bands do not touch.
- What it changes
- It is the fourth animal here sold as an algae eater and the fourth whose own sources say algae will not feed it. Station 04 puts all four side by side.
- What it does not
- The growth rate row is blank, because no source publishes one. Every source gives a size you buy and a size you get, and none says how long the difference takes.
Driftwood: diet, or decoration that grows food
Every source here wants driftwood in the tank. They give two different reasons for it, and one of them is contradicted by name.
- aqua-fish. Bogwood or driftwood is also essential in their diet, as they enjoy gnawing on it, which helps with digestion.
- Advanced Aquarium Concepts. Bristlenose should have natural driftwood in their tank. It is a natural component of their habitat, and it is actually part of their diet.
- Wikipedia. Despite reports among fish-keepers that they require wood in their diet, no scientific evidence to date supports members of this genus feeding on wood.
- Aquarium Co-Op. Asks for driftwood in a breeding setup, and says what for: to grow biofilm for the babies to feed on. Not the wood.
- Shrimpy Business. Driftwood provides both cover and a food source, meaning the algae that grows on it. Also not the wood.
This is the second disagreement on this site where a source names the other side rather than ignoring it, after our goldfish record, where Aquarium Science lists six widely repeated claims it calls myths. Wikipedia's sentence is explicitly about reports among fish-keepers, and two of our seven sources are exactly those reports. We print both positions and take neither, which is what this site does with every field where the published record splits.
What survives without picking a side is the practical instruction, because all five statements above end in the same place: put driftwood in the tank. Two sources think the fish eats it, two think the fish eats what grows on it, and one says the first pair has no evidence. A keeper who adds a piece of bogwood has satisfied every one of them.
It also matters for what the wood is doing in a breeding tank rather than a display tank. Aquarium Co-Op's setup is a 20 gallon long with live plants for cover, driftwood to grow biofilm, and a gentle sponge filter that won't suck up any fry, and the driftwood in that list is a food culture for animals too small to take a wafer. Our breeding page keeps arriving at the same problem from the other direction, which is that fry need something smaller than anything you can buy.
It eats algae. That is not a diet
This is the field our sources spend the most words on, and they spend them agreeing. Every one of them corrects the same belief.
WebMD, medically reviewed by Vanesa Farmer, DVM, is the bluntest: assuming that they'll be able to thrive by only eating the algae that grows in your tank is misleading. Your bristlenose pleco needs a balanced diet of plant matter with small amounts of protein added in.
Aquarium Co-Op says it about plecos as a group and adds the reason it keeps having to: people tend to only give them algae wafers, but most plecos prefer well-balanced meals, and they must be fed a regular diet consisting of high-quality fish foods. It also disposes of the other thing people believe about this fish: none of them live solely on feces.
aqua-fish gives the shopping list. Sinking algae wafers, fresh vegetables like zucchini, cucumber and spinach, and protein-rich treats such as brine shrimp or bloodworms. Shrimpy Business calls them herbivores that feed primarily on algae and decaying plant matter, and puts the protein at once or twice a week.
Which algae, and which it will not fix
Advanced Aquarium Concepts is the only source that names the algae by type: green algae, black hair algae, green slime algae and brown algae. On the black hair algae it is careful in a way care sheets usually are not, saying they won't get rid of it, but they will keep it under control.
Wikipedia describes the wild diet of the genus in three words that explain the tank behavior: algae, aufwuchs and detritus. It also records an adaptation none of the care sources mentions and which says something about the water these catfish come from: Ancistrus species have the capability of obtaining oxygen through their modified stomach, which allows them to survive in conditions with low oxygen levels. Aufwuchs is the film of algae and micro-life on a submerged surface, which is the same thing our otocinclus record calls biofilm and the same thing the driftwood in station 02 grows.
Feed it after dark
Two sources say the same thing and neither hedges. Aquarium Co-Op: a good practice is to feed them when the lights are off, and aim for a slightly rotund belly. WebMD: because the bristlenose pleco is nocturnal, you should feed it at night time. That single instruction is the difference between a fish that gets fed and a fish whose food is gone by the time it comes out.
| Record | Minimum tank | Diet as we record it | The qualification its sources add |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bristlenose pleco | 20 gal | Herbivore, and algae is not enough | A vet reviewed source calls relying on tank algae misleading |
| Otocinclus | 10 gal | Algae, biofilm and diatoms | Easily out-competed, and three of four sources ask for a heavily planted tank |
| Amano shrimp | 10 gal | Algae, and it prefers not to be | A well fed amano is not an algae eater |
| Nerite snail | 2 to 3 gal | Algae, leftover food, decaying leaves | Will only eat the decaying parts of a plant |
Read the last column down and the pattern is the whole point of this table. Four animals sold to solve the same problem, and not one of their own care sources will say algae alone feeds it. Our corydoras record makes it five, from the other direction: Aquarium Co-Op states outright that cory catfish are not primarily algae eaters, so buying them to solve algae is buying the wrong fish.
The full record
| Field | Recorded | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum tank | 20 gal | Three sources give a volume and two give a footprint, which is the more useful figure for a fish that lives on the floor. Aquarium Co-Op: 20 to 29 gallons of water or more. Shrimpy Business: a minimum tank size of 20 gallons is recommended. Advanced Aquarium Concepts splits it by age, that they can start in a 10 gallon and long term it would consider a 20 gallon to be minimum. Seriously Fish gives no volume at all and asks for a base measuring 60 by 30 cm, 24 by 12 inches, or equivalent, which it says is sufficient to house a single specimen or breeding pair. aqua-fish gives the same footprint in the other order, at least 40 cm by 60 cm. A 24 by 12 inch base is a twenty gallon long, so the two kinds of figure agree once you convert them. |
| Temperature | 74 to 79 °F | Five published bands, no two identical, and 74 to 79 is the only span every one of them contains. Aquarium Co-Op: around 74 to 80 °F, 23 to 27 C. Wikipedia: the recommended temperature is 23 to 27 C, 73 to 81 °F. Shrimpy Business: 73 °F to 80 °F. aqua-fish is the widest at 23 to 29 C, 73.4 to 84.2 °F. Seriously Fish is the coolest and the only band with a floor in the sixties or low seventies, 21 to 26 C, 70 to 79 °F. Advanced Aquarium Concepts publishes no band and reports the extremes it has kept them at instead: with fancy goldfish at room temperature, 72 °F, as well as with discus at 85 °F. |
| pH | 6.5 to 7.5 | Three sources publish a band and the row prints the span all three contain. Aquarium Co-Op gives the widest, 6.5 to 7.8, and files it under a broad pH range. Shrimpy Business gives 6.5 to 7.5. Seriously Fish is the only one that goes acidic, 5.5 to 7.5. aqua-fish gives 6.2 to 7.7. All four contain 6.5 to 7.5. Aquarium Co-Op also publishes the figure none of the others do and it is not a pH: keep nitrate levels at 40 ppm or below, which it ties to the amount of waste a pleco produces. |
| Hardness | 71 to 200 ppm | Three sources, three units, and the row prints the overlap in the unit the rest of this site uses. Seriously Fish gives 1 to 15 dGH, about 18 to 268 ppm. aqua-fish gives 4 to 18 dGH and converts it itself, 71.43 to 321.43 ppm. Shrimpy Business gives up to 200 ppm with no floor. The three overlap from 71 to 200 ppm. |
| Adult size | 4 to 6 in | Seven figures and the disagreement is about tank grown against wild. Aquarium Co-Op: they stay between 4 to 6 inches in length. WebMD gives five to six inches in adulthood and then, two paragraphs later, that their adult size is less than eight inches long, which is the only internal contradiction on that page. Seriously Fish measures it properly at 125 mm standard length, about 4.9 inches. Wikipedia splits it by sex, up to 15 cm, 5.9 in, in males and 12 cm, 4.7 in, in females. aqua-fish gives the usual size in fish tanks as 10 to 12 cm, 3.94 to 4.72 inches. Shrimpy Business gives up to 5 inches. Advanced Aquarium Concepts is the only source reporting from its own tanks and it is the smallest: the largest it has ever seen were about 5 inches or so and wild caught, and the largest it has seen people grow in their tanks is about 3 to 4 inches. It also notes they are sold as small as 1 to 1.5 inches, and WebMD says juveniles in pet stores might only be about two inches long. |
| Diet | Herbivore, and every source says algae is not enough | This is the field every source on this record spends the most words on, and they spend them agreeing. WebMD, which was medically reviewed by Vanesa Farmer, DVM, is the bluntest: assuming that they'll be able to thrive by only eating the algae that grows in your tank is misleading, and your bristlenose pleco needs a balanced diet of plant matter with small amounts of protein added in. Aquarium Co-Op says the same about plecos as a group, that people tend to only give them algae wafers but most plecos prefer well-balanced meals, and that they must be fed a regular diet consisting of high-quality fish foods. It also kills the other belief outright: none of them live solely on feces. aqua-fish: it primarily feeds on vegetable matter and algae, the diet should include sinking algae wafers and fresh vegetables like zucchini, cucumber and spinach, and they will appreciate protein-rich treats such as brine shrimp or bloodworms. Shrimpy Business calls them herbivores that feed primarily on algae and decaying plant matter, and adds protein-rich live or frozen foods like bloodworms once or twice a week. Wikipedia describes the wild diet as typical for a Loricariid, algae, aufwuchs and detritus. Advanced Aquarium Concepts names the algae they will actually work on: green algae, black hair algae, which it says they will keep under control rather than get rid of, green slime algae and brown algae. Two sources agree on when to feed. Aquarium Co-Op: a good practice is to feed them when the lights are off, and aim for a slightly rotund belly. WebMD: because the bristlenose pleco is nocturnal, you should feed it at night time. |
| Water column | Bottom, and awake at night | WebMD: they are bottom swimmers and feeders, and plecos are nocturnal. Aquarium Co-Op: most plecos are nocturnal, and they greatly appreciate any hides or cover you provide to keep them out of the light. Shrimpy Business calls it a nocturnal fish. Wikipedia opens by defining the whole genus as nocturnal freshwater fish. aqua-fish asks for plenty of hiding spaces and low lighting, and for caves, PVC pipes or other hiding spots as essential. It is the third record here filed in the bottom zone, after the corydoras and the kuhli loach, and the first whose awake field reads Night. The kuhli loach record leaves that field blank on purpose: Wikipedia calls that species nocturnal and neither of its care sources uses the word, so the record refuses to choose. On the bristlenose four sources say it and none of them hedges. |
| Lifespan | 5 to 14 years | Four figures with a nine year spread and no two sources agreeing. Shrimpy Business: 5 to 10 years. Wikipedia: their lifespan is up to 12 years. WebMD: your bristlenose pleco might live up to 12 years if they're properly cared for. aqua-fish: the bristlenose pleco can live up to 14 years in captivity when given clean water, a balanced diet and adequate tank space. Seriously Fish, Aquarium Co-Op and Advanced Aquarium Concepts publish no lifespan at all. A reader planning around the low figure and a reader planning around the high one are planning for different animals, and nothing we read reconciles them. |
| Growth rate | Not recorded yet | No source on this record publishes a growth rate, which is the ninth field and stays blank. The closest anybody comes is a pair of endpoints rather than a rate: Advanced Aquarium Concepts says they are sold as small as 1 to 1.5 inches and WebMD says juveniles in pet stores might only be about two inches long, against an adult 4 to 6 inches. Nobody says how long that takes. |
The same nine fields for every animal on this site are in the A to Z index.
Where our sources disagree
Every record here names a disagreement. On this one it is about a piece of wood, and it is the sharpest kind: two sources describe driftwood as part of the fish's diet, and a third says the evidence for that does not exist.
aqua-fish
Bogwood or driftwood is also essential in their diet, as they enjoy gnawing on it, which helps with digestion.
Wikipedia
Despite reports among fish-keepers that they require wood in their diet, no scientific evidence to date supports members of this genus feeding on wood.
What we record: we print both, and this is the one disagreement on this site where a source names the other side rather than ignoring it: Wikipedia's sentence is explicitly about reports among fish-keepers, and aqua-fish is one of those reports. Advanced Aquarium Concepts is the second, saying bristlenose should have natural driftwood in their tank, that it is a natural component of their habitat, and that it is actually part of their diet.
What can be said without taking a side is that every source here wants driftwood in the tank and they give two different reasons for it. Aquarium Co-Op asks for driftwood in a breeding setup to grow biofilm for the babies to feed on, and Shrimpy Business says driftwood provides both cover and a food source, meaning the algae that grows on it.
A fish rasping at a submerged log is eating something, and only two of our seven sources claim the something is the log.
Bristlenose pleco tank size: 20 gallons, or a footprint
Three sources give a volume, two give the dimensions of the floor, and for a fish that lives on the floor the second kind is the more useful figure.
The volumes. Aquarium Co-Op: 20 to 29 gallons of water or more. Shrimpy Business: a minimum tank size of 20 gallons is recommended. Advanced Aquarium Concepts splits it by age, that they can start in a 10 gallon and long term it would consider a 20 gallon to be minimum.
The footprints. Seriously Fish publishes no volume at all and asks for a base measuring 60 by 30 cm, 24 by 12 inches, or equivalent, which it says is sufficient to house a single specimen or breeding pair. aqua-fish gives the same rectangle the other way round, at least 40 cm by 60 cm. A 24 by 12 inch base is a twenty gallon long, so the two kinds of figure agree once you convert them, which does not happen often on this site.
Our angelfish record has the opposite problem and it is worth reading beside this one: there the stored tank figure is the less useful one, because an angelfish needs height rather than floor. A bristlenose needs floor and a cave, and the volume above it is close to irrelevant.
That puts this record on 20 gallons, the same minimum as our kuhli loach, and with the identical temperature band of 74 to 79 °F. Two bottom dwelling fish, two records, the same two numbers, arrived at from different sources. The stocking calculator reads both.
The water, and five bands that share five degrees
| Source | Temperature | pH | Hardness |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seriously Fish | 70 to 79 °F | 5.5 to 7.5 | 1 to 15 dGH |
| Aquarium Co-Op | 74 to 80 °F | 6.5 to 7.8 | not stated |
| Wikipedia | 73 to 81 °F | not stated | not stated |
| aqua-fish | 73.4 to 84.2 °F | 6.2 to 7.7 | 4 to 18 dGH, 71 to 321 ppm |
| Shrimpy Business | 73 to 80 °F | 6.5 to 7.5 | Up to 200 ppm |
| Advanced Aquarium Concepts | Kept at 72 and at 85, by its own report | not stated | not stated |
Temperature. Five published bands, no two identical, and 74 to 79 °F is the only span every one of them contains. Seriously Fish is the coolest at 70 to 79 and aqua-fish the warmest at 84.2, a fourteen degree gap between the two ceilings. Advanced Aquarium Concepts publishes no band and reports its own extremes instead, which is the most honest kind of outlier: it has had them with fancy goldfish at room temperature, 72 °F, and with discus at 85 °F. Neither of those is a recommendation and both are inside what the fish evidently survives.
pH. Four bands, and the row prints 6.5 to 7.5, the span all four contain. Seriously Fish is alone in going acidic to 5.5. Aquarium Co-Op is alone in going to 7.8, and calls it a broad pH range, which for once matches what the other sources publish.
Hardness. Three sources, three shapes of figure. Seriously Fish gives 1 to 15 dGH, roughly 18 to 268 ppm. aqua-fish gives 4 to 18 dGH and converts it itself to 71.43 to 321.43 ppm. Shrimpy Business gives a ceiling with no floor, up to 200 ppm. The three overlap from 71 to 200 ppm, which is what the record carries.
Aquarium Co-Op publishes one more number that is not a water parameter in the usual sense and belongs here anyway: keep nitrate levels at 40 ppm or below. It ties that directly to how much waste this fish produces, and says that if you see lots of long, stringy pleco poop, nitrates could be building up to toxic levels. The water and health page carries the site's nitrate context.
Awake at night, and territorial about one thing
Four sources call it nocturnal and none of them hedges, which is why this is the first record here whose awake field reads Night. Our kuhli loach record leaves that field blank for the opposite reason: Wikipedia calls the species nocturnal and neither of its care sources uses the word, so the record refuses to choose. Here Wikipedia builds the word into the definition of the genus: Ancistrus is a genus of nocturnal freshwater fish in the family Loricariidae. WebMD: plecos are nocturnal, and they are bottom swimmers and feeders. Shrimpy Business: a nocturnal fish. Aquarium Co-Op: most plecos are nocturnal, and they greatly appreciate any hides or cover you provide to keep them out of the light.
aqua-fish turns that into equipment, asking for caves, PVC pipes or other hiding spots as essential, along with plenty of hiding spaces and low lighting. It also asks for a soft, sandy substrate to protect their sensitive barbels, which is the same requirement our kuhli loach record carries for the same reason.
The territory is a cave, not the tank
Seriously Fish gives the behavior without a number: relatively peaceful but territorial with conspecifics and similarly-shaped species. Our three other sources turn that into three different rules, and they do not agree on how strict it is.
- Aquarium Co-Op. Smaller species like the bristlenose pleco can be kept in multiples as long as you aim for more females than males and provide plenty of caves and hides for everyone to choose their favorite. It also warns that some species, especially the males, can be territorial towards their own kind.
- aqua-fish. It is possible to keep more than one male in the same tank, if you provide multiple caves and plenty of driftwood.
- Shrimpy Business. The strictest: the best way to reduce aggression is to keep only one male per tank. It also says they may become territorial around fish of similar size.
So the group row reads one male, and a second needs its own cave, which is the reading all three can live with. The thing being defended is the cave rather than a patch of water, and every source that raises aggression also raises caves in the same sentence.
What it can live with
Aquarium Co-Op: they will be fine with almost any peaceful, community fish, and do not add any fish that are small enough to fit in the pleco's mouth. Shrimpy Business names tetras, danios and livebearers. Our amano shrimp record already carries the other half of this: Aquarium Co-Op names bristlenose plecos among the tank mates it recommends for that shrimp, on a list that now includes seven of our records.
Aquarium Co-Op also records the one thing plecos are accused of doing to other fish, and narrows it: there are reported cases of plecos sucking on another fish's slime coat, but this seems to mainly occur with larger plecos that aren't getting enough food. That is a statement about the common pleco and about feeding, not about this species.
Sexing is visible, and the male does all the work
Bristlenose pleco male vs female
This is one of the few fish on this site where our sources agree the sexes can be told apart by looking. Seriously Fish: adult males possess well-developed odontodes on the pectoral fins and opercle, and tentacles on the head, while females do not.
Wikipedia describes the same feature and is precise about the exception: the feature most commonly associated with the genus are the fleshy tentacles found on the head in adult males, and females may possess tentacles along the snout margin but they are smaller and they lack tentacles on the head. aqua-fish puts it in plain language, that males have larger, more prominent bristles on their heads that extend up to the top, whereas females have smaller bristles usually restricted to the edge of their chin. WebMD: females have smaller bristles, while male plecos have larger ones.
Wikipedia also carries a hypothesis about why, and flags it as one: it has been suggested that the tentacles may act as a fry mimic to attract females. We record that as a suggestion rather than a fact, because that is how the source records it.
Shrimpy Business adds that males tend to be larger than females and develop spikes on their fins, which is the odontodes under another name.
Breeding, and the numbers our sources give
Seriously Fish: a cave-spawner with the male responsible for brood care, and it is commonly bred in aquaria, where in well-maintained, mature set-ups juveniles may begin to appear without intervention. Aquarium Co-Op: incredibly easy to breed. Advanced Aquarium Concepts is the dissenting voice and it is a mild one, that they are not hard to breed, they will not breed like convict cichlids or guppies, but they are not particularly difficult.
Wikipedia states the division of labor without softening it: the female plays no role in parental care, the male takes care of its young. aqua-fish describes the sequence, that the male will invite the female into the spawning site where she will lay her eggs, and then the male takes on the responsibility of guarding and fanning the eggs.
The figures, and they do not line up. Aquarium Co-Op: she will lay 30 to 80 eggs inside the cave. On hatching, aqua-fish says the eggs usually hatch within 4 to 6 days and Shrimpy Business says they hatch 5 to 10 days later, while Wikipedia gives 4 to 10 days and then the figure nobody else publishes: the male guards the eggs for 7 to 10 days after hatching.
Aquarium Co-Op's breeding setup is the most specific thing anybody gives: a 20 gallon long with live plants for cover, some driftwood to grow biofilm for the babies to feed on, and a gentle sponge filter that won't suck up any fry. For the fry it names canned green beans, Repashy gel food, blanched zucchini and sinking wafers, and it puts the breeding pair at a male of approximately 3 inches and a female around 2 to 2.5 inches.
Bristlenose pleco lifespan: 5 to 14 years, and nobody agrees
Four sources publish a lifespan and there are three different answers inside a nine year spread. Shrimpy Business: 5 to 10 years. Wikipedia: their lifespan is up to 12 years. WebMD: your bristlenose pleco might live up to 12 years if they're properly cared for. aqua-fish: the bristlenose pleco can live up to 14 years in captivity, when given clean water, a balanced diet and adequate tank space.
Seriously Fish, Aquarium Co-Op and Advanced Aquarium Concepts publish no lifespan at all, which is worth noting because those are the three most technical sources on this record.
Nothing we read reconciles the spread, and the difference is not academic. A reader planning around five years and a reader planning around fourteen are planning for different animals: a fish that outlasts a lease, or a fish that outlasts a decade of tanks. Only aqua-fish attaches conditions to its figure, and the conditions it names are the ones every other source asks for anyway.
For context from our own records, the goldfish carries the widest published lifespan on this site at 5 to 30 years, and for the same reason: nobody publishing a care sheet is following individual fish for decades. Where the sources give a range this wide, the honest thing is to print the range rather than the middle of it.
Will it eat my plants? One source names one plant
Two sources answer, and they answer differently. Shrimpy Business says the albino bristlenose won't harm live plants. Aquarium Co-Op is more specific and less reassuring: while many plecos are safe for plants, bristlenose plecos are known to sometimes snack on sword plants.
That makes this the first record on this site to name a plant as something the fish eats rather than something it needs. Our amazon sword record was written after this one and answers it from the plant's side: it refuses our goldfish, common pleco and oscar records outright, and it carries this caution against the bristlenose by name.
Our eight plant records answer the same question from the plant's side, and the amazon sword is the only one that warns about a pleco. The java fern record carries Aquarium Store Depot naming plecos among the fish java fern is safe with, and Modest Fish saying a lot of herbivorous fish like plecos won't completely destroy your ferns to eat them. The java moss record names three fish that devour that plant and the pleco is not one of them. The hornwort record does not raise plecos at all.
So the answer this site can support is narrower than either source's. Two of our plant records name plecos as safe, one animal source names one plant as an exception, and that plant now has a record whose own sources name plecos back.
Albino, longfin, and three names our sources never describe
Line-bred forms are most of what a shop actually stocks, and our sources name four of them.
| Form | What our sources say | Named by |
|---|---|---|
| Albino | All white, sometimes with a yellow or orange tint, from a genetic mutation that prevents the cells producing melanin | Shrimpy Business, Seriously Fish, Advanced Aquarium Concepts |
| Long-finned | Sometimes sold as butterfly or veiltail catfish | Seriously Fish, Advanced Aquarium Concepts |
| Piebald | Named as a line-bred ornamental variety, not described further | Seriously Fish |
| Xanthic | Named as a line-bred ornamental variety, not described further | Seriously Fish |
| Red, snow white, green dragon | not described by any source we hold | nobody |
Seriously Fish is the source that treats these as what they are: several line-bred ornamental varieties exist, including piebald, albino, xanthic and long-finned forms, of which long-finned fish are sometimes sold as butterfly or veiltail catfish. Advanced Aquarium Concepts adds albino longfin as a combination and then stops counting, saying they come in many forms including albino, longfin, albino longfin and others.
The last row of that table is the useful one. Red, snow white and green dragon bristlenose plecos are all sold and searched for, and not one of our seven sources describes any of them. This record will not fill those in from a shop listing. Shrimpy Business, whose whole page is about the albino form, gives it 5 to 10 years and up to 5 inches, which are the same figures range this record already carries for the standard fish, so nothing we read suggests a color form needs different care.
What this record will not answer
How fast do bristlenose plecos grow
No source publishes a rate, so the growth rate row is blank. The only figures anybody gives are two endpoints with no time between them: sold as small as 1 to 1.5 inches by Advanced Aquarium Concepts, about two inches in a pet store by WebMD, and 4 to 6 inches as an adult. That is a size you buy and a size you get, and it is not a growth rate.
Which species you own
Seriously Fish files the trade fish as Ancistrus sp. '3' with the authority not recorded, its origin unknown, the possibility that it is a hybrid, and a habitat field reading Unknown. Four of our sources give four different names. This record carries the genus and says why it stops there.
Whether wood is food
Station 02 prints the two positions and takes neither. What this record will not do is convert a hobby consensus into a fact when the one source that checked says the evidence is not there, or dismiss two care sources because an encyclopedia disagreed with them.
How long a bristlenose pleco lives
Between five and fourteen years, which is a range rather than an answer. Station 09 prints all four figures and none of the sources explains its own.
The red, snow white and green dragon forms
Sold, searched for, and described by nobody we read. Station 11 says so in the table rather than leaving the row out.
Bristlenose pleco questions, answered from the record
What tank size does a bristlenose pleco need?
Twenty gallons. Aquarium Co-Op gives 20 to 29 gallons of water or more, Shrimpy Business gives a minimum of 20, and Advanced Aquarium Concepts says they can start in a 10 gallon and that long term it would consider a 20 gallon to be minimum. Seriously Fish gives a footprint instead, a base of 24 by 12 inches, which is a twenty gallon long, and aqua-fish gives the same rectangle. For a fish that lives on the floor the footprint is the figure that matters.
What do bristlenose plecos eat?
Algae, vegetables and a little protein, and every source on this record says algae alone will not do it. WebMD, reviewed by a veterinarian, calls relying on the algae in your tank misleading. aqua-fish names sinking algae wafers, zucchini, cucumber and spinach, with brine shrimp or bloodworms as treats. Aquarium Co-Op says most plecos prefer well-balanced meals rather than only algae wafers, and that none of them live solely on feces. Feed after the lights go off.
Do bristlenose plecos need driftwood?
Every source wants it in the tank and they disagree about why. aqua-fish calls bogwood or driftwood essential in their diet because gnawing on it helps with digestion, and Advanced Aquarium Concepts says it is actually part of their diet. Wikipedia states that despite reports among fish-keepers that they require wood in their diet, no scientific evidence to date supports members of this genus feeding on wood. Aquarium Co-Op and Shrimpy Business want the wood for what grows on it, biofilm and algae. Add the wood; the reason is unsettled.
What is the bristlenose pleco temperature range?
The record prints 74 to 79 °F, which is the only span all five published bands contain. Seriously Fish gives 70 to 79, Aquarium Co-Op 74 to 80, Wikipedia 73 to 81, Shrimpy Business 73 to 80 and aqua-fish 73.4 to 84.2. Advanced Aquarium Concepts reports keeping them at 72 °F with goldfish and at 85 °F with discus, which is experience rather than a recommendation.
What pH do bristlenose plecos need?
6.5 to 7.5, the span all four published bands contain. Seriously Fish goes down to 5.5, Aquarium Co-Op up to 7.8 and aqua-fish 6.2 to 7.7. Aquarium Co-Op adds the figure the others leave out and ties it to how much waste this fish makes: keep nitrate at 40 ppm or below.
How big do bristlenose plecos get?
Bristlenose pleco size is 4 to 6 inches, and smaller than that in most tanks. Aquarium Co-Op gives 4 to 6, WebMD five to six, Seriously Fish 125 mm standard length, and Wikipedia splits it by sex at 5.9 inches for males and 4.7 for females. Advanced Aquarium Concepts is the only source reporting from its own tanks: the largest it has seen were about 5 inches and wild caught, and the largest it has seen people grow in a tank is about 3 to 4 inches.
How fast do bristlenose plecos grow?
No source on this record says, so the growth rate row is blank. Advanced Aquarium Concepts says they are sold as small as 1 to 1.5 inches and WebMD says pet store juveniles might be about two inches, against an adult of 4 to 6 inches. Nobody publishes how long that takes, and we are not estimating it.
How long do bristlenose plecos live?
Somewhere between 5 and 14 years, and our four sources give three different answers. Shrimpy Business says 5 to 10 years, Wikipedia and WebMD both say up to 12, and aqua-fish says up to 14 in captivity with clean water, a balanced diet and adequate space. The three most technical sources on this record publish no lifespan at all.
How do you tell a male bristlenose pleco from a female?
By the head. Seriously Fish: adult males possess well-developed odontodes on the pectoral fins and opercle and tentacles on the head, while females do not. Wikipedia adds the exception, that females may possess tentacles along the snout margin but they are smaller and they lack tentacles on the head. aqua-fish: the male's bristles extend up to the top of the head, the female's are usually restricted to the edge of her chin.
Can I keep two bristlenose plecos together?
Our sources give three different rules. Shrimpy Business says keep only one male per tank. aqua-fish says more than one male is possible if you provide multiple caves and plenty of driftwood. Aquarium Co-Op says they can be kept in multiples as long as you aim for more females than males and provide plenty of caves and hides. Seriously Fish gives the behavior underneath all three: relatively peaceful but territorial with conspecifics and similarly-shaped species. The cave is what gets defended.
Are bristlenose plecos nocturnal?
Yes, and Wikipedia builds it into the definition of the genus. WebMD says plecos are nocturnal and that they are bottom swimmers and feeders. Aquarium Co-Op asks for hides to keep them out of the light and says to feed when the lights are off. aqua-fish asks for low lighting and calls caves or PVC pipes essential.
Do bristlenose plecos eat live plants?
One source names one plant. Aquarium Co-Op: while many plecos are safe for plants, bristlenose plecos are known to sometimes snack on sword plants. Shrimpy Business says the albino form won't harm live plants. Our java fern record carries two sources naming plecos as safe with that plant, and our amazon sword record now carries the other half of it: three of its four sources name plecos among the animals that damage the plant. The two records meet from opposite directions, one source naming sword plants against this fish and three naming plecos against that plant, which is as close to agreement as this site gets on who eats what.
Are bristlenose plecos good algae eaters?
The best on this site among fish, with the same qualification every algae eater here carries. Advanced Aquarium Concepts names what they work on: green algae, black hair algae, green slime algae and brown algae, and it says of the black hair algae that they won't get rid of it but they will keep it under control. Compare our amano shrimp, whose own record says a well fed amano is not an algae eater, and our otocinclus, which its sources call easily out-competed.
Are bristlenose plecos peaceful?
Yes, with one exception. Seriously Fish calls it relatively peaceful but territorial with conspecifics and similarly-shaped species. WebMD and Shrimpy Business both call it peaceful. Aquarium Co-Op says they will be fine with almost any peaceful, community fish, and adds the one stocking rule: do not add any fish that are small enough to fit in the pleco's mouth.
How do bristlenose plecos breed?
In a cave, and the male raises them. Seriously Fish calls it a cave-spawner with the male responsible for brood care, and says juveniles may appear without intervention in a mature tank. Wikipedia: the female plays no role in parental care. Aquarium Co-Op gives the numbers, 30 to 80 eggs in the cave, and the setup, a 20 gallon long with plants, driftwood for biofilm and a sponge filter that will not take the fry. Hatching times differ: 4 to 6 days from aqua-fish, 5 to 10 from Shrimpy Business, 4 to 10 from Wikipedia, which adds that the male guards them for 7 to 10 days after they hatch.
Is the albino bristlenose pleco different to care for?
Nothing we read says so. Shrimpy Business, whose page is entirely about the albino form, gives up to 5 inches, 5 to 10 years, 20 gallons, 73 to 80 °F and pH 6.5 to 7.5, all of which sit inside what this record carries for the standard fish. It describes the color as a genetic mutation that prevents the fish's cells from producing melanin. Seriously Fish lists albino as one of several line-bred ornamental varieties alongside piebald, xanthic and long-finned forms.
What a bristlenose pleco needs that a community kit leaves out
Three things our sources ask for, and the first one is the argument in station 02.
- Driftwood or bogwoodfor the biofilm, or for the wood, depending which source you read
- A cave per maleor a PVC pipe, says one source
- Vegetables, and a sinking wafer that is not just algaezucchini, cucumber, spinach
Every item our records ask for is gathered on the tank setup topic.
Nothing here is a paid link. It is the shortfall between what this record asks for and what a boxed kit contains.
How this record was compiled
- By
- Verified
- Sources
Seriously Fish, Ancistrus sp. '3', Aquarium Co-Op, plecostomus care guide, Wikipedia, Ancistrus, aqua-fish, WebMD, reviewed by Vanesa Farmer, DVM, Shrimpy Business, albino bristlenose pleco and Advanced Aquarium Concepts
- Conflicts
Printed above: two sources call driftwood part of the diet and one says no scientific evidence supports the genus feeding on wood
- Blanks
Growth rate stay empty until a source we trust states them
- Not recorded
A growth rate, because no source publishes one and the only figures anybody gives are a starting size and an adult size with no time between them; and a species, because the fish the hobby sells is filed by our most technical source as Ancistrus sp. '3' with its origin unknown and its habitat recorded as Unknown