# If a clown pleco falls in a forest...



## Manthalynn (Aug 23, 2008)

Ok, really, if a clown pleco dies in a tank inside a cave, is it really dead? I have a 10 gallon with a shy clown pleco (which I know is expected for their breed) that I rarely see. That's cool with me as he does his job of keeping the tank clean and I occasionally throw in some algae chips for him.

But how do I know if he dies? I don't want him to rot in the tank. Every time I do a water change, should I pull out the large cave ornament (it's one piece, not rocks stacked up)? I'd rather not do that each time. Or can I just live with the assumption that if I don't see him, he's doing fine?

Thanks!

Samantha
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
10 gal
3 mollies
3 guppies
1 clown pleco

5 gal
1 mollie
1 random endler
4 ghost shrimp
20 mollie fry, oh my!


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## COM (Mar 15, 2008)

A Clown Pleco is sort of big for a 10 gallon tank, so I'd suggest that you remove the cave and check on him fairly often, if he is a hider.


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## trashion (Aug 24, 2007)

Also, clown plecs aren't really algae eaters. They mostly eat driftwood. Do you have any in your tank?


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## Manthalynn (Aug 23, 2008)

The LFS strikes again! I asked for an algae eater that would stay small and had the Clown pleco recommended to me. Nice.

On a possitive note, I saw him swimming around today, so he's doing ok for now.

No, I do not have drift wood in there. Is that something that needs to be store bought so it's treated, or can I get some wood and treat it easily myself before sticking it in a tank? I also live a couple miles from the beach, so I could get some driftwood from the beach. But I'm assuming that's loaded with salt and contaminants. Any suggestions?

Thanks for the replies!


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## trashion (Aug 24, 2007)

You COULD collect it yourself, and then boil the hell out of it for a long time, and then soak it, or you could just pick up a piece at the LFS. Most LFS carry driftwood.

Also, at a max size of 5", a clown plec is gonna be too big for a 10 gallon.


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## Guest (Sep 15, 2008)

for the record, there are several varieties of plecos sold under the "clown pleco" name. Some do get 4ish inches, while others stay 2.5-3.


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## Guest (Sep 15, 2008)

If its panaque maccus, they ARE very good algae eaters, but they do need driftwood in their diet. The one I had cleaned an entire tank covered in green algae within a matter of days, and he also munched on the driftwood in the tank.


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## fishidjit (Jul 20, 2008)

Almost all species of Plecos need driftwood to chew on.They need it to help with digestion.
It is not actually a food source.Kind of like grit for birds.


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## Manthalynn (Aug 23, 2008)

Thanks all for the help! I'll see if I can pick up some driftwood at the petstore tomorrow.


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## Manthalynn (Aug 23, 2008)

Just thought I'd leave a conclusion for all the newbies like me who search these boards and want to know the end of the story.

I got a piece of driftwood (rootwood, I believe) and planted it with Anubias and java moss. I can almost always find my little clown pleco on this and not in the fake resin cave structure anymore. So, thanks for the driftwood tip! He loves it!


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## jamesandmanda (Sep 17, 2008)

mine stays in a hole in driftwood 95% of the time. sometimes i wont see it for days


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## Manthalynn (Aug 23, 2008)

Luckily, mine is shaped so that if I peak in at the right angle, I can always find him. Makes me feel better!


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