question about plecos

[chrisinha]

is bristlenose and rubberlip (or rubbernose or bulldog) pleco the same fish???

[DavidDoyle]

No.

http://www.planetcatfish.com/core/index.php

[Damon]

Though in many lfs they are interchanged (sigh) they are not the same. The bulldog and rubberlipped pleco are. The bristlenosed pleco is easily identified (when mature) by the excessive barbels (moreso on the male).

[chrisinha]

oh i see...

which one is the best algae eater? and which one stays smaller?

[Fishnut2]

The common BN...Ancistrus Sp. is probably the better algae eater, and stays around 4" (usually). I have seen them as big as 6", but that is rare. All of the Ancistrus have bristles on thier nose...but I'm certain you are asking about the common BN. They are cheap/hardy/great algae eaters/stay relatively small/easy to breed/easy to raise/and easy to sell. Can you tell they're one of my favs?

[fishfreaks]

from personal expericnce with both plecos, they are both great algae eaters and they both stay smaller then most plecos. the bristlenose aka bushynose, looks like he has a bush on his head.

[chrisinha]

Originally Posted by Fishnut2 @ Mon Mar 07, 2005 7:02 pm The common BN...Ancistrus Sp. is probably the better algae eater, and stays around 4" (usually). I have seen them as big as 6", but that is rare. All of the Ancistrus have bristles on thier nose...but I'm certain you are asking about the common BN. They are cheap/hardy/great algae eaters/stay relatively small/easy to breed/easy to raise/and easy to sell. Can you tell they're one of my favs? ****

so... BN stands for "bristlenose" or" bushynose"??
and where can i find one??
does it tolerate water temp between 74 - 78F?

[fishfreaks]

we keep all of our tanks at a steady 78 and we have a bushynose in our 55 gallon so im sure he would do just fine