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I just received a tiny bristlenose pleco from my lfs. It's about an inch long and I can't wait to add it to my 55g with my rubberlip pleco. I'm just curiosity about something. How quickly will they grow and at what age do they start to show their genders? I'll post a picture of it soon, but I'm gonna call it a him for now. I'm wondering how old he is, since he's only an inch. I'm wondering if he'll be able to handle the trip from my lfs to my house, since its a 30 minute drive. I heard as well that they need driftwood in their diet. Is this true?

Depending on how well it was fed it's anywhere from 3-6 months old. It should be able to handle transport easily.

BN pleco's do best with a lot of vegetation and cellulose in their diet. They can get some of this from wood but alternatives like cucumber and zucchini work just as well.

It will likely be another 6 months to a year before you are able to see any of the bristles that can identify it as a male.

Andy

Ok, thank you! They look about this big.

That's about the size I got mine. I think it'll take about one and a half to two years to show bristles if it's a male. They'll be fine during transport. They do need bogwood for cellulose and aufwuchs, (tiny flora and fauna living on the bogwood), but be sure to feed them additional vegetables. Some of mine starved because I only gave them algae wafers once every so often. I would suggest lettuce leaves and carrots, and zucchini or cucumber as a special treat. I don't feed seedy veggies very often 'cause mine leaves the seeds. Real mess ;) . Have fun!

With regular water changes and enough food you should see bristles on a male within 3 or 4 months.

Thanks for the correction. The only Ancistrus I had who grew bristles in my tank was also the only one who I fed zucchini and lettuce to every day, so that explains it.