Help with ID please

[sapphire]

Hi

So i was told this is a rubber lip pleco, but I can not find a picture that resembles the look of this one. Can you clarify for me please?

[Richard B]

Check the Chaetostoma species in the cat-e-log

[bekateen]

So i was told this is a rubber lip pleco, but I can not find a picture that resembles the look of this one. Can you clarify for me please?

Hi Sapphire,

Where did you purchase your rubberlip pleco? Was it from a chain store like PetSmart or Petco? If so, I suspect your fish is

Chaetostoma dorsale

. In my area, they are a common rubberlip for sale in big stores. If you bought the fish at a smaller LFS, then I'd still start with this identity, but the odds of getting something different increase.

Cheers, Eric

[sapphire]

yes it was petsmart where i purchased..i will look those up thank you

[sapphire]

@bekateen - i looked them up and i think Chaetostoma Dupouii looks very close to him, Dorsale does to, but that one doesnt show the same markings on the tail as mine, but i am not familiar with how readily available each sub is, esp in the big box stores...he was the only one they had, so i could be way off base

[bekateen]

... Chaetostoma Dupouii looks very close to him, Dorsale does to, but that one doesnt show the same markings on the tail as mine

Hi sapphire,
From the photos you have of your fish, the tail markings are consistent with dorsale too, in my opinion. Please check closely all the different photos of dorsale on the CLOG page (

Chaetostoma dorsale

) and I think you'll be able to see that. If you think the tails really do look different, please try to get better photos of your own fish, especially their tail, and we can have another go at them.

i am not familiar with how readily available each sub is, esp in the big box stores...he was the only one they had, so i could be way off base

The big box stores typically order

Chaetostoma formosae

, and they sometimes sell them under the incorrect names

Chaetostoma thomsoni

or Chaetostoma thomasi (which isn't even a thing, but is only a misspelling of thomsoni!). But if you look closely, you can often find C. dorsale mixed in with C. formosae. Although their spotting patterns are essentially the reverse of each other (formosae has dark spots and dark lines on a light body, and dorsale has light spots and light lines on a dark body), their colors are usually washed out in the stores and they look very similar to the untrained eye. When I've seen them in PetSmarts and Petcos, I would estimate that I found the two species in a roughly 50%-50% mix, or perhaps slightly more formosae than dorsale. But the stores sold both as the same fish and most of the store clerks didn't even realize there were two different species in the store aquaria.

If you want to read a nightmare story, look at this thread: Mystery Chaetostoma, impulse buy at PetSmart. It is my own efforts to build a group of C. dorsale from fish I found at PetSmarts and Petcos in California. In the end, I got 13 or 14 fish (if you count returns of dead fish and their replacements) and all of mine died in a couple of weeks. I hope you have a better experience, because I think C. dorsale is a really neat rubberlip and I hope to have more one day with better success.

Cheers, Eric

[sapphire]

wow Eric you went to hell and back!! well i can say that my baby BN that is in with him right now i think eggs him on to eat...and surprisingly he is doing well considering his current tankmates...after his quarentine i put him and the BN in this tank to help with my algae after a filter failure, so he had a plentiful food source, plus plants and wafers and cucumbers. his mates are julii corys and a betta that leaves them all alone. he will transfer this weekend to my other tank where i know he will be lost to caves and hiding places galore plus many more plants. I will try to get another picture but the more i look at photos on here and other sites i think you might be right...i am guessing this one is probably close to full size

[sapphire]

@bekateen i have acquired some better photos when i was transferring him into my bigger tank and your ID i think is most accurate. please look

[bekateen]

Hi sapphire,

Yes, that's C. dorsale. Very nice!

Cheers, Eric