Breeding Bristlenose...?

[bmxer4ever]

Anyone have any experience with breeding Bristlenose Plecos?
I understand it's only the males that have the bristles, but at what size do they show?
I have one 3" male in quarantine right now and two baby 1" in my fry tank.
How big do they need to be to breed and what tank set up should I use?
Since my male cost me £6 ($10) I thought this cud be a good species to try as at least I cud get some good store credit for the fry... Plus I like the little buggers - the 1" dudes are hilarious! I want more...

 

[filiportela]

use a pipe and a lot of oxygen and moving whater... they breed easy...

 

[bmxer4ever]

What size do they breed from? And how big a tank? I'm kinda in the dark with these guys...

 

[LoTech]

A ten gallon tank is fine for a breeding pair.

The male prefers a narrow cave with a closed end.

Your youngsters are too young to breed or sex. As they get older, perhaps around 2.5 inches, you will be able to tell the difference between male and female brisltes.

Fry are sensitive until about 1.75 inches, and around here the fish stores don't want them any smaller than that.

Bushynose grow slowly, so it takes quite a while to get the fry large enough to sell.

Albino Ancistrus are more popular than natural.
Long finned Ancistrus are currently more poopular than natural.
Long finned albino...

My process: I had my breeders set up in my community tanks. After the eggs were laid (30 to 80 eggs), the male stays in the cave. I would pull the cave, proud daddy and all, and put it in a fry tank. That way, nothing would eat the fry and I didn't have to dedicate a tank to breeding one fish. Once the fry absorbed the yolk sac, I pulled the cave (with dad in it) and returned it to the community tank, leaving the babies to grow in the fry tank. Repeat every 3 weeks if you feed well.

Good luck and have fun. They are hilarious when they are young.

 

[bmxer4ever]

Thankyou kind sir! The bristlenose in my community tank has bristles showing - he's about two inches. The 2 little ones that are cleaning my platy fry tank are about half that size, so I guess I'll just have to wait and see what they turn out to be.
And they keep us entertained every day...!