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Retirement and forum shutdown (17 Jan 2022)

Hi,

John Howell who has managed the forum for years is getting on and wishes to retire from the role of managing it.
Over the years, he has managed the forum through good days and bad days and he has always been fair.
He has managed to bring his passion for fish keeping to the forum and keep it going for so long.

I wish to thank John for his hard work in keeping the forum going.

With John wishing to "retire" from the role of managing the forum and the forum receiving very little traffic, I think we must agree that forum has come to a natural conclusion and it's time to put it to rest.

I am proposing that the forum be made read-only from March 2022 onwards and that no new users or content be created. The website is still registered for several more years, so the content will still be accessible but no new topics or replies will be allowed.

If there is interest from the ITFS or other fish keeping clubs, we may redirect traffic to them or to a Facebook group but will not actively manage it.

I'd like to thank everyone over the years who helped with forum, posted a reply, started a new topic, ask a question and helped a newbie in fish keeping. And thank you to the sponsors who helped us along the away. Hopefully it made the hobby stronger.

I'd especially like to thank John Howell and Valerie Rousseau for all of their contributions, without them the forum would have never been has successful.

Thank you
Darragh Sherwin

Why do plecos sometimes get patchy?

  • 2poc (2poc)
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01 Mar 2008 14:48 #1 by 2poc (2poc)
Why do plecos sometimes get patchy? was created by 2poc (2poc)
I've noticed as some plecos get older they get patchy discolouration on their bodies.

You see it a lot with large common plecs whereas some don't seem to be affected.

I have a bristlenose about 2 inches long & he is starting to get the same changes to his pattern.

I'm sure its not disease etc, but wonder if it could be related to diet as I'd rather he kept his original uniform pattern.

Anyone know what this is & whether it's preventable?

Cheers,
Patrick

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01 Mar 2008 15:23 #2 by Daragh_Owens (Daragh Owens)
Usually plecos go pale, typically light patches down either side of the dorsal, there or four of them on each side, when they are disturbed or brought out into the light. If the fish is displaying like that all the time I suspect something is making him uncomfortable, are there enough hiding places, is there a fish in the tank hassling him, does he have enough room etc.

Can you post a photo?

Most fish fade with age, but as ancistrus live a very long time, I doubt it is age that in causing the problem here.

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01 Mar 2008 15:47 #3 by 2poc (2poc)
Replied by 2poc (2poc) on topic Re:Why do plecos sometimes get patchy?
Thanks Daragh,

The fish is one of the small golden bristlenose from patstop a while back so certainly not related to age.

He is in 130 litres of water with not many other fish but I use the tank to raise my cichlid fry so there's not a huge amount of decor.

I'll have a bit of a redesign & see if he improves with more hiding places. Will try & get a photo but it seems plecos don't like the paparazzi ;)

-Patrick

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01 Mar 2008 22:19 #4 by suckers (matt lait)
(sorry for hijacking this post)
ive noticed the same with my 2 pleco's .
9 inch sailfin and 2 1/2 bristlenose pleco but they have plenty of cover. (plus 200ish ltrs)
looking forward to more info if there is any on the way!

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01 Mar 2008 22:31 #5 by Daragh_Owens (Daragh Owens)
The lights maybe too bright for them, when you turn on the lights are they faded already or do they only fade then?

I don't think you have anything to worry about, some plecos go pale more easily than others.

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01 Mar 2008 22:51 #6 by suckers (matt lait)
i only have the lights on from about 5 till 11 pm
sucker/sailfin stays under cover all day and only apears when all lights are off (except blue LED's which i put on when the tv is on)
bristlenose stays out all day.
both feed well so i suppose all is ok btw i noticed the corys fade well when they get older so that proves fish fade with age!
bit like my hair!!!!! :-)
matt

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