Page 1 of 1

Breeding L66 tiger plecos

Posted: 21 Apr 2006, 19:44
by thebirdofprey
I am gettting a quartet of L66 Tiger Plecos (1 male and 3 females). I want to breed these guys. I have bred bristlenose of many varieties in the past so I have experience keeping and breeding plecos. How much different will the tiger plecos be from the bristlenose in terms of care and breeding. What is the key to trigger these guys to breed. Also what size tank in a species only tank would be good for these guys to breed in. thanks in advance.

Posted: 24 Apr 2006, 11:56
by MatsP
L66 grow fairly large, around 6-7" TL (15-18cm) - males probably a litle bit bigger than the females.

Here's a quick summary of my understanding [I haven't had L66 or any other Hypancistrus species]:
They are similar to Bristlenoses. Males will like to have a suitable size cave, and they are a bit more picky than the bristlenoses - the fit of the cave is more critical to hold the female in place during the spawning act.

Feeding is much more meaty than for bristlenoses, but will still want some small amounts of vegetable in their diet.

Tank-size should be at least 3ft (90 cm) long and preferrably a bit wider than 12".

Good current and reasonably high temperature would also be good.

Triggering with cool/low-conductivity water will also help getting the spawning going, but of course the female(s) need to be well conditioned first.

There's several articles that will help:
Spawning L66
Spawning Hypancistrus zebra
Spawning L260
And of course the Cat-eLog: .