hi there, i am buying some fancy oto's this week, not entirely sure of what types, but a lfs is getting an s/a order in. there will with 5 different types of otos and i'd like to keep them in my planted tank and i want to know if there are any which are not good algae eating types. sorry i'm not sure which they're getting, but i can post more info when i get it. my tank is a 29 gal and i was planning on getting 10 or so. obviously they're gonna be wild and quarentine will be for a month of so.
will 10 be enough or too many? i have 1 american flag fish in the tank to eat any hair algae already and am getting rid of 2- 4" sae's i've had for a long time. do i need anything else?
tia, rick
oto algae eating ability
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MatsP
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Re: oto algae eating ability
As far as I'm aware all Otocinclus and other closely related fish in the Hypoptopomatinae subfamily are good algae eaters - that is, as long as the algae is soft green and brown algae - hard "spot algae" and the hair algae require other fish to consume them.
10 Otos seem like a good number. Bear in mind that Otos often come in to the shop in poor health, mainly caused by starvation, so buying a few more than you actually expect to keep may be a good plan.
Also bear in mind that many Otos that are sold aren't well identified. They are often sold under unusual names that we never see the true species of in the trade.
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Mats
10 Otos seem like a good number. Bear in mind that Otos often come in to the shop in poor health, mainly caused by starvation, so buying a few more than you actually expect to keep may be a good plan.
Also bear in mind that many Otos that are sold aren't well identified. They are often sold under unusual names that we never see the true species of in the trade.
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Mats
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andywoolloo
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Re: oto algae eating ability
my otos also eat everything the other fish in tank eat and they love zuchinni and cuke and sweet bell peppers strips. they also like mango.
once they eat all the algae you have to feed them just like a regular fish. actually i always fed mine like a regular fish. I guess i just figure if there is algae they will munch on it but they need their own diet also so they do not starve.
and they are hard to acclimate to prepared foods so start early.
once they eat all the algae you have to feed them just like a regular fish. actually i always fed mine like a regular fish. I guess i just figure if there is algae they will munch on it but they need their own diet also so they do not starve.
and they are hard to acclimate to prepared foods so start early.