Looking for Plecos that live in Rio Orinoco

[gage]

hey guys, i know there is probably a way to search this in the Cat-e-Log, but is there any spp of pleco from Rio Orinoco that would be good in a footprint of 30"x12"? besides Clown plecos? or could someone tell me how to search for plecos in Rio Orinoco? i stumbled upon finding all catfish in Rio Orinoco but id like to narrow it down to plecos only.

i am making a Biotope set-up for my Keyhole cichlid pair and im looking for a pleco to go along with them, dont worry, they are not aggressive at all, less aggression then a German Blue Ram LOL

[gage]

Nvm, im just stupid and couldnt figure it out, though i finally realized there is a search spot in the catelog LMAO

suggestions still appreciated.

[panaque]

Keyhole cichlids are actually from the Maroni river. The only pleco from there that you may find in the shops that I am aware of is

Ancistrus temminckii

.

[MatsP]

There are some other fishes from Maroni listed in the Cat-eLog: http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/se ... order=hits

Unfortunately, none of them are common in the trade (any Ancistrus temminckii you find in the shop is probably not that species, as there is nearly no export from that area).

--
Mats

[gage]

i know Keyholes are from Rio Maroni, but they come from more then just there, i was looking for fish from Rio Maroni but couldnt find any common tetras or catfish, so i went to the location point i could find more tankmates in. they do come from Rio Orinoco as well.

Spencer Jack has some "Ancistrus temminckii" in, but i doubt it is actually the true thing so i didnt even bother asking. i was wanting to do a tank with the Keyholes, Ancistrus temminckii and Corydoras nanus, but as stated, finding any of them is a royal PITA. which is again why i switched to Rio Orinoco, as the keyholes do come from there (mostly the Delta, oh well) and there are WAY more common fish this come from this area.

but anyway, i think i will go with L239 (Blue Panaque), they are fairly easy to find (Spencer seems to get them a lot) and they stay small enough for a 29g.

[Mike_Noren]

Fishbaseallows searching for ecosystem (e.g. Orinoco river basin).

[gage]

thanx! but it wont let me search Orinioco river delta, which is where the keyholes are found. dam, oh well, thanx anyway guys.

[apistomaster]

Are you looking only for algae eating pleco spp or just any that fit your 12X30 inch tank?
There are more than Panaque maccus(Clown Pleco?) to choose from if Orinoco drainage fits the bill and not exclusively Rio Maroni.
Hypancistrus has many spp to choose from that stay fairly small. H. contradens, and many other attractive small species, for example.
Most of them are not too expensive compared to the dwindling number of Brazilian Hypancistrus spp that may have made it through the changing regulations landscape.

[MatsP]

thanx! but it wont let me search Orinioco river delta, which is where the keyholes are found. dam, oh well, thanx anyway guys.

This is a common problem we have every month or two: Someone is asking for fish from a very specific area. Unfortunately, aside from the occasional scientific literature (which is sporadic and often hard to find), there is rarely specific enough information to reliably and consistently find this information. I created the Cat-eLog occurrence records for that purpose, but they are based on existing information, and often that is also not precise enough to help in this case.

What you CAN do, if you have the time, is to look at the occurrence records that each species has in Fishbase. These are often quite precise.

Finding the species name of a fish that comes from the same area (and is suitable to keep in your tank) is only a small part of the battle - the next one is to find a fish-shop that carries that fish and that is either close enough to visit, or that ships to you. For many species that theoretically are suitable, there is no export - simply because there is some other species that is prettier, easier to keep or easier to get, that covers the same sales in most peoples eyes. Most people won't really care if they get a silvery fish with red fins that come from the Columbian coast and that is easy to breed in captivity, or one that is wild-caught from the other side of the Andes, and that cost 10x more because it is hard to get hold of... Simply put if the fish is "nearly the same", the ones that are easier to get or easier to manage will be the ones that you find in the shops.

And finally, I think Orinoco Delta fish, aside from captive bred species, will be quite hard to get, because the Orinoco Delta area is in Venezuela and, depending on which government you take the view of, part of French Guyana. There is no legal export of wildlife, including fish, from this area (aside from that approved by the relevant national government for research projects).

To clarify: Wild-caugth species that come from Rio Orinoco are caught in Colombia (or at the least, they are captured around the Venezuela/Colombia border, and shipped out of Colombia).

--
Mats

[Bas Pels]

And finally, I think Orinoco Delta fish, aside from captive bred species, will be quite hard to get, because the Orinoco Delta area is in Venezuela and, depending on which government you take the view of, part of French Guyana. There is no legal export of wildlife, including fish, from this area (aside from that approved by the relevant national government for research projects).

I think Mats made a small error: Venezuela has an eastern border with British Guyana, which borders Surinam, which borders French Guyana

[MatsP]

I think Mats made a small error: Venezuela has an eastern border with British Guyana, which borders Surinam, which borders French Guyana

Quite obviously. However, I'm not quite sure what the name of the controversial region is - is it a portion of British Guyana on the eastern side of Venezuela then? Either way, exports from this region are generally illegal.

--
Mats

[Bas Pels]

I think so

However, as far as I know, a bit of grount between Surinam and British Guyana is said to be disputed as well

[nvcichlids]

Spencer Jack .

I have heard this name several times on this website, can someone tell me a little more about him?

( sorry to hi-jack, just extremely curious)

I think the L239's would be beautiful in there! ( I want some myself lol)

[Bas Pels]

Although I never met him, he was in uruguay a few times, collectingfishes there

You might find a bit about him at http://www.aqvaterra.com/

[Birger]

This is Spencer's website http://cichlaholic.com

[gage]

hey, i looked through all the Rio Orinoco delta fish, and none of which are easy to find, or even possible for that matter, so im going to have to settle with all Rio Orinoco fish, whether it is the basin, delta, or even drainage LOL, ill probably do basin.

thanx for all the help guys, appreciated!