# can plecos breathe from the surface?



## Mferko (Jun 8, 2010)

i just saw this pleco release a couple huge airbubbles on its way up to the top of the surface, it surfaced just for a second then went back down, is it breathing from the top??
i think i saw my old ancistrus do this and my corys do it all the time but i never saw bubbles coming out maybe cuz they were so small, this thing is 9 inches long and it let out some huge air bubbles... 
its a leopard pleco, i just picked it up from a coworker today... supposedly it was picking on their angelfish but they also didnt know they had to feed it until i told them 2 days ago and i think they overfed it cuz omg its pooing like crazy, and oddly the poo floats


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## CanadaPleco (May 13, 2010)

No they don't often go to the surface often. If it's doing it a lot you best do a large water change.


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## Mferko (Jun 8, 2010)

thats the thing, it was just after a routine 30% water change, at even before the change it was 0 ammonia 0 nitrite and 10-20ppm nitrate
theres also tonnes of oxygen from an air pump going to a powerhead

this is the pleco:


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## charles (Apr 21, 2010)

they do that sometimes. Not to worry.


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## moca (Apr 24, 2010)

he's probably just checking out all his options.


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## Mferko (Jun 8, 2010)

ok cool cuz ive seen him do it 2 more times i swear hes breathing or maybe just changing the air in his swim bladder or something
hes a really nice pleco but ive only had him a few hours and hes pooped out twice his length in floating poo, maybe they overfed it cuz they only realized they had to feed it 2 days ago and figured maybe thats why it was picking on the angelfish, his belly still looks full lol


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## Mferko (Jun 8, 2010)

im paranoid hes going to try and inhale a cory or something in the middle of the night, do i need to worry about that? it seems wierd to me that it would even be attacking her angelfish... maybe the angel was picking at his fins?


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## mikebike (Sep 8, 2010)

I have heard rumours that sometimes a pleco will try to suck on the slime coat of a fish.

Do you have wood in the tank?
They need wood in their tanks.

Mine love Spurilana pellets and Pamela's Critter Crumbs
All Natural Homemade Food
For Plecos, Snails, Shrimp and Fish
For more info:
Home - Critter Crumbs


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## gmachine19 (Apr 21, 2010)

i've seen some of my plecos before do that. its normal


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## CanadaPleco (May 13, 2010)

It won't eat any corys! I've got plecos twice that size with 1" corys with no Problem


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## Mferko (Jun 8, 2010)

He's actually letting them clean his head and fins lol it's pretty cute


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## Ebonbolt (Aug 12, 2011)

Plecos are poop machines, so yes they poop a lot. And I find that most catfish will dash to the surface for a gulp of air. i think they store it in their swim bladders or something as a reserve (not sure though).


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## charles (Apr 21, 2010)

but you should not keep one of those in your tank... they grow too large, too quick, and will eat mostly fish food than aglae. And this type can be aggressive.


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## Elle (Oct 25, 2010)

Most plecos seem able to perform the same magic trick...they take the food you give them, and convert it to 100x the amount of crap all over your tank. And they don't eat algae, or not much. That is the *Biggest Lie Ever Told* to fish store customers. . My 9" sailfin pleco eats driftwood, fresh veggies, and any fish food he can get to that hits the bottom. If you want an effective algae eater that won't outgrow your tank in under a year, look for an SAE.

Mine also occasionally goes to the surface for a look around. You'll need some kind of driftwood for this guy to chew on, and they love fresh veggies like zucchini or yam. We did have to move him out of the rainbowfish tank because he was slimecoat sucking. He lives with the SA cichlids and the featherfin catfish now, as he's big and mean enough not to be bothered by them.


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## Jasonator (Jul 12, 2011)

I've my seen pleco's taking occasional surface air since I was a child - 30 yrs, -- it's totally normal. 

As for pleco's sucking on live fish, it's probably never ever going to happen.


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## Mferko (Jun 8, 2010)

well supposedly he was sucking on a large angelfish in the 30g he came from, thats the main reason he was offered to us.
is this guy really going to outgrow a 125G tank charles?? i think your right about how fast he grows they only had him for 1 year and hes already this big








here he is gettin a kiss from a cory 









originally we were just going to keep him in our tank till we found him another home via the forums since we thought he was a common pleco, but after seeing how cool he looked and how seemingly shy he was we decided to keep him, now i guess i need to get some wood for him. its really wierd he has no interest in the cucumber or yam ive been leaving for him overnight, what else should i try?? even if i put an algae wafer in front of his mouth he's so shy he swims away..


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

His stomach looks full so he's not hurting for food. I had a Gibbey grow to 13" in 18 months from 2 inches (got him at KE's) in my 125, but I had to get rid of him as my tank was fully scaped with rocks and plants and he was eating up most of the plants, knocking everything over and fighting with the cichlids. He also learned to swim upside down when I put food in the tank for the cichlids so he could get the food first.

So they can be fine in 125's as long as you have the right setup, but as you indicated, having a big piece of wood for him to hang out on would certainly be appreciated.


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## Mferko (Jun 8, 2010)

yeah, i heard they like to dig and tunnel too so my tentative plan is to add lots of branchy manzanita and tie anubias and java ferns to it as well as some xmas moss, hopefully he wont do much damage to those. im not sure if i will add a substrate he's likely to just make a mess of it, but i'd like some plant cover on the bottom so its not plain glass, i was thinking subwassertang? not sure.
theres also some asian watergrass riccia and frogbit on the surface, the cory's love the watergrass and riccia, there are usually a few of them up there checking it out. a few of the corys have even started sitting on the roots that hang from the watergrass


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

The pleco poop will make the moss gross. I got rid of moss unless it's up high in my tanks with plecos. Subwassertang won't attach to anything and floats around annoyingly. I use it in my shrimp tanks, but it gets over everything.


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## Mferko (Jun 8, 2010)

can you recommend some good low light plants then? preferably rhizome type or ones that dont need a substrate i have a feeling if i put sand in there he's going to go digging and make a massive mess... will he destroy/eat anubias?

also, is it normal for his poo to be floating? he was getting fed wardley algae wafers by his last owner but hasnt seemed to eat anything here yet. i think she fed him lots in the couple days before i got him because before that they didnt know they were supposed to feed it and i told them maybe thats why its picking on the angel so they went and got it those wardley wafers. and in the few hours after getting him he pood out like 2x his body length

thanks Gary


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

Anubias would be good. So will java fern. He will still chew them up, but java fern will grow fast enough for it to not matter and Anubias are tough enough to survive. Both ephiphytes with rhizomes. 

As for the feces, you'll get tons of it when they eat fibrous foods and less when they eat meaty food. Whether it floats or not depends on whether or not there is entrained gas in it. Unfortunately, the amount of poop will only increase from this point on.


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## Ebonbolt (Aug 12, 2011)

Elle said:


> Most plecos seem able to perform the same magic trick...they take the food you give them, and convert it to 100x the amount of crap all over your tank. And they don't eat algae, or not much. That is the *Biggest Lie Ever Told* to fish store customers. . My 9" sailfin pleco eats driftwood, fresh veggies, and any fish food he can get to that hits the bottom. If you want an effective algae eater that won't outgrow your tank in under a year, look for an SAE.
> 
> Mine also occasionally goes to the surface for a look around. You'll need some kind of driftwood for this guy to chew on, and they love fresh veggies like zucchini or yam. We did have to move him out of the rainbowfish tank because he was slimecoat sucking. He lives with the SA cichlids and the featherfin catfish now, as he's big and mean enough not to be bothered by them.


Bristlenose plecos are really the only plecos I know that will constantly graze algae at all ages/sizes. Most of the other plecos only do it as juveniles, and even then only really when there's nothing else to eat. As for the plants, anything that can be tied onto driftwood would be fine. java fern, anubias, maybe even cryptocoryne.


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## Luke78 (Apr 24, 2010)

Based on an individuals experience,mine included,they(BNP) will stop grazing on algae as they grow to adulthood.This is especially evident when theres a variety of food given to them to supplement their diet.Make sure these plants are tied down well,or have time to become "rooted" onto these surfaces as plecos will go through anything.



BelieveInBlue said:


> Bristlenose plecos are really the only plecos I know that will constantly graze algae at all ages/sizes. Most of the other plecos only do it as juveniles, and even then only really when there's nothing else to eat. As for the plants, anything that can be tied onto driftwood would be fine. java fern, anubias, maybe even cryptocoryne.


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