L134 Tank

Warrior · Post by **Warrior** » 03 Oct 2006, 20:37

Dear Catfish friends,

This week my new tank is coming in. Its an 70x35x30cm tank, about 70 liters of water.
I want to set the tank up as an speciality tank for L134. The tank is going to come in the livingroom, so i will try to make it look somewhat good. Now i have two questions

- can i house about 5 L134s in this tank?
- what kind of substrate would you recommend?

Thanks
Ruud

Post by **Janne** » 03 Oct 2006, 20:51

I think it would be better with 3 L134 Peckoltia sp 1+2 and maybe a few tetras or Corydoras as company, sand or fine gravel would be fine.

Janne

Warrior · Post by **Warrior** » 04 Oct 2006, 20:57

Thanks Janne,

Don't you think the flow/current is too much for Tetra's. Im going to run an Eheim 2210 internal filter which is pumping 550liters per hour around.

Do you think the Peckoltias will show themselves more when there are tetras or cory's around?

Thanks Ruud

sojapat · Post by **sojapat** » 04 Oct 2006, 21:01

Hi Warrior . They are not to particular .
In the wild they live among rounded rocks about 10" +
There is sand on the bottom but it is not visible for the rocks .
The temp is 82 f
The water is medium conducitivity /soft and
SLOW moving ..
The tankmates I would put in are ..If you want to be
as in that place ...
Lemon tera
Penguin tetra
Marginatus pencil
Dicrossus sp Itaiatuba
..
I have pictures of habitat if you require .
Cheers Sojapat
http://www.pieraquatics.co.uk

f3mg · Post by **f3mg** » 04 Oct 2006, 21:52

I have pictures of habitat if you require .
Cheers Sojapat

Please post them here in order share them with us, or if you prefer just send through pm.

Regards,

Francisco

Warrior · Post by **Warrior** » 05 Oct 2006, 17:05

Dear Sojapat,

Thanks for your help, would you be so kind to post or pm the pictures to me. I am very interested in their natural habitat, also for plants and so.

I did assume they like a fast flowing current, but apparently not. Well, in that case i stick to my eheim internal pump and won't put an extra flow pump in it.

Thanks

apistomaster · Post by **apistomaster** » 05 Oct 2006, 17:52

Keep in mind that although most plecos come from fast flowing streams they live among the boulders on the bottom of the stream. This is in what is called the boundary layer.
Along the bottom the water current is vastly slower than it appears at the surface. Plecos are adapted to deal with strong currents but not constantly. They spend most of their life in this boundary layer using their sucker mouths to graze the mostly undersides of the boulders for insect larvae that are similarly exploiting this relatively quiet zone. Although there is a difference in current speed from top to bottom there is sufficiently high enough intermixing rates to ensure that this calmer zone is highly oxygenated.
In the aquariums it is neccessary to provide both the high currents and quiet zones lest we exhaust our plecos and prevent them from feeding naturally as the substrate grazers that they are.

Warrior · Post by **Warrior** » 05 Oct 2006, 20:16

So you guys suggest that I use sand as substrate with on top a lot of rounded stones/rocks? Do I add wood also?

And if I use a lot of rocks, and create a lot of hidingplaces, do I still see them? I have now 1 L134 in my community tank, there's one big piece of wood in it and some clay holes and i see the fellow quite regularly.

apistomaster · Post by **apistomaster** » 05 Oct 2006, 23:38

Adding driftwood is always a good idea as it goes the extra step towards simulating the natural habitat. Most plecos and other secretive fishes are more often seen out in the open when they are secure in the knowledge that safety is only a dash away. Groups add to this feeling of security. I have seven and there are always some that can be observed.

Warrior · Post by **Warrior** » 14 Oct 2006, 11:21

Hi folks,

Just wanted to say that i got the tank yesterday. I am going to set it up as soon as possible. I will try to post pictures of it.

Only thing is I started to doubt about the L134s, as they are quite difficult to obtain here. Moreover, I have now 2 L260 in my community tank, probably one male (10cm!) and one female (7cm) so I'm also considering using the tank as a specific L260 tank....decisions,decisions are difficult.

Thanks guys

PsYcHoTiC_MaDmAn · Post by **PsYcHoTiC_MaDmAn** » 21 Oct 2006, 17:22

i did a quick check b4 posting, L134 are from the tapajos river, whish is what i'd like to theme my tank in (if your willing to ignore the flying fox, who i cant get round to getting rid of.

i would REALLY like some pics of the habbitat currently my tank looks like this

i did a bit of googling last night and from the discriptions i thought i had it set up right, but from your discription theres more stones.

sort of changed my mind about what catfish are gonna go in, i'm thinking maybe a queen arabesque (think i spelt that right) and some corydoras ornatus. and maybey a few sheepshead acaras, which fishbase had listed as widespread throughout the main amazon river and in the lower parts of most of the tributries.

the only tetra i found that comes from there is the lemon tetra. any ideas for a smallish chacarin from Rio Tapajos

Warrior · Post by **Warrior** » 22 Oct 2006, 22:10

That's a nice tank Psycho...

I have also L260 Queen Arabesque in my community tank...they are absolutely beautifull~!

Meanwhile, my tank is not yet up and running. Today i put black foyle at the back and sides of the tank as backgrounds. It saves space inside the tank and i hope it provides some sort of secure feeling for the cats.

I'll keep you guys posted!

apistomaster · Post by **apistomaster** » 22 Oct 2006, 23:13

Better background than the black garbage bags I use.

Jon · Post by **Jon** » 22 Oct 2006, 23:37

In all honesty, I must say, black garbage bags are probably the best and cheapest alternative to backgrounding ever. Want a fast tank set up in a jiffy? Grab the nearest trash bag and tape it on!

Consequently, I, like Larry, use them for all my tanks.

apistomaster · Post by **apistomaster** » 23 Oct 2006, 12:19

Jon,
I thought is was just me being cheap but after awhile, I found they made a pretty good background and could still be used as trash bgs if I ran low.

Warrior · Post by **Warrior** » 24 Oct 2006, 17:42

Perhaps it is better than black foyle, can't say I'm very happy with the outcome. Even thought it's glued fairly straight/nice flat, you still see at the inside some white spots.

Perhaps i will use your suggestion and try a second time with a trash bag..

apistomaster · Post by **apistomaster** » 24 Oct 2006, 21:34

The nice thing about a garbage bag is that it's easy to move it aside to wipe off watermarks once and a while. It isn't fancy but it does help lend a feeling of security for the fish and it isn't permanent.
Yeah! I have 6 L134 coming in tomorrow. I killed a group recently from overlooking a Chilodonella outbreak. I'm loaded for any kind of bug that may rear it's ugly head, this time. I think they are one of the most attractive of the small plecos in their price range.
My friend that recently bred them said he has been amazed at how bright yellow the markings are on the fry. I can't wait for my own to breed. Here's to L134!
PS: Psychoticmadman, I like your aquarium set up. I think any of the small Peckoltia or Hypancistrus species would find the arrangement satisfactory.

Warrior · Post by **Warrior** » 25 Oct 2006, 21:36

Last night, I have washed the sand and this evening I have filled the tank with water. I filled half the tank with water from my community tank, and the other half is tapwater. An Eheim internal filter is running now in the new tank, while another (superfish) one is running in my community tank. In this way i hope that the quality of the water and the bacteria in the filters is okay quite fast.

I have seen some Cory Aneus green wildcatch at a store nearby and i hope to collect them saturday. Do you guys think this is too fast for the tank? Otherwise, I can also put the Cory's temporarily in my community tank.

The plan now is to fill the tank with 6 cory's and 2-3 L134.

Btw, Apistomaster, good luck with your 6 new ones and i hope you'll be spared for more diseases! Love to see some pics ofcourse!

Thanks, Ruud

apistomaster · Post by **apistomaster** » 25 Oct 2006, 23:40

Ruud, thanks for the well wishes. As long as you don't over do it the new C.aeneus will be ok. The blending of water and some old filter media should be enough for 6 Corys, I would think, without getting into cycle gone awry problems.

Warrior · Post by **Warrior** » 28 Oct 2006, 20:42

Got them... a group of 9 gold stripe cory's. They are about 4cm each! Please check the Corydoras thread for photo's!

apistomaster · Post by **apistomaster** » 28 Oct 2006, 23:31

Nice Corysdoras to end up with. My new L134 are still doing well.

Warrior · Post by **Warrior** » 29 Oct 2006, 11:34

Thanks Apistomaster, good to hear that your Peckoltias are doing fine!

Yeah, what can i say...with so many beautifull catfish out there it's hard to make a choice, but perhaps I will add one or two L134 in this tank. (or...A. Borelli's or..or....you know the drill

)

racoll · Post by **racoll** » 29 Oct 2006, 12:57

The plan now is to fill the tank with 6 cory's and 2-3 L134.

Warrior, are you sure that the cories will be OK at the kind of temperatures that the L134 require? - i.e. 28-30C

Warrior · Post by **Warrior** » 29 Oct 2006, 16:50

Ahum....good one...didn't think of that one. The cory's are now in the tank at 24C, while my L260&134 in the community tank are at 27C so i should have thought about it...but i didn't.

Guess i need to adjust the title of this thread...So now the next question pops up..if the water is too cold for L260 and 134..what L will be oke in this setup?

racoll · Post by **racoll** » 29 Oct 2006, 17:18

Ancistrus sp. or Chaetostoma sp. would be better at those temps I think.

L134 Tank

L134 Tank

L 134 .

L134 Habitat Pics...