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You would have to stick with one of the smaller varieties, such as the rubberlip, or an Ancistrus sp., although the latter might even get too big. for a tank that size, the best option for algae eaters is Otocinclis sp. cats.
The albino ancistrus (aka albino bristlenose pleco) variety is not too bad of a bottom dweller. I currently have both variants (regular brown and albino) and none are over 4" most are 2 to 3 inches. They are hard workers and visible most of the time.
I have a bristlenose pleco in my heavily planted 75g. He doesn't bother anything. He mostly stays around the driftwood during the day, and explores at night. You might run into problems with plecos in small tank like that, they are pooping machines.
You realize you just jinxed yourself right? I have a 13+" sailfin crashing through my 120Gal. If it isn't securely rooted, it's floating in the morning. He does bend/damage fine leaved plants (Not needle leaf, just a thinner leaf like Limn. Aromatica and Rotala Rotund. It's not intentional, he's just cleaning the leaves off the stem
I wouldn't keep a pleco in a 12 gallon. IMO it is just too small. Just FYI, the smallest "crazy looking" pleco that I can think of is the Queen Arabesque. Those are awesome.