Common Pleco L

General information

While the common pleco name is shared across several plecos the Hypostomus plecostomus is one of the larger of the group and only grows to approximately 20 inches long.

Hypostomus plecostomus are omnivores scavengers and are not a picky eater. They actively feed off the bottom of the aquarium, they get most of their nutrition from leftover food, decaying plants, and algae. If there is no algae or leftover food present, supplement with high-quality flake food, sinking carnivore pellets, freeze-dried bloodworms, and tubifex.

The Hypostomus plecostomus is native in tropical northeastern parts of South America; it naturally occurs in northeastern Brazil, the Guianas, and Trinidad and Tobago. In the United States, a Pterygoplichthys species have been introduced to some regions in the South, most likely released by aquarists into the local waters. They are present in a lake in the neighborhood of Hammock Trace Preserve in Melbourne, Florida. In Texas, reproducing populations occur in spring-influenced habitats of the San Antonio River (Bexar County), Comal Springs (Comal County), San Marcos River (Hays County), and San Felipe Creek (Val Verde County), as well as in drainage canals in the Rio Grande Valley and Houston.