PlanetCatfish.com

Anyone know what ancistrus this guy is?:

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/andrew.ca ... pg&.src=ph

I bought him as "bristlenose" without any other specifiers. The dorsal and adipose don't connect, like "starry night," so what is he? I'd eventually like a few more so knowing what he is would help a lot. Thanks!!

Andy

When you say "starry night", do you mean this?

I don't see how the dorsal and adipose fin would connect in this species.

L 182 ?

Looks exactly like the starlight BN, thanks!!

I don't know where I got the fin connection info, but it's incorrect, I guess.

Thanks!

There's one major internet store that advertised them on their website as "Starry Night Pl*co, L-183."
http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod ... CatId=1006

I have him in a 50 gallon tank (36x18x18) and will upgrade to a 65 (36x18x24) when I move in June. I figure he can grow a bit in there, comfortably.

Do these need driftwood just like common ancistrus? So far I just have some pots for him to hide in (although he prefers to hide behind the filter intake for now).

Also, will they spawn just like commons? I have albiino and brown pairs growing and wouldn't mind breeding these, too. I'm sure the lfs would love it.

And yeah, even I can see that the internet fish aren't L-183. Maybe it's just a bad pic? The description sounds like 183, but the pic looks like 182. I guess I could call and find out, but what are the odds that they would know?

drgold wrote:I have him in a 50 gallon tank (36x18x18) and will upgrade to a 65 (36x18x24) when I move in June. I figure he can grow a bit in there, comfortably.

Do these need driftwood just like common ancistrus? So far I just have some pots for him to hide in (although he prefers to hide behind the filter intake for now).

Also, will they spawn just like commons? I have albiino and brown pairs growing and wouldn't mind breeding these, too. I'm sure the lfs would love it.

And yeah, even I can see that the internet fish aren't L-183. Maybe it's just a bad pic? The description sounds like 183, but the pic looks like 182. I guess I could call and find out, but what are the odds that they would know?

As far as I've been told, Ancistrus don't quite NEED driftwood (it's not a major part of their diet), but it's:
1. A nice way to decorate the tank.
2. Bristlenoses like to sit on it and hide behind it, and even breed around them.

The spawning behaviour, I would expect to be the same as other Ancistrus, but common ancistrus is by far easier to breed [needs less "accurate" conditions to breed].

Most LFS will name fish in accordance to what their wholesaler says, and in many cases that turns out to be what the exporter wrote on the export list. Most of the time, none of the involved companies really know how to tell different species apart... You have, by far, better experts on this forum...

--
Mats

--
Mats

Interestingly enough, the same major internet store calls this species "Julii Cory Cat."
http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod ... CatId=1176

bronzefry wrote:Interestingly enough, the same major internet store calls this species "Julii Cory Cat."
http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod ... CatId=1176

I see they're still calling all their bushynose "L144", and they use pics of P.maccus to illustrate 2 other L#s. Not necessarily the place I'd go for an accurately IDed fish...hehe

I emailed customer service to see if I could call and get a description of the fish in stock and they said this was impossible. They also said it was impossible to request fish by gender.

So I guess it's a gamble.

I feel a little responsible for the possible mis-identification of the fish we may (or may not) be talking about.
Here's what I know.
1) The "Starlight" and "Starry Night" bristlenose are 2 different fish. These nicknames are mistakenly used interchangeably.
2) The "Starry Night" is L183: Ancistrus dolichopterus. It is sometimes called "White Seam".
3) The "Starlight" is L182: Either Ancistrus hoplogenys or Ancistrus punctatus. I have seen this fish called any number of things.
4) I believe two of the photos of the L182 on this site are incorrect...if mine IS correct.
5) L182/Ancistrus hoplogenys (?) is easily identified by the dark smudge mark at the base of the 1st and 2nd dorsal
fin rays.
6) Ancistrus (certainly the two I am writing about) need to graze on drift or bog wood to aid their digestion. If you don't think they need it, it may be because they're not grazing the kind you've added...which would indicate it is CONIFEROUS driftwood which they do tend to shun. If you're not sure what kind it is, get it good and warm and smell it.
If it is fromn a coniferous tree, you'll know it immediately.

There are dozens of brownish spotted Ancistrus coing from Brazil. By visual clues alone, these two should never be mistaken for each other. Barbie is correct. The Internet store listing is quite wrong. The picture, in fact, is of neither fish I've been so long winded about.

I've spawned them both. Write me directly if you're interested in 2 cents more opinion.

Kevin Korotev
Milwaukee, WI