Can Plecos live in ponds or lakes? (breed, food, small)

[PantherPride]

Please don't release there is enough nonnative species in our wild places... native species are vanishing because of this

personally maybe you should peacefully put the fish down with clove oil as it will probably suffer for years in a tank that unsuitable... sad but true.. Many Plecos type fishes are giants that can grow to be over 3 or 2 feet! you really need a tank of a couple hundred gallons to properly house one.



I think you should carefully consitter fish types before perchice. Clown, rubber and bristlenose are a few types that don't grow to giants.

[rainroosty]

Plecos are living in our local lakes and waters here in Palm Beach County, Florida. They are supposedly harming the native species here. You really shouldn't release that fish anywhere! It needs to remain captive, in someone's aquarium! I'll be happy to post more information if you would like me too....I'm 100% postive of what I am saying here, and in fact I have seen Plecos here in my town park, John Prince Park, in the big lake and it's canals and estuaries.

[riaelise]

I thought plecos actually were beneficial in that they ate algae and plant matter.

[Herbrocks]

Originally Posted by riaelise

I thought plecos actually were beneficial in that they ate algae and plant matter.

Any alien species can affect native fish populations in different ways, even aliens that do not seem offensive. Better to keep em in tanks

[pvjd]

Originally Posted by riaelise

I thought plecos actually were beneficial in that they ate algae and plant matter.

That is beneficial for a home aquarium, but not necessarily for a water mass with it's own ecosystem. It would disrupt the natural balance and take away from the native inhabitants. Personally, I am surprised to hear that the pleco has killed other fish. They are typically pretty peaceful and just chill in one spot until they have to move to another for more algae.

[lifelongMOgal]

Originally Posted by southern no more

Anyone know the answer to this? I have one and he is all I have because he is aggressive and killed my other fish. I am kinda wanting to get rid of him and wondered if I could release him in the wild. I dont want to kill him of course so would like to know if he would survive this. Thanks!

NEVER release a non-native fish into the wild. Your action could destroy an ecosystem! Most likely if you contact your state fish and game you will find it is illegal too!

[HtownLove]

Yeah, like others have said you should never release a fish into the wild, apart from ecosystem changes, captive raised fish may introduce diseases to the native population.

furthermore Plecos are soft water fish. If the water you are releasing it into has too much salts the pleco will not survive.

I recommend you do as others have recommended and put it up for adoption on craigslist. You may also go around a couple of restaurants that have show tanks. They sometimes will give you 20 bucks for the pleco.

I have 4 massive ones right now that I might give away soon. two are 21 inches long and two are about 14 inches long. They are not aggressive to my other fish at all

[mr. question]

how to build a pond for only plecos

[missik999]

I would suggest putting up a "free to good home" sign on bulletin boards at pet shops or aquarium specialty stores. I gave away a huge, aggressive Oscar several years ago to a person who LOVED him and thanked me repeatedly.

[Kevin12345]

don't put him in a lake if the pleco does'nt belongs from ur origin it can harm the eco-system of the lake. u can put pleco in a pond as it is a hardy fish and it can live also in a variety of water conditions.