Hypostomus plecostomus, also known as the suckermouth catfish or the common pleco, is a tropicalfish belonging to the armored catfish family, named for the armor-like longitudinal rows of scutes that cover the upper parts of the head and body. Although the name Hypostomus plecostomus is often used to refer to common plecostomus sold in aquarium shops, most are actually members of other genera. Suckermouth catfish are of little or no value as a food fish, although they are at least occasionally consumed over their native range. A demand exists for them, however, in the aquarium trade.
Distribution and habitat
This species' native range is tropical northeastern South America; it naturally occurs in northeastern Brazil, the Guianas, and Trinidad and Tobago. Confusingly, the name Hypostomus plecostomus has sometimes been incorrectly used for several more-or-less similar loricariid catfishes, both in the popular and scientific literature. For example, it has sometimes been suggested that it occurs in southern Central America, but this is an entirely separate species, Hemiancistrus aspidolepis. has been repeatedly erroneously reported as H. plecostomus, though the latter species is restricted to the rivers of the Guianas. Some Loricariidae species have been widely introduced to several countries around the world and reported as H. plecostomus. It is erroneous, and the concerned species belong to the genus Pterygoplichthys. In the United States, a Pterygoplichthys species has been introduced to some regions in the South, most likely released by aquarists into the local waters. For example, 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, Comal Springs, San Marcos River, and San Felipe Creek, as well as in drainage canals in the Rio Grande Valley and Houston. The same identification issues have spread in the literature regarding the invasive catfishes in Taiwan, with H. plecostomus being one of the numerous names used to designate the species: DNA studies showed the alien fishes were actually P. pardalis and P. disjunctivus''.
Diet
Hypostomus plecostomus is named for its sucker-like mouth, which allows it to adhere to a surface, as well as to hold and rasp at food.This omnivorous species feeds on algae, aquatic plants, and small crustaceans.
In the aquarium
H. plecostomus is one of a number of species commonly referred to as "plecostomus" or "common pleco" by aquarists. These fish are sold when they are young and small, but they can grow to be a maximum size of. In the aquarium, this dark-colored, bottom-feeding, nocturnal catfish is often purchased for its ability to clean algae from fish tanks but also contributes a lot of waste to the nitrogen cycle.
Naming
Common names
A large variety of common names are used to describe H. plecostomus, where plecostomus and the shortened "pleco" are interchangeable in all common names. The names include:
The species' scientific name, Hypostomus plecostomus, is derived from the Latin hypo, stoma, and pleco. Many of the common names used to identify Hypostomus plecostomus are also used for other species, which augments the confusion surrounding H. plecostomus and other Loricariidae such as H. punctatus, Pterygoplichthys multiradiatus and P. pardalis. In 2012, Weber, Covain and Fisch-Muller showed the type series of Carl Linnaeus was heterogenous and comprised two species: H. plecostomus and H. watwata.
