"New" Ranger Pleco

[BlackLabelCarling]

I bought some plecos  (two groups from two different shipments) at my favorite LFS and they were sold as "New Ranger" Plecos (Pterygoplichthys sp.). Supposedly they stay under 6". First off, they are gorgeous fish and I love watching them, but I am wary about them being undescribed. It is possible they end up being P. weberi (Ranger Pleco) or worse  P. punctatus (Imperial Ranger Pleco). The New Ranger, Ranger and Imperial Ranger juveniles look very similar so it could be easy to mixed them up, especially when they are wild caught.

They've definitely varied in growth rate, but I believe that could be because a few had internal parasites inhibiting their absorption of nutrients. They all just finished a round of Paracleanse so hopefully the smaller babies will catch up. Also, the first group of 4 I got are smaller than the second set of 6 that I got from a different shipment, 

Does anyone have any insight on these plecos? I did see one Co-Op unboxing where these we part of the shipment and I've heard of them showing up on stock lists recently. My hope is that I was given correct information by my LFS who has been around for 30 years, but I'm afraid I will have 10 monsters on my hands in a year or two! 

[Dean’s Fishroom]

Without an accurate L number I'm afraid you just have to wait and see how they grow out. However those are nice looking plecos and if they become to large for your tanks I don't think you would have a very hard time finding a person or shop to re-home them. The pattern in the dorsal and tail, really nice.

[BlackLabelCarling]

28 minutes ago, Dean’s Fishroom said:

Without an accurate L number I'm afraid you just have to wait and see how they grow out. However those are nice looking plecos and if they become to large for your tanks I don't think you would have a very hard time finding a person or shop to re-home them. The pattern in the dorsal and tail, really nice.

Thanks again, Dean! I'm definitely enjoying them while waiting for them to grow out. They are surprisingly outgoing and not skittish in the least! My hope was to eventually have a breeding group, but we'll see what happens.  

[gcalberto]

7 minutes ago, BlackLabelCarling said:

Thanks again, Dean! I'm definitely enjoying them while waiting for them to grow out. They are surprisingly outgoing and not skittish in the least! My hope was to eventually have a breeding group, but we'll see what happens.  

I had a similar problem with plecos. Try going to the planet catfish website and posting there. There are some experts in plecos who might be able to help you. 

And yes, those are gorgeous plecos indeed 

Edited August 14, 2020 by gcalberto

[Barbvday]

I just got some TINY plecos that came in as “mini ranger” plecos. Supposedly plecos from that locality only grow to about 2”

Guess time will tell.

 

[DavidMoss]

Anyone have any updates? I found some at my LFS and wanted to know if I should try them or not in my 14g cube. Thanks in advance!

[Dtolb15]

On 2/25/2023 at 9:30 PM, DavidMoss said:

Anyone have any updates? I found some at my LFS and wanted to know if I should try them or not in my 14g cube. Thanks in advance!

I am also wondering... considering picking up a few myself! 

[Barbvday]

They all got big sadly, mine are at around 4-5” now but there’s reports of even bigger ones.