Bola pleco

Peckoltia bachi

Also known as L146, LDA030, Blue-eyed peckoltia

FreshwaterFish

Bola pleco (Peckoltia bachi) — The Wet Spot Tropical Fish · Used with permission

Care at a glance

Temperature: 77–84°F (25–29°C)
pH: 6.0–7.4
Adult size: 5.5 in (14 cm)
Minimum tank: 53 gal (200 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Solitary
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Medium
Breeding: Medium
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Upper Amazon, Peru and Brazil
Family: Loricariidae

Overview

The bola pleco is a quiet, secretive catfish best kept singly or as a pair, tucking itself against wood and rock where it can be genuinely hard to spot. It is most active after lights out. Peaceful toward other fish, it suits a calm community, though it can be territorial with other bottom dwellers, so give it its own caves. It leans carnivorous: offer sinking pellets, frozen bloodworm and other meaty foods after dark, with a little vegetable matter alongside. Provide driftwood tangles and rock piles in a tank of around 200 liters, and check on the fish now and then, since it stays well hidden.

In the wild

The bola pleco lives along fast reaches of the upper and middle Amazon in Peru and Brazil, pressed against sunken wood and rock at the edge of the current. A tank with driftwood tangles, rounded stones and a sand floor, plus a good flow and oxygen, suits it well. Keep the water soft to neutral, roughly pH 6.0 to 7.4, and warm at about 25 to 29 C, with clean, stable conditions.

Good to know

Peckoltia bachi is a member of Loricariidae and reaches about 14 centimeters, a flattened, marbled catfish with pale eyes. It has been shuffled between genera over the years, including its own genus Peckoltichthys, and is set apart by details of its pelvic girdle and enlarged belly plates. It has been bred in a tank now and then, spawning in caves in the usual loricariid way.

Did you know

Its mottled brown pattern breaks up its outline against driftwood so well that keepers regularly lose track of the fish for days at a time, even in a fairly small tank.