self sufficient hill stream loach

[tmdavies]

what do hill stream loaches eat iv had my for 2 months and it hasnt touched any food i have given him, iv tried blanched cucumber potaoe and algae wafers.
He just sucks the glass, im worried because im upgrading to a bigger tank that isnt old enough and doesnt have algae growing in it yet

 

[siva]

Do you know which kind of hillstream loach it is? Post a pic if you can. Chances are if it's always on the glass that it is one of the species that eats pretty much only algae. They can be picky eaters. Are you sure he doesn't eat the algae wafer? They are very shy..maybe when no one is looking? Blanched zucchini on a vegetable clip is a favorite for many. I also add driftwood for them, I'm not sure if it's necessary for them like it is for most plecos, but it seems to be. For my hillstreams I grow extra algae on stones in a bowl of tank water in my kitchen window. When they are covered with algae I add them to the tank and start again fresh. Might want to get a good bit going if you'll be transferring it to a tank that isn't aged yet.

 

[strokinbyeu]

iv seen my hill eat alge off of rocks but i also see it eat blood worms and brine shrimp alot it kinda goes crazy for the blood worms lol here is a not so great pic of mine

 

[siva]

iv seen my hill eat alge off of rocks but i also see it eat blood worms and brine shrimp alot it kinda goes crazy for the blood worms lol here is a not so great pic of mine

It's hard to say for sure from the pic, but it looks like a Beaufortia kweichowensis, one of the more commonly imported hillstreams. Would make sense, they are not just algae eaters and enjoy good quality protein

 

[jsoong]

Hillies usu. don't eat prepared food (some will go for live food). They live off the micro-fauna & flora off the glass & other surfaces. So it is important to have a mature tank for them. Growing algae on rocks, etc. that you can transfer into a new tank is a great idea.

For the record, I've never fed my hillies, and I've had them for some 4 years now.

 

[siva]

That's true but some species are really into protein like bloodworms/brine shrimp as well, where as some are strictly algae eaters.

I've always fed mine, and all my algae eaters really, out of paranoia lol

 

[tmdavies]

this is him

 

[YLD]

I have one too and does exactly the same thing lol nothing... Is just always in the glass close to the filter or behind my bubble wall I guess for the water stream.
I put algae wafers and he never eat from it or at least I don't see him anyways the other fishes won't give him a break.
But sometimes after midnight I see him at the very bottom of the tank but again against the glass.
I thought it was going to be a cool fish but it doesn't do anything at all :/

 

[siva]

There are soo many they are hard to ID, but I think it's a Gastromyzon sp. They are mostly algae eaters but are know to eat a bit of protein now and then too. Growing extra algae for it on rocks would be the best bet. They are one of the more social hillstreams that usually found in groups of 4 or more, so adding atleast one buddy if not more (if you can support them with enough algae) would help bring his personality out.

I can't stress enough how crucial it is to keep the oxygen up in the water, especially in tropical temps. I keep my hillstreams in a 29 gal at 78 degrees, but with double filtration so there's a strong flow from the filter, and a couple airstones in the tank. They won't last long at the higher temps w/o the extra air

 

[Cartosbartos]

looks very similar to the bristlenose catfish, im glad he is easy to look after for me

 

[candy775]

that is normal for them to just suck the glass mine did it too.until i started feeding them some frozen food and flake. and you have to make sure they have alot of Oxygen and current in the tank for them to survive.

 

[candy775]

iv seen my hill eat alge off of rocks but i also see it eat blood worms and brine shrimp alot it kinda goes crazy for the blood worms lol here is a not so great pic of mine

that kind of hillstream loach is also known as a butterfly pleco cause i have two identical to it 1 felmale and 1 male.

 

[candy775]

this is him

that is a good picture of a baby hillstream loach. my two also had babies but mine hatched in my filtration systems and thats where i found them so i set my 10 gallon back up and using it as a nursery for them. i had 9 but lost three due to not having enough O2 and curent in the tank for them but the 6 that survived are as happy as they can be.