I have two community tanks, 45 and 220 gallons, and both see occasional plecos survive, but only occasional. I pull out a few every few months and give them away to keep the numbers down.
Rarely but occasionally we see an albino. Usually we see them once, then gone. Not sure whether luck of the draw, or their color makes them more attractive to predation, but none ever survive.
So I took a small plastic tank and drilled some holes to be a like a breeder tank so it could sit in the big tank and let water flow through and... the little albino disappeared. I think he squeezed through the holes.
I don't have a separate tank to put one in, so when one appeared again a couple days ago, I decided to try again. The same tank (probably holds about 1.5 quarts below the holes) now has tank water in it, a handful of plants, and a very tiny baby albino pleco. No Substrate.
I'm swapping 70-80% of the water 1-2 times a day to keep it oxygenated and refresh any micro-flora in it, and flush any wastes out.
But... do I need anything else? I'm hoping with some plants, tank water, and a very, very tiny bit of an algae pellet that there's plenty for him to eat. The tank has no substrate, just plastic.
My goal is to get him about twice the current size, then he will be beyond what the other fish will eat (one angel, a bunch of congo tetras, and some SAE).
What do they eat at that age Will they just find it in the tank water and on the plant leaves? (Some of the plants have a bit of decay as well, so there's all sorts of material, but he spends all the time on the bottom or side, never on the plants floating).
It's not worth a huge effort, but I would like to save an albino if I can. Advice welcomed.
Rarely but occasionally we see an albino. Usually we see them once, then gone. Not sure whether luck of the draw, or their color makes them more attractive to predation, but none ever survive.
So I took a small plastic tank and drilled some holes to be a like a breeder tank so it could sit in the big tank and let water flow through and... the little albino disappeared. I think he squeezed through the holes.
I don't have a separate tank to put one in, so when one appeared again a couple days ago, I decided to try again. The same tank (probably holds about 1.5 quarts below the holes) now has tank water in it, a handful of plants, and a very tiny baby albino pleco. No Substrate.
I'm swapping 70-80% of the water 1-2 times a day to keep it oxygenated and refresh any micro-flora in it, and flush any wastes out.
But... do I need anything else? I'm hoping with some plants, tank water, and a very, very tiny bit of an algae pellet that there's plenty for him to eat. The tank has no substrate, just plastic.
My goal is to get him about twice the current size, then he will be beyond what the other fish will eat (one angel, a bunch of congo tetras, and some SAE).
What do they eat at that age Will they just find it in the tank water and on the plant leaves? (Some of the plants have a bit of decay as well, so there's all sorts of material, but he spends all the time on the bottom or side, never on the plants floating).
It's not worth a huge effort, but I would like to save an albino if I can. Advice welcomed.