Tetras killed and ate my Pleco?!?

[BIG-G]

Where do you live? No address just area? State? Do you have ants? Or anything of the sort?
I had a Betta die so I chucked it outside next day clean bones. it was ants. Now I'm not saying for sure cause I have no way of knowing. but it's a possibility. It jumped out then got stripped clean.

 

[GeoPesner]

I pulled the skeleton out of the tank and it was like that I wasn't going to just leave it there. That's why the picture is outside not inside. I have no idea how it was possible as I didn't think it was. But I haven't done anything to the skeleton other than pull it out of the tank and that pic was no more than 2 minutes after being pulled out.

 

[BIG-G]

oh okay. From your first post I thought you found it on the floor like that. How many other fish are in the tank? Many mouths can make quick work.
I had a rubber lip pleco disappear the same way, just found bones but I can't say how long it was dead because It wasn't uncommon for me to not see it for a day or two at a time.

 

[GeoPesner]

There's around maybe 20 fish in the tank including him. They are all always hungry but I just never thought a pleco could be picked off like that from tetras

 

[Drstrangelove]

I pulled the skeleton out of the tank and it was like that I wasn't going to just leave it there. That's why the picture is outside not inside. I have no idea how it was possible as I didn't think it was. But I haven't done anything to the skeleton other than pull it out of the tank and that pic was no more than 2 minutes after being

I wake up and go to do a water change and find him on the floor as a bone dry Skelton!

First you said the pleco was on the floor and you said you found it bone dry. Your words.

Then you said it was really in the tank and .... where it was obviously not bone dry.

Really? Really?

 

[Drstrangelove]

They are all always hungry but I just never thought a pleco could be picked off like that from tetras

Can anyone shed some light on how some tetras could do that?

Your title is: Tetras killed and ate my Pleco?!?

And you keep saying tetras. Why? 20 tetras can't eat the scales and flesh off a 6-inch fish in 12 hours. Why not? Because twenty tetras in total weight would weigh around 48 grams while one 6-inch pleco would weigh 40 grams.

Your argument seems to be that tetras can eat nearly their own weight in a 12-hour period, something which isn't remotely true.

 

[magpie]

He said that he has black skirts, gouramis, rainbowfish and barbs in there. I also think I see some angels. And there's either a snail or a decoration with a fake snail on it. We're not just talking a school of neon tetras. I don't see why a feeding frenzy couldn't have happened. It does seem fast for a timeline though.

I am still confused on the floor / tank thing too... conflicting statements.

 

[RajaVino]

They may be in hungry. Thats y they may eat when he died. When did ur fishes at last?

 

[FriedFlowerHornFillet]

If you found it on the floor it was obviously ants.
In the tank it was probably the rainbowfish that killed it. Once a pleco dies they start taking everything out from the belly. The armored top just isn't edible. Usually you'll find them that way where the top is untouched and the bottom isn't there anymore. Usually by the time it's skeletonized it's in brittle pieces. I think however sometimes the skin might slough off completely leaving bones. I've found a few complete sets 24 hours later in a lemon tetra (GMO glo fish) tank. We got a really sweet deal on brown zebra pleco's I was going to buy one in the morning with my employee discount...
Piranhas and tetras are characins too. We tend to forget that sometimes.

 

[duanes]

When my fish die of a non-disease related situation, I place them in a small sump with a few shrimp, and a few snails. The photos below are an almost 7"- 9" Geophagine after only a few hours.