Sailfin Pleco

Stebo · Post by **Stebo** » 28 Jan 2006, 06:30

I want to buy a small 5cm gibbicep (sailfin pleco) and put it in my 55gal african tank. i know they grow large, my LFS has no problem taking him back for store credit when he gets too big. I just have a few questions

Will he adjust to the higher ph?

Can he defend himself against my Cobalt blue zebra? (see my signature for other tankmates)

How fast will he grow?

Will he eat up the left over pellets that my cichlids missed?

Will he clean up any algea?

If he's asleep during the day, will my cichlids pick on him?

I've seen people address there catfish and plecos with numbers like "L042" or something, what does this mean and what is the sailfin pl*cos number?

thanks in advance
yours sincerely
stebo

Azmeaiel · Post by **Azmeaiel** » 28 Jan 2006, 07:01

I cant really help with the ph or cichlid issue but know they grow very rapidly in a large tank. they dont seem to like pellets unless they have some veg content and seem to prefer zuccini and algae wafer. Mine has grown from 10cm to 22cm in about 3 months.They seem to like grazing on the algae in the tank although I also have common bn so cannot tell how much they remove.

fw05racer · Post by **fw05racer** » 28 Jan 2006, 12:28

Stebo wrote:I want to buy a small 5cm gibbicep (sailfin pl*co) and put it in my 55gal african tank. i know they grow large, my LFS has no problem taking him back for store credit when he gets too big. I just have a few questions

Will he adjust to the higher ph?

Can he defend himself against my Cobalt blue zebra? (see my signature for other tankmates)

How fast will he grow?

Will he eat up the left over pellets that my c*****ds missed?

Will he clean up any algea?

If he's asleep during the day, will my c*****ds pick on him?

I've seen people address there catfish and pl*cos with numbers like "L042" or something, what does this mean and what is the sailfin pl*cos number?

thanks in advance
yours sincerely
stebo

The Gibby will adjust, they are a very hardy fish I even had 2 survive when I miss dosed the buffer and wiped out my entire Tang tank.

A Gibby armour is tough so it will be ok.

Growth varies from fish to fish, Azmeaiel's fish is an example of an extremely quick growing one, but expect more like 1cm/month type growth.

Unless your cichlids are very through in their eating habits then the Gibby will accept the left overs although it would probably be best not to just rely on this as the main food source. Algae tables are also a good choice.

Gibbys will munch on a little algae but not to the extent of a bn.

Never seen a Gibby really "sleep", but their nature is that they will sit still for quite along time. Don't worry if the cichlid gets too close it will move.

The L no is the way to identify species that have not been described and given a proper scientific name. The gibby has these L083, L165, L196 although for a Gibby they aren'y used very often. Say those no to most ppl even pleco fans and they will give you a blank stare.

So good luck with your little guy.

Owch · Post by **Owch** » 28 Jan 2006, 12:43

My Gibby has grown 7" in 8 months, and is not showing any signs of stopping.

drpleco · Post by **drpleco** » 28 Jan 2006, 14:16

I feel that the gibby is just about equal to the BN as far as algae goes. I've never had a soft algae problem with a gibby in the tank. I've even had one graze hair algae off of java ferns. It kept on and rasped through the leaves, but that's another story.

The only drawback is that they get very large. Otherwise, they're an excellent pleco.

Stebo · Post by **Stebo** » 28 Jan 2006, 22:45

Thanks everyone for your comments.

Just one more thing
Is the gibbys armoured plate as tough when it is young about 5cm long?

rachel911 · Post by **rachel911** » 13 Mar 2006, 20:40

I have had my leopard sailfin (Spot)three months and he has grown from 5cm to 13 cm! I thought I'd cut back on food to slow it down but if I don't feed it enough it try's to eat it's tank mate, my lovely black moor, Bubble. Bubble recovers well and now I make sure there is always cucumber or corrgette in the tank for spot to eat but this results in huge amounts of poo!!!! We are having to change the filter every 2 weeks instead of the manufacturers recommended 4-6 weeks!
I realy love him though and will have to get a new tank when he gets too big. I could never give him back.
I hope yours gives you loads of pleasure.
Rachelx

MatsP · Post by **MatsP** » 14 Mar 2006, 12:48

I'd like to make a few comments:
1. A 55 gal tank will SOON be too small for these fish. They are very good algae eaters, but will require supplemental food quite soon.

2. Yes, a 5cm fish will have sufficient armour to protect it's body, and given a suitable size cave to hide in, it should be able to defend itself. Fins may of course be nibbled a bit, but they will grow back again.

3. I would honestly recommend that you get a bristlenose instead. They should be roughly the same as a small Gibby - excpet they are different colouration, and they shouldn't be much different in price. With the added advantage that the bristlenose will not outgrow your 55g tank however long you keep it there. Just don't buy one that is too small (usually shops sell them at 3-5 cm and up).

4. L-numbers are a system for specifying fish that hasn't been scientifically described yet. Because new fish are found by the fishermen in South America at a much greater rate than the scientists that describe them can manage, there are some 400 odd numbers by now. All these aren't necesarily unique speceis (in fact, several are duplicates, so for isntance L46 and L98 are the same species). Gibby's were scientifically described by Kner in 1854, so shouldn't really need an L-number, but there are variants with L-numbers: L083, L165 and L196 are all "synonyms" for . I haven't looked at All L-numbers to see what the difference between a "Common gibby" and the listed L-numbers are. It may even just be that they are found in a different place than the official holo-type (THE fish that got described is called a Holotype).

I hope this helps.

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Mats

Azmeaiel · Post by **Azmeaiel** » 14 Mar 2006, 23:09

Matsp

what is the 'Ideal' tank size for a full grown Gibbycep? There is an LPS near me that has kept 45cm specimins in a 8ft for as long as I can remember, I would go in there as a kid and oggle the huge funny looking fish

they still have the same ones. some sites reccomend larger, and unfortunatley some recommend 60 (i know this is wrong. I was looking at having a large custom tank built to house a single large gibby and 2-5 Hoplosternum thoracatum, with possibly a few large angels and other small fish .I was thinking of making it an almost square tank so the gibby has more swimming room as I notice the larger ones have trouble turning in long tanks when cruising around.

MatsP · Post by **MatsP** » 15 Mar 2006, 09:39

The "standard rule" I tend to use is 4L x 2L x 2L which would make the size for a 45cm fish 180 x 90 x 90 cm (which makes just short of 1500 liter). You can almost certainly get away with a little bit less height for plecos, as they tend to stay at the bottom anyways, and they are not REALLY active swimmers, so a bit shorter and less wide would also work, but not a whole lot. Minimum would probably be 150 x 75 x 60 (L x W x H), which makes 675 liter. That would certainly be a CUSTOM size of course... Not likely that you find a tank that is wider than it's tall in the normal suppliers - at least not if it's that long and tall...

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Mats

Sailfin Pleco

Sailfin Pleco

Re: Sailfin pl*co