Ancistrus sp. L279

At both the Catfish Convention and the Aquafest auction, I picked up a bag of Ancistrus sp. L279 dwarf bushy-nosed plecos. After keeping them for other a year, I think this species is a fantastic match for a planted aquarium. They max out in length around 4 inches so they’re not going to inadvertently uproot plants from their size. Mine are not shy, so I see them on wood or lounging on open substrate, and they’re fairly active algae eaters. Plus, they’re very attractive fish with white markings on the tips of their tail, and many have very nice spots on their body. I’m guessing that the spots are a gender distinction because some of mine have very pronounced ones, and others not so much.

I don’t have any with huge sections of tentacles/growths on their snout, but they do have some small barbels. I’m hoping that as my latest batch grows up, they’ll develop these further. I’ve seen this species posted on Aquabid, sometimes called Ancistrus sp. ‘Huaca Mayo,’ so if you come across this listing, give them a try — they’re a great little ancistrus!