Great for algae control, only draw back is it can be a bit territoral, likes to dig and have some where to hide.
daniel
I have two of these guys. They are about 6 inches long and I love them. they rarely fight but I have a long 55 gallon tank with lots of hiding spots. Gorgeous bottom feeders!
This is the worst fish I've ever owned. Grew like a weed and got uglier and meaner the bigger it got. It either outright killed or bullied to death almost every fish I ever tried to keep with it. They can grow up to 12" and as they get bigger they tend to stop eating algae and instead outcompete all the other fish for fish food. I really would not recommend this fish.
i agree and feel this fish is not suitable for peaceful aquariums. they get large and stop eating algae. they have killed many fish in my aquarium, even larger ones. the albino ones do look nice when they get larger but i would stay far from them.
When small and fed extremely well these guys are peaceful. However, they do get aggressive if they're even the slightest bit hungry. I had one with koi long ago and these guys killed the koi. They like to eat the slime coat on bigger fish. And like someone mentioned before as they get bigger they stop eating algae. I think the change in diet might be due to some sort of preparation for breeding. They also get very lazy once they get large. I think these guys would do well with small fish like cardinals and other small quick tetras. Larger fish have larger bodies in which these guys can suck on and eventually kill.