Is this not a common pleco?

[señor_pescados_felices]

hey what kind of pleco is this?I borrowed it from another members post somewhere I think it was mrfish.It was being referred to as a L196 but I cant find any info on L196.

I ask because my LFS has one of these pushing maybe 12" in with their Xlarge common/sailfin plecos which are $15-$20 and it looks noticeably different than the commons or sailfins.Almost giraffe-like spots separated with a golden color. It looks almost exactly the same as this pic but maybe with a little more color....almost orange around the edge of its tail fin.

I took pics with my phone but they are a pain to get on my comp so I havnt got around to it yet.

PS:would it mess with my 10" Juruense catfish?I had a common beating up on a much larger TSN awhile back....

 

[dmopar74]

gibbiceps, great pleco, pretty territorial.http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/species.php?species_id=148

 

[señor_pescados_felices]

ah thanks for the clarification.

So this (G.Gibbiceps) is a sailfin pleco?all the other plecos in the tank must have been actual H.plecostomus then?

This one is certainly much better looking than the H.Pleco,is $20 a good price for one?

And does anybody know if it will mess with my juruense?I don't even want to risk it if its a likelihood at all.I was told S.eupterous would be okay with my clown loaches and it killed all of them.

 

[dmopar74]

ah thanks for the clarification.

So this (G.Gibbiceps) is a sailfin pleco?all the other plecos in the tank must have been actual H.plecostomus then?

This one is certainly much better looking than the H.Pleco,is $20 a good price for one?

And does anybody know if it will mess with my juruense?I don't even want to risk it if its a likelihood at all.I was told S.eupterous would be okay with my clown loaches and it killed all of them.

yeah a gibby is the sailfin pleco. i bought mine from petco for $8 at 3-4" 2 1/2 years ago, its now 18" and pretty fiesty. $20 for a 12"er seems good to me, but yes there is a possibility that it could cause some trouble.

 

[WyldFya]

Gibbiceps are often sold as commons, as they still fall under the same basic coloration and pattern. Very rarely are plecos sold as commons actually Hypostomus plecostomus. Generally they are some species of Pterygoplichthys.

 

[loach43]

I refer to pterygoplichthys as "the new common pleco" since they dominate the market. In the early 70's, hypostomus was a more commonly available pleco than they are now.

 

[gollum]

I believe that you can identify juvenile sailfins from commons by their dorsal fin ...it always touches the small (mini dorsal fin ) just behind it...can't recall that fin name right now...(caudal ?)
can someone confirm this please

 

[WyldFya]

Adipose fin, and sailfins, or gibbiceps are still commons. Some stores will split them up, but they are often just another fish in the commons tank.

 

[señor_pescados_felices]

alright thanks for the info guys I think I'll pass on this one.