Para Pleco L270

Panaque cf. nigrolineatus L270, the Para Pleco, is a wood-eating loricariid from the Para state of Brazil. It belongs to the broader Royal Pleco complex and displays the characteristic Panaque traits: bold dark transverse stripes on a warm golden-brown ground colour, vivid red eyes, and spoon-shaped teeth specifically adapted for rasping and consuming cellulose from driftwood. It is slightly smaller on average than the classic L010 Royal Pleco forms.

The Para Pleco requires a large aquarium of at least 250 L with substantial quantities of driftwood for rasping. Robust filtration is essential to manage the considerable waste produced by its wood-consuming diet. Supplementary foods including algae wafers, Repashy Soilent Green, and blanched vegetables round out its primarily herbivorous diet.

Like all Panaque, it is territorial toward conspecifics and similarly shaped large plecos. It is otherwise peaceful toward unrelated tankmates and adds a dramatic, active presence to large South American biotope aquariums. It will destroy soft-leaved plants and should not be kept in heavily planted setups.

Water: 25–29°C, pH 6.0–7.5, soft to moderately hard; very strong filtration for wood-consumption waste. Tank: Minimum 250 L; large driftwood pieces for rasping, caves, no soft plants. Feeding: Wood rasper; supplement with Repashy, sinking wafers, blanched vegetables; occasional meaty foods. Breeding: Cave spawner; rarely achieved in captivity; very large, mature setups required. Compatibility: Territorial toward other large plecos; peaceful with unrelated community fish.