Golden vampire pleco

Leporacanthicus heterodon

Also known as L172a, Heterodon vampire pleco

FreshwaterFish

Care at a glance

Temperature: 79–86°F (26–30°C)
pH: 6.0–7.2
Adult size: 6.3 in (16 cm)
Minimum tank: 79 gal (300 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Solitary
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Medium
Breeding: Medium
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Rio Xingu basin, Brazil
Family: Loricariidae

Overview

This is a hunting pleco rather than an algae grazer, so feed it accordingly and keep it on its own. It is peaceful toward mid-water fish but territorial with other bottom-dwellers and rival males, and it patrols the floor and hardscape after dark from a daytime cave. Build the diet around meaty foods: sinking carnivore pellets, frozen bloodworm, mysis, and prawn or mussel, plus the pond snails it happily eats. Skip a plain algae-wafer diet. Give it a warm tank of at least 300 liters with caves and good flow.

In the wild

It comes from the Rio Xingu in Brazil, hunting invertebrates among rocks and crevices in warm, fast, clear water. A good setup has smooth rock stacked into caves, some driftwood, brisk oxygenated flow, and warm soft water. Keep it hot, around 26 to 30 C, with a pH of 6.0 to 7.2, and give it dim cover to rest in through the day.

Good to know

Leporacanthicus heterodon is a loricariid that reaches about 16 centimeters and is sold as L172. Its genus is set apart by two long, fang-like teeth in the upper jaw, thought to help it grip snails and other shelled prey, though their exact use is not certain. It is a cave-spawning egg layer of moderate breeding difficulty.

Did you know

The vampire in its name is literal-looking: it has a pair of enlarged fang-like teeth in its upper jaw, unusual for a suckermouth catfish, and it is one of the few plecos that actively eats snails.

Tank mates

Golden vampire pleco is a peaceful, solitary species that keeps to the bottom. These picks match on water type, temperature, pH, size and temperament.