[Citizen Snips]

I have a 40 gallon tall tank planted with a baby ornate bichir that plans on growing quickly.

I know they're some plecos that stay small, (bristlenose, rubbernose etc) but most get massive.

Any specific types you guys would suggest for my tank?

Here's a photo

 

[FishMatt]

A clown plec stays small at about 3.5 inches Rubbers don't get all that big.

 

[hXcChic22]

We have had both clown and rubberlips.
IMO, rubberlips are very funny and entertaining to watch. Because of their unusual nose shape, it can be quite funny to watch them nom up the side of a tank.
Our clown pleco spends ALL of his time that we're awake hiding behind te sponge filter in his tank. The only time we see him is when we take the sponge out to clean it or if we chase him out from behind it. The rubberlip, on the other hand, spent a lot of time out in the open.

 

[stuby]

A nice Hypancistrus would do nice in there...it needs a few more hiding places yet though. L129, L174, L340, L260, L400, L270, L411, L262, ect. ect. Depends on how much you want to pay for a fish too....The L104 (clown plec) might like the plants a little to much....and make a snack out of them.

 

[toddnbecka]

I wouldn't recommend any Hypancistrus for that tank. A BN would be the least expensive meal for the bicher. I had an ornate in a 55 years ago. It was maybe 8" when I tossed in a group of 2" Synodontis eupterus. I thought their spines would be sufficient defense, but they didn't last a day. I saw one actually going down the hatch tail-first, squeaking as if calling for help, but there wasn't anything I could do for it.
Have you ever seen a fully grown ornate bicher? That 40 simply isn't big enough for the long haul.

 

[Obsidian]

Take a stroll through Planet Catfish. They have a listing of pretty much every known pleco and their sized, feeding habits, everything. I have an L15 that I enjoy but she is very reclusive. Might not be a good solution if you want a fish you can see all the time but they are fun. Common name is candy striped plecostamus.

http://www.planetcatfish.com/

 

[Citizen Snips]

the long haul is a long way away, a friend of mine has a full grown senegal in the same tank and he is happy as a clam.

Anyway that Hypancistrus is beautiful but yeah I know the pleco would be armored enough and large enough to protect itself.

No?

 

[Peeps]

I have a rubber pleco in my 30 gallon and they stay really small. They are cute too. He loves his veggies.

 

[toddnbecka]

An armored pleco may be well enough protected from fish nipping at it, but that won't keep it from being swallowed whole. Hypancistrus aren't armored in any case, and are very slow-growing fish. They're also nocturnal, so you really aren't likely to see them very often (mainly when you're cleaning the tank) if they have suitable cover.
The L-204 Panaque (aka flash pleco) is a bit more active/visible than Hypancistrus IME, and only grows to about 5" max. They're wood eaters, will die if they don't have wood in the tank to gnaw on, and do produce a lot of sawdust poop.