Pleco vs. Featherfin Catfish

[Biffy]

I have a highfin pleco and a featherfin catfish in a 75gallon tank. My pleco is 12" and my feather is maybe 3" in the last 3-4 wks, I've noticed that they nose to nose. There's no nudging or anything like that, it's like they are "in love" I don't know if they are in love or if this is normal. Can someone help me? I don't have pictures, but I'm sure I can get some.

Any advice? They don't seem to be bothering each other. It's just odd.

Thanks

Bif

[MatsP]

If the fish seem OK with it, I wouldn't worry about it. I wouldn't say that common plecos are known to be "friendly", but I'm sure it would show more clearly if it was unhappy.

--
Mats

[Biffy]

It's funny to hear you say that, your like the 5th person to tell me that a common pleco isn't known to be friendly. She's (I don't know that it's a she) been in our community tank for over a year and she's never bothered any other fish. She's very friendly with us, meaning we put our hands in the tanks and she rubs by us.

Thank

this is what they look like

[andywoolloo]

my synos are very interested in my common pl*co also. He could care less for them but lets them check him out and doesn't seem to care. If they get too friendly he raises his top fin and waves it back and forth and they give him some space.

[MatsP]

Can't add anything to the behaviour side of things, but I'd say that you have a

Pterygoplichthys gibbiceps

, with a nice looking pattern as well, rather than the "common"

Pterygoplichthys pardalis

(or

Pterygoplichthys disjunctivus

which is sometimes found in the "common" tanks). For most intents and purposes, it makes little difference which of the three it is - they all do about the same thing, grow to the same size and eat the same things.

--
Mats

[Mike_Noren]

Just speculating, but judging by footage from the wild it seems the Pterygoplichthys are basically schooling fish, and probably the same is true of the eupterus - so maybe it's just a case of two gregarious and vaguely similar fish making do with eachothers company in the absence of conspecifics?

[hairyman1]

Mike's reply makes sense. Put a group of same species plecos and synos together and I would bet they would sment most of their time with their own species. Many exceptions are possible in the glass box we keep them in.

[hairyman1]

Mike's reply makes sense. Put a group of same species plecos and synos together and I would bet they would spend most of their time with their own species. Many exceptions are possible in the glass box we keep them in.