Pleco with a kind of leopard print and stripey fins? Not a leopard pleco though I think

[StripeyPleco]

Edit: I think maybe it is a Hypancistrus L 401

I was given this fish and a neon tetra today from someone closing down their tank.

Anyone able to tell me what kind of pleco it is please? She's around 6cm. Bit worried she's going to get huge, he had her in a 100 liter tank i think.

I've had a look online and thought maybe a leopard pleco but the fins and pattern seem a bit different, would be happy to be corrected though. Any help would be really appreciated.

[bekateen]

Hi @StripeyPleco,

Welcome to PlanetCatfish!

That's a nice looking pleco you got. Definitely

Hypancistrus

. I'm not good at differentiating the various black & white or black & yellow forms, so I hope someone else can pipe up with an opinion.

Cheers,
Eric

[StripeyPleco]

Hi Eric, thank you. It seems like a lovely forum.

After googling Hypancistrus and looking at the pictures I think she might be Hypancistrus L 401.

I'm doing some research on how to best care for her now, think I have to turn the tanks temperature up a little (it's 25 or 26 now) and figure out how to feed her bloodworm or brine shrimp without the tetras eating them all.

[bekateen]

Looking at the strong, deep bifurcation of the caudal fin margin, I suspect

Hypancistrus sp(l401)

is not correct. When I think of this tail shape,

Hypancistrus sp(l066)

and

Hypancistrus sp(l400)

come to my mind. I don't know if either is correct, but I'm leaning towards

Hypancistrus sp(l400)

.

Cheers, Eric

[StripeyPleco]

Reddit agrees with you fwiw, seems like he's either l400, l333 or l066. Thanks again for the help.

[bekateen]

Reddit agrees with you fwiw, seems like he's either l400, l333 or l066. Thanks again for the help.

I've never kept L066, but I've had L333. From what I've read online, L333 doesn't have such a deeply indented tail either and L066 is a more delicate fish in terms of its body shape, particularly along the caudal peduncle. That's why I'm leaning towards L400. Then again, genetically L066 and L333 are believed scientifically to be the same species, so slight differences in body shape may be meaningless. I don't know if L400 is considered part of this L066-L333 species.

Cheers,
Eric

[StripeyPleco]

In case you were interested in an update I heard back from the man i got the pleco from, he told me she is a 'King Tiger Pleco' L066.

[bekateen]

That's possible. Thanks.