Tiny spot pleco

Hypancistrus lunaorum

Also known as L339, Lunaorum pleco

FreshwaterFish

Care at a glance

Temperature: 79–86°F (26–30°C)
pH: 5.5–7.2
Adult size: 3.9 in (10 cm)
Minimum tank: 42 gal (160 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Solitary
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Medium
Breeding: Medium
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Upper Orinoco, Venezuela
Family: Loricariidae

Overview

The tiny spot pleco is a small Hypancistrus scattered with fine pale spots, an understated fish that rewards a close look. It is solitary, so keep one to a tank, or a pair if you intend to breed, giving each a cave to hold. It works the bottom among rock and wood and is peaceful toward other fish, suiting small, calm community tankmates. As with the rest of the genus, this is no algae grazer; offer meaty sinking foods, including frozen bloodworm, chopped prawn, and carnivore pellets, and treat vegetables as a side note. It wants warm, soft, oxygen-rich water over caves, and a tank of around 160 liters suits a single adult or pair.

In the wild

Hypancistrus lunaorum comes from the upper Orinoco and Rio Ventuari in Venezuela, holding to seams and caves in warm, rocky, oxygen-rich water. Build the tank around stacked smooth stone and driftwood full of tight caves, over sand, swept by good current. Keep it warm at 26 to 30 C and soft and slightly acidic to neutral, about pH 5.5 to 7.2, clean and well oxygenated. A little tannin from leaves or wood suits its Orinoco origin.

Good to know

Hypancistrus lunaorum belongs to Loricariidae and reaches about 10 centimeters, near black under a dusting of fine pale spots. Described in 2007, the name honours the Luna family, founders of a village on the Orinoco near the mouth of the Ventuari. Like all Hypancistrus it carries the reduced teeth of a meat eater rather than an algae grazer. Breeding is of moderate difficulty; it is a cave spawner, with the male guarding the eggs until the young emerge.

Did you know

The name lunaorum means of the Lunas, after the family that settled its stretch of the Orinoco. By happy accident the Latin also brings the moon to mind, which fits a dark fish sprinkled all over with little pale spots.