L397 Questions

[Kittiee Katt]

Hello all, firstly, I'm sorry if this is in the wrong section. I've recently joined and this is my first post. I've been keeping fish for a little over six years now, but have never kept plecos.

I joined mainly to ask a few questions, but also to learn as much as I can about these magnificent fish. I apologize in advance for my terrible spelling and excessive use of punctuation.

Please excuse my long post, but I figure the more information I provide the more people can help me.

I'm currently seeking some advice on one of my dream plecos (L397) as I've recently had the opportunity to get one but want to make sure I can care for it properly first.

I'll first explain my current set ups (and other relevant tanks) before explaining how I plan to house him.

Tank #1 120ltr that is currently home to x3 kuhlli loaches, x6 white cloud minnows, x1 syno nigriventris (kind of a rescue from a mate) and x1 possibly stunted cae (rescue from my mums idiot friend).

Tank #2 170ltr tank that my husband is fixing up atm, should be ready for cycling within the week.

Tank #3 80ltr tank that currently belongs to my sister, when tank #2 is cycled I'll be trading tank #1 for this and transferring everyone from tank #1 to here, with the exception of the syno who will go in the 170 as the start of an African river biope which will be built around him and the friends I plan to get him.

Tank #4 is a 400ltr south American community tank which is home to x4 silver dollars (back story to these, no hate please), approximately 30 assorted SA tetras and x2 corydoras.

Tank #5 is my 80ltr tank currently used as a hospital/qt tank, but not needed as I have many more hospital tanks.

My plans for housing him (this may be a bit confusing, if anyone needs me to explain something again, please ask and I'll do my best) are as follows:

If I can get him (her, it) I plan to start him in tank #1 as its currently the only tank I have with any wood in it.
When everyone gets transferred into tank #3 he will go in tank #2 with the syno until I can get some bogwood for tank #4.
Then I'll be playing musical fish tanks and splitting the tetras from tank #4 into tanks #3 and #5, the corydoras will go into tank #5 so I don't crowd tank #3 with bottom feeders and he will live in a 5' 400ltr tank with four silver dollars until I can get them a 6'+.

Will this work or am I being stupid? I'm on a time limit with him as the guy will only hold him for 5 days, and he was put on hold Monday.

If this is possible I also have some questions about his care...

1. How long will he live for provided I care for him properly? He's rather pricey at $60aud and only 5cm at most, and my husband won't like it if he's short lived.

2. How much wood will he eat in a year if provided with other foods such as NLS pellets, algae wafers and the occasional bit for fruit/veg? And if I throw soft aquarium plants in for him, will he eat those to?

3. How quickly will he grow? I know 15cm is approx his max size but how long should it take him to get there?

4. Is there any chance he's a hybrid? He's pricey and if my husband were to find out he's a hybrid I don't think he'd be to "enthusiastic" about it.

Thanks in advance and sorry for my long post.

Also, before anyone tells me my cae will get huge I've had him for over three years now and he hasn't grown at all. Before I got him he was crammed in a 30ltr with more tetras than I could count, he was in pretty bad shape when I got him but he's now happy and healthy in my 120, the 80 I'm acquiring is almost as long and wide as my 120, but not as tall - no hate please.

Thanks again.

 

[Brengun]

L397 don't like a pH above about 7.4 at best. They also like the temps to be 26 to 28C. They don't eat a lot of wood but over the years if you have softer woods those will turn to Swiss cheese and be brittle. Sixty dollars for 4 to 5cm is pretty pricy. Where are you in Australia? We may be able to find breeders nearer to you who sell for $25 to $30each then you could get two!

 

[Kittiee Katt]

I'm in Tasmania, I don't know if I like the idea of shipping across the BS...

I went ahead and brought him and he seems to be doing well so far. I have two types of wood, one is goldvine and I don't know what the other one is, would it benefit him if I could get more types of wood for him to munch?

Thank you so much for the information you gave me, the pH in the 120ltr is around 6.8 as is the pH in the 400ltr, will he be happy in this? He seems happy so far, and he prefers to munch the goldvine over the "unknown lfs wood".

I want to give him the best life possible so any advice or constructive criticism is welcome.

 

[Brengun]

I found if I order say Anubis on Driftwood from livefish.com.au the wood in that is the one my L397 love.
Next is food as L397 are fairly easy to bloat, especially little ones.
Sera Flora flake is the best and I have never bloated any babies with it.
New Era cichlid green pellets they also love and no bloating even if you over feed.
I used to use Hikari algae wafers but they were a little too high in protein for younger L397's so now I use Aqua One algae wafers. It will be the last thing he eats out of those 3 so sometimes maybe just put in a half or quarter of one. Its not their favourite but when everything else is gone they will eat it.
You can also feed zucchini or cucumber but only small amounts especially for only one fish. You can weigh it down with a fork or veg screw or clip. Watch the cucumber as they love it so much they can bloat on it.