Otos (Otocinclus flexilis): These catfish are becoming very popular, as they graze on the top of any leave, and remove algae. They are very peaceful, small and a good acquisition for any fishkeeper.
SizeOriginEase of keepFoodTempType
50 mm ...
Otos can be difficult to acclimate to the home aquarium, but if provided with correct water conditions and there is some green food they will be fine.
Otos seem to be very delicate fish, but this is probably due to capture and shipping abuse rather than an inherent weakness. When a fish shop gets some in, it is wise to wait a while before purchasing to account for die offs.
The otos did not fair as well. They have a habit of occassionally freeswimming across the tank. When they approach too close to the fry, they are an easy catch for either of the kribs.
To see if the Otos had any preferences, I set up a veggie buffet in my 2 tanks that have Otos to see what would happen.
You may observe otos suddenly dart to the surface for a gulp of air, very similar to the catfish in the Callichthyidae (corys, etc) family.
Other Catfish such as Otos and Corydoras also do NOT make good tank mates. Otos can develop a taste for a Goldfish's slime coat, as can many other suckermouth catfish and Loaches, but both these types of fish can also be eaten by Goldfish.
Otos are a great addition to a planted tank. They are industrious algae eaters who will clean any surface in the tank. They are very gentle on leaves and never seem to damage the plants.
Various species of otos are seen in the shops at various times; most are good algae eaters but some seem to prefer the slime coat on fish to algae. Unfortunately, there seems to be no way to distinguish the "attack otos" from normal otos.
Otocinclus Cats, often just called Otos, are the smallest Loricariids and will clean algae from live plants without hurting any but the most delicate of them.
Or maybe a couple of Otos. If the algae (ye, I tend to imagine this is algae) doesn't come off from the leaves easily, cut off and throw away the affected leaves.
The planted 75G community with a couple species of cories, some otos and a pair of Siamensis. Hoover the Blue Eye Pleco and his roomies, 4 clown loaches and a Gold Nugget Pleco, were hanging out in the 55.
My fish and inverts that I keep include guppies, angels, bettas, otos, plecos, rasboras, gobie, shrimp, snails, crabs, mushrooms, polyps, and feather dusters. ATM's FishLore Forum Blog and ATM's Fish and Aquarium Blog ...
Some of the more effective algae-eaters include otos (tend to be the best option for smaller tanks), bristlenose plecos, American flagfish, and rubberlip plecos.
The only thing to worry about is that they have enough to eat and that there aren't large enough fish in the tank to see these as a snack (angels and other cichlids have been known to try to eat otos).
 See also: Water, Fish, Aquarium, Plants, Species
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