Just a quick comment

[mrzogsx]

I must say I am pretty impressed with the website. As an avid african cichlid hobbyist, I've always considered plecs as nothing more than bottom feeders (no offense) until now where I ran into this website by accident.
The amount of information and enthusiam in this website is overwhelming and changed my mentality towards plecs in a matter of hours. I am now "infected" in learning more about this strange and mysterious creatures. This should be a very interesting journey for me.

Thanks Everyone!!!
mrzogsx

[Jackster]

I've been breeding Africans for about 15 years and have always kept some various "cool looking" plecos to.
I now am going to change one of my tanks over to strictly plecos and try to spawn them.
I'm addicted too!

[Barbie]

I raise a wide variety of Tanganyikan cichlids, and also keep 20 species of plecos in my house that I'm working with, or growing out, or growing out fry from ;). When Shane came to visit last year, he was shocked to see so many cichlids. He teased me a bit about it, but I honestly hadn't realized just how catfish crazy I seem, I guess. My husband wants to see colorful fish swimming in the tanks, and I've always kept cichlids, but the plecos are what got me hooked and have kept my attention all of these years. It used to be just collecting them though ;).

When I went to talk for the Portland club, a gentleman stopped me afterwards to tell me that he'd never had any interest in plecos prior to my talk, but he found himself totally fascinated and was planning to purchase some now. I took that as the highest form of a compliment ;).

Welcome to your latest addiction!

Barbie

[sidguppy]

Zog, if you're into African cichlids (it usually translates to Rift, or even more confined Malawi with English-speaking hobbyists IME), you should forget pleco's; but check this site for:
Synodontis

Lophiobagrus

Phyllonemus

if your African fish range beyond the Rift Lakes, or your tank is big enough you can even start checking out
Parauchenoglanis

Anaspidoglanis macrostoma

the huge
Auchenoglanis

Schilbe

and many others for riverine African cichlids wich are smaller and/or peaceful.

[kev]

The Pleco bug got me at an early age, 12 i think. Luckily my friend has one of the best shop's in England and gave me a saturday job when i was 16 . It led to me going to Brazil with him last year collecing Pleco's and Cory's oh yes and Stingray's. When the pleco bug get's you it use's both hand's and dig's in it's claw's!!!.

Kev

[sidguppy]

can't say I ever had it

I kept my share, and sure, they're pretty; but the non-pleco Loricariids are so much more good looking

I see your Gold Nugget and raise you a Pseudohemiodon!

[Phathead6669]

I always thought pl*cos where ugly until I started raising fish when I was aobut 10 or 11. At that time i still wasn't to interested in them, i bought them to keep the tank clean. After retiring my tank for 4 or 5 yrs I started it back up three years ago and all I want is pl*cos, there is so many types. I found that not that I am older I am able to care for my fish more and actually have pl*cs that made it past the juvenile stage. That is what has made me love this specie of fish is the fact that they are the first large tank fish that I have been able to have from a small juvenile to a adult and there still kicking strong.

Anyways I have discovered that for aquatic animals I am addicted to Catfish and African Clawed Frogs.

[mrzogsx]

Again very enthuse crowd here, I can almost feel the excitement vibrating thru my computer screen. I must add that the before this "revelation", I've always thought that people who raise and breed catfish and plecos must be the same or similar personalities as the fishes themselves, single, dark, mysterious loners, always wearing black clothes and is into gothic music. Unlike the snobby african cichlid hobbyist, who is the opposite, colourful, large and robust and loud. I guess I can be both, yeah why not! I'm blaberring here, anyway the suggestions made by Sidguppy is very interesting. Overall thanks for opening up a hidden treasure.

Thank you All for welcoming me
Surfs up dudes and dudettes!
mrzogsx

[bronzefry]

Each human has his/her own vision of beauty. There are so many thousands of catfish species. There's something for everybody. Welcome to Planet Catfish and catch a wave for me, please!!!

[Jools]

Thanks for the comments mrzogsx!

I went for a very pleasant stroll out along the pier at Huntingdon beach back in 1993 and called my Mum to tell her I had seen the Pacific for the first time. She was only slightly elated by this fact as in my excitement I had forgotten about the time difference.

Although I'm based in Scotland, the Planet web server is located "just up the road" in Brea.

Jools

[djw66]

I see your Gold Nugget and raise you a Pseudohemiodon!

Rock on. I concur with the Martian delegate.

Dave

[mrzogsx]

Hey Jools,
Its actually nice to know that somebody else other than a local from here has visited that concrete pier, and specially from Europe, that's super cool. HB is also known as "surf city", its nice but I really dont agree because there are other places close by that has better surf year 'round like San Clemente, Salt Creek, etc. If you ever visit us here in Orange County let me know and I'll show you around.
Anyway Brea is about 15 miles east from here, there's a cool LFS there where they sell hard to find cichlids and exotic fishes, and btw I finally got a pair of albino BN just last saturday and they are a beauty!!!
Well too much blabbering already,
Surfs up!!!
mrzogsx

[Taratron]

As for the gothic catfish club....did anyone else get the mental image of a bunch of adults and teens standing on the corner in black PC gear and trenchcoats, talking about how passe tetras and bettas are and how conformist goldfish are? ;)


Me neither. The above would make decent catfish food, save for those damn goldfish....