Parancistrus aurantiacus

Order: Siluriformes
Suborder: Loricarioidei
Family: Loricariidae
Subfamily: Hypostominae
Genus: Parancistrus
Species: Parancistrus aurantiacus, Castelnau, 1855

Parancistrus aurantiacus is a very unique pleco. Its overall bodyshape is really flat and broad but also really robust. It can reach a body length of over 20-22 cm. Over the whole body, this species shows big plates, which show especially on  the head and on the tail region odontodes. It has a really big mouth and big gills, which are an indicator, for this species needing a lot of oxygen.

The most special about this pleco is the coloration. Since it can change its colors back and forth, the overall coloration can differ from white, yellow to light and dark grey. Also a yellow color with black stains is possible. What causes the change of color is not known, but other than many plecos, this species can change the color not only once, but several times.

In the hobby this fish is also called chubby pleco. Often it is also referred as L"56", but this number belongs to a smaller Parancistrus species (10 cm), which stays mostly gray in coloration. The species name "aurantiacus" comes from Latin and means as much as "orange".

This species has two origins. If animals from both region are the same species, has still to be clarified.

In Peru they are found in the Rio Ucayali. In Brazil they are found in the east, Rio Tocantins, Rio Itacaiunas and Rio Araguaia.

This species inhabits fast streaming biotopes with a lot of oxygen in it. Warm water of 25 - 30 °C can be measured in its habitat. With its flat body shape, P. aurantiacus hides mostly in narrow rock crevices.

P. aurantiacus feeds on a broad variety of food. Next to small invertebrates, this species also eats greens in form of algae. It also can be observed, that it filters through detritus.

In capitivity this species takes almost all sorts of food, once it has been acclimatized good to the aquarium. It's important to feed P. aurantiacus a varried diet of frozen and dry food. We made good experiences with granules. Interesting to observe is, when it is fed with Spirulina tabs. After they dissolve in the fast current, you can see the fish holding up their big mouth to filter the spirulina particles out of the water.

P. aurantiacus grows rather large and needs therefore space if it is adult. Tanks of 120 - 150 cm length are good for a small group of this species. Males tend to be a bit territorial, which should be noted when decorating the tank. More caves than plecos should be added  and a lot of narrow hiding spots between flat stones, help making territories. This species prefers bigger to smaller caves, also for breeding. As a substrate, sand or gravel can be used.

A good filtration, oxygenation and weekly water changes are necessary, since this species needs really clean and warm water. A temperature of 28 - 29 °C is ideal for them.

P. aurantiacus is a really shy species. Therefore a dimmed light is better to see them more often in the tank. This species has sometimes troubles with acclimatizing to the tank and dies sometimes without a obvious reason. It can be that they are to stressed and the paramters and the food have to be adjusted. They do better in species only tanks, since they are not aggressive eaters.

What stays out the most in comparison of these pictures is the coloration. This species can change its color from white-yellow to dark-gray and everything in between. That our male and female have different coloration is just coincidence and can't be used as sexing difference!

If we look at them from the side, the female shows a rounder head. This is not necessarily a sexing difference also.

It gets more easy if we look to the odontodes. On the gills, males show them a bit longer with a stronger pronounced hooks on the ends. The pectorals show in both sexes really a lot of odontodes, but also here the male shows a bit longer ones with more pronounced hooks. On the tail the difference seems to be bigger. Males are more spiky in the hind body region.

From above we can see that the female has a rounder, more convex shaped body shape, where as the male shows the broadest part as in many other species at the shoulder region.

The heads are quite similar from top. One could say, that the male is a bit more blocky at the gill area.

If you take a look on the underside, there is a difference visible. Females have bigger, rounder papillas.

Like most plecos, also this species breeds in caves and the male takes care of the eggs and youngsters.

In our experience, already quite small specimens are able to reproduce. Females with 10 cm body length, already spawned. If strong current is added and the animals stay good in the food, weekly water changes with osmosis water help to get them into breeding mood. Even tho they are a difficult species to breed, it is not impossible to do.

Tunneling takes sometimes weeks, until they spawn. This species seems to prefer big caves, in which male and female can move freely. The eggs are yellow and can be already quite numerous, regarding the small size of the female.

Our breeding report with photo's and video's