Question on "worker" fishes

[Adoketa]

I have recently started keeping apistogrammas. Previously when i was keeping bettas and guppies, i put in some plecos to clean the glass and to clear up uneaten food, However, i have reason to believe the plecos will eat the eggs and/or fry of the apistos.
My question is, will I be able to use ottos or ramshorn snails instead?

 

[Mike Wise]

First, welcome to the forum!

Yes, large snails (some apistos will eat small ones) and ottos (a loricarid like other plecos) do work with most apistos. Others on the forum have used other small loricarids successfully, too.

 

[Adoketa]

Thanks, Mike. I've been using the bristlenoses and the high fin gibbiceps. They grow too fast and they mow down the apisto eggs.
I hope the ottos will do the job without causing harm. gonna load up on a few.
Thanks again.

 

[Apistomaster]

I sometimes keep some Otocinclus in Apistogramma breeding tanks and they are OK. Also have cherry shrimp living in almost every tank they can survive.
I breed the relatively large Royal Twig Catfish, Sturisoma aureum and so I have used juveniles up to 3-1/2 inches as my algae eater with Apistogramma.
They are very outgoing and not nocturnal , at least compared to other Loricaridae and they don't like going into cave very much. This makes them pretty good tank mates at the small sizes.

I have begun keeping a miniature suckermouth cat, Parotocinclus cf eppleyi that appears to only reach 1 inches TL. I still have much to learn but so far they have been very compatible with a pair of A. trifasciata and amazingly good algae eaters for such small cats. They actually are better algae eaters than Otocinclus which must out weigh them by 10 or 12 times!