pleco killed green terror?

[convict78]

hello im new to this forum,i am curious i came home today and found my green terror almost dead.it looked like it had been sucked on by my pleco, the scales were gone and eyes were glassy.i also have 2 convicts and a jack dempsy and two other small cichlids i think are called mohoganys.i have never had a pleco kill a fish before is this possible?and the convicts are a mating pair

 

[joy13]

I had my doubts about a pleco hurting another fish, my friend kept telling me about his sucker fish sucking on his other fish. I thought it was a CAE but when I saw it it was a common pleco. Once he was being fed brocolli and algae wafers he stopped attacking other fish. I always try to feed my fish a variety of food so I never noticed this behavior.

 

[convict78]

thanks

i didnt think it was possible,now i have to keep my wife from flushing my pleco

 

[joy13]

Tell her it would die a horrible death and it was just doing what it has to do to survive. Try giving it some cooked vegetables and it will hopefully lose its appetite for slime coat of other fish. I have heard more stories about cichlids eating eyes of plecos than damage caused to other fish by plecos.

 

[thatmagicguy]

Even though common plecos are known to cause lesions on fishes' sides and such it is doubtful that your pleco killed the green terror. A more likely scenario is that the fish was suffering from either an attack by the other fish or was in distress from a water quality related problem. The pleco, being an opportunist, started having a go at him. Tell your wife to go shopping. Bill

 

[convict78]

just noticed

the convicts have babies maybe they killed it and the pleco scavenged it afterward.the convicts look like they will kill all the fish in the tank

 

[d1anonly22]

i myself have watched my pleco actually catch feeders and kill them he even tried to catch my clown knife but never could. when he would catch the feeders he would suck and chew on them till there was nothing left on the inside.

 

[Sicklid]

the convicts have babies maybe they killed it and the pleco scavenged it afterward.the convicts look like they will kill all the fish in the tank

Umm, yeah, that behavior has been observed by more than one person who has kept cons, myself included!

I have had a pair of breeding cons systematically wipe out every single fish in a tank, large or small, dither fish, you name it...

 

[Hairy_Harold]

Yeah pairs of yanks don't work out well in a community sort of tank. I'd blame the convicts not the pleco.

 

[convict78]

yup

Umm, yeah, that behavior has been observed by more than one person who has kept cons, myself included!

I have had a pair of breeding cons systematically wipe out every single fish in a tank, large or small, dither fish, you name it...

seems like mine are doing that right now all the fish are hiding,how do i stop them from breeding? without getting rid of them,water temp maybe?

 

[Sicklid]

Nope, nothing short of all males or all females or total separation will keep them from spawning... this mantra has ben repeated many many times, but here is is again: Just add water, convicts will breed...

 

[Hairy_Harold]

It is next to impossible to stop convicts breeding they are like the rabbits of the fish world.

 

[convict78]

okay

i moved the convicts to a smaller tank along with the babies(it wasnt easy)and bought a bunch of community fish,along with a black ghost fish my son had to have thanks for the help

 

[Sicklid]

You can use the fry as a live food source for other fish, you know they are clean and disease/parasite free! I did this for a while, they keep you in a good supply of live food, trust me...

 

[convict78]

well got rid of my pleco today

traded it in for another angel,i bought four plants for the tank.i read it can cut down on alge in the tank does anyone know if this is true?so now i have two angels, a molly,blue gourami,betta,jack dempsey,and a black ghost.very strange group together but they all seem to get along.moved the convicts to another tank and the female died and the male ate the babies,but im scared to move the male back in with the others.

 

[joy13]

I have very little algae in my planted tanks but I do use excel and DIY CO2. I also have oto cats in one of my large tanks and a bristlenose pleco in the other one. The faster the growing plants the less algae you will see.

With your stocking list you will have to keep a close eye on them.

 

[Yellow Eye Tang]

...Thus the name "Convict".