piggy plec taking all the food

[zeebo]

wonder if anyone has any ideas here.
I have 2 L128's (and a farlowella) who eat veggies.
Each night I put veggies on 3 clips and disperse in different areas of the tank. I do this cuz the farlo will get on the veggie first and the phantoms are so docile ,they let him...so for past year all 3 get a veggie on a clip.

Well I have been noticing one L128 is much larger than the other, so I am assuming the little guy ,he is growing ,but slowly, is not getting his share.

He is a lot shyer than the bigger one, and has not chosen a cave yet , he hangs on the slate upsidedown, and that is the area i drop the clip.

is this normal ? I got them a year apart, same size when i got um.

any ideas ? is he just growing slower or not gettting the chow ?
thanks, Georgie

 

[Lornek8]

Just probably growing at different rate.
Could be any number of reasons: male vs female, "personality", genetics, etc.
So long as the smaller one is not skinny or malnouished looking it should be okay. As both are growing its not really too much to worry about.

 

[macvsog23]

Size in fish can as in all things be related to dominance, The one fish that becomes larger is the more aggressive and sexually dominant so to reduce the chances of a confutation the fish that becomes smaller slows down his or hers growth rate.

 

[zeebo]

thanks lorne and mac , appreciate your insight . yeah the little one is healty and not sunkin in tummy so he is healty ...just guess he is a little goober !

georgie