Pleco age

freckledimple · Post by **freckledimple** » 30 Nov 2006, 01:53

When is a commomn pleco considered an adult?

fish fodder · Post by **fish fodder** » 30 Nov 2006, 02:03

when its big! im sure someone else will tell you in more detail

apistomaster · Post by **apistomaster** » 30 Nov 2006, 05:36

I am not an expert on their biology but I think most can begin spawning within two years of age. They are sexually mature before they reach their maximum size. Fish continue to grow as long as they are alive and healthy. Many probably can begin spawning at 1 year in the wild and they live a long time. I personally owned one Liposarcus pardalis that lived to 18 years of aquarium life. They were all wild caught back then and not yet bred commercially or at all, for that matter. That was 1971 when it died. It measured 19 inches nose to end of tail. It died of an accident. It might have lived years longer.

MatsP · Post by **MatsP** » 30 Nov 2006, 10:24

Freckledpimple: I don't think there is a concrete answer to your question, because it depends first and foremost on the definition of "adult".

With humans, we define adult as somewhere around 20 years of age [give or take a few depending on the culture and individual differences]. That is above the age of sexual maturity, and around the age when humans stop growing.

As described, fish don't stop growing ever (they slow down at some stage, but never really STOP), so we can't use that as a measure of "adult".

Sexual maturity isn't what humans use as a definition of "adult", but for fish, it's probably a good measure. In which case, it's when the fish is around two years old. I'd guess that the fish you buy in the shop at 2-3" is a few months old (less than a year, that's for sure)... Note also that the amount of time to reach sexual maturity will vary depending on the fish's growth, so if the fish is fed well, it will grow up quicker and reach maturity sooner - and conversely, if it's NOT fed well, it will take longer.

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Mats