Wild ferel pleco id

[Bettaman]

https://photos.app.goo.gl/shNWzUpToA9m7vSx5

Spotted in the river. Feral population seems established. Possibly a mating pair. Does not appear like the pterygoplichthys that is commonly found in the lfs. Wondering if these are the offspring of the larger common hypostomus that used to be sold in the fish trade of old?

[bekateen]

Why do you discount Pterygoplichthys? Unfortunately, the water clarity and video quality make identification difficult, but Pterygoplichthys was my suspicion.

If a mating pair, they'll need to find or dig a cave to spawn in.

Cheers, Eric

[Bettaman]

Thank you Eric.

[Shovelnose]

Sadly, Pterygoplichthys pardalis and P.disjunctivus are extremely common in south India, especially Tamil Nadu and Kerala. There is a report of P.anisitsi from Bihar as well.

There have been videos (from Kerala) of large specimens being fished out of what can only be called a cesspool. I have personally collected large specimens from brackish water from the TN coast too. These fish seem to top even tilapia when it comes to tolerance of extreme water conditions!