Pleco's Eating Habits

[lmw80]

I know you are supposed to feed plecos algae wafers at night, when the light is out, but I am not 100% sure why. Is it because they feed nocturnally, or that they are just too shy in the light? In my 46g, I have a 12" common pleco who will eat the algae wafers in the light...but in my 10g tank my 2 rubber plecos won't.....any thoughts

 

[Biggen]

Never had Plecos. But if I remember some of the stuff I have read in the past, most plecos are very shy and won't be very active during the day.

They also need cellulose in their diet. This can be achieved by placing driftwood in the tank.

 

[catfish1102]

I didn't know you were supposed to feed the algae wafers at night. I've got a sailfin plec who is 8 inches long. When I feed the fish (flake for the angels, tetras etc and an algae wafer for the plec) he goes straight to it and munches away until its all gone.

 

[Biggen]

I didn't know you were supposed to feed the algae wafers at night

It's good to supplement his diet with these wafers. Although don't feed him too many. You still want him cleaning your tank...

 

[justDIY]

try feeding your plec some zuchinni and/or green leaf lettuce once in a while

my pleco will eat all of the zuchinni, skin and all ... but usually only chews the bottom off the lettuce stalk, leaving the rest to float around the tank ... sometimes the mollies and angel get a taste for greens and eat the leaf part, but that scares the pleco away

 

[lmw80]

I know you have to boil the lettuce for a few seconds...is there anything special to prepare the zuchini? Also, I have heard about peas....???

Thanks everyone!

 

[justDIY]

i usually freeze the lettuce for at least 5 min, rather than boil ...

the zuchinni I feed raw, but remove the seeds first - otherwise it makes a terrible mess ... just scoop the center of the zuchinni into the trash using a teaspoon

i've heard some chicillids enjoy cooked peas, skinned ... sounds like a lot of trouble to me (skinning peas?)

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going off-topic; my angel and serpae tetra really enjoy cooked shrimp ... it's hard to get it into small enough pieces though ... maybe using a blender on a single shrimp to make a mush would work - I wonder if it's ok for them to eat - who knows what chemicals are put in the shrimp to "preserve" them while they sit on the shelf at the grocer