this post was submitted on 30 Sep 2023
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I'm struggling with vanishing neon tetras. Can my pleco be eating them? (lemmy.world)
submitted 1 year ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
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First of all I want to thank you guys for helping me identify my eel. I haven't felt this kind of help in a small community anywhere else.

Now for the tetra's we had a dissappearing issue when we had a rainbow shark. We ended up getting rid of the shark and getting tetras till we had 20. Now we're down to 12. I currently have 3 swordtails, 2 loaches, a small brisslemouth pleco and a larger pleco that survived. Plus 2 eels, one that was answered here and another is a zigzag eel.

Am I having a problem with hiding spots? I know I don't have enough plants. I'm thinking of getting more moss and covering the area under the wood structure on the right.

Or are they getting sucked up the filter? I thought this but couldn't find any evidence in the filter system. Any advice would be fully appreciated.

Here's the pleco I'm questioning.

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[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

How long have you had these neons and what are your current water parameters?

Neons tend to be mass bred/produced now and aren’t always the healthiest when they arrive in the pet stores. So if they’re new, they may just unfortunately be dying and then your other fish may eat the bodies before you find it.

Similarly, if water parameters aren’t great they could be dying from that and same end result.

I doubt your pleco is catching and eating any neons. If any of your fish are likely culprits, I’d think its the eels, esp since I believe they’re nocturnal hunters? But I’ve never kept eels myself and don’t have much knowledge regarding that.

Edit: I just went to see your other post and it appears the other “eel” is a bichir. If it is indeed a fish eating your neons, that’s the likeliest culprit

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 year ago

You're 100% right! I found the culprit when I noticed just now in the middle of the night my tetras were scattered. I followed along and this bastard just snatched one up in front of me. I have to sleep so I'll be bagging him tomorrow and returning him.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Hopefully it’s not a bobbit worm…

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Oh f how would I know?!

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

Set up a security camera? Though they usually get in by eggs having been attached to corals/plants. Have you put any new plants in in the past few months?

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 year ago

Pretty sure Bobbit worms only survive in salt water. They are typically introduced in coral and live rock to reef tanks. Highly doubtful that's what you have going on here.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I put new plants in just last month. First time ever. But I'm not sure as they were from a fresh water store. I have cameras but I wouldn't know what to look for, the fish move around a lot. I'll try that though. See if I can see anything and narrow it down.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

The plecostomus? I don't intend to sound rude but have you seen it's mouth? A plecostomus has a mouth for scraping algae off of walls and sticking to said walls. If it was eating them. You would see scraped up body

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

You're not rude. I have seen the mouth but mostly made the question because of how big the mouth is.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Thank you for taking it well. As a follow up I asked my mom who has had plecostomuses since before I was born. She said they will only eat them if they are already dead. So it is possible but something else is killing them

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Yeah it was ultimately the bichir. I posted a few pictures in this post. Had to get rid of it. Luckily my fish guy took it off my hands and replaced a few of the tetras for it even though I didn't get the bichir from him. He was very upset at whoever sold me the bichir and said they'd be ok with the tetras. The more you know.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I am by no means a fish expert, but I thought eels ate other fish.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Well it was the bichir eel. Just caught it.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

Well, that definitely sucks but I’m glad you figured it out.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Uhm I think the eels I got are supposed to be passive. Besides, their mouths are way too small to eat one of the tetras. At least I think so...

Edit : oh shoot I just looked up zigzag eel and they can prey on smaller fish. But so weird. It's so tiny. And the guy I got it from had it in a tank with tetras. He seemed knowledgeable so I trusted his opinion. I'll talk to him again next time I go to his store.