Butterfly pleco care
Dekeyseria picta · Rio Negro basin in Brazil and the Orinoco basin in Colombia and Venezuela
The butterfly pleco is a flat, wide pleco with bold dark and light bands that grows to about 5 inches without the tail.
- Tank size
- 30 US gal or larger
- Temperature
- 77 to 84 °F (25 to 29 °C)
- Group size
- Alone or in a pair
- Temperament
- Peaceful
- Adult size
- 5.1 in (standard length, without the tail)
- pH
- 6 to 7.5
- Hardness (GH)
- 2 to 10 dGH
- Lifespan
- 10 to 15 years
- Diet
- Mostly plant matter
- Care level
- Moderate
In a 30 gallon
36¼ × 12⅝ × 16¾ in outsideHow to keep butterfly plecos
The butterfly pleco is a flat, wide pleco with bold dark and light bands that grows to about 5 inches without the tail. Sold as L168 or L052, it lives on rocks and sunken wood in fast water: give it a 30 gallon or larger tank with current, driftwood and algae wafers or vegetables every day.
Diet: Mostly plant matter: algae, algae wafers, blanched vegetables, some meaty food. Fish food types compared · how often to feed.
Where they swim: Bottom of the tank.
Butterfly pleco tank mates
Share the temperature and water, and neither side eats, nips or bullies the other. Check the full group in the stocking checker.
Amazon puffer
5 in · 29+ gal · 74–82 °F
Moonlight gourami
5 in · 30+ gal · 77–84 °F
African butterflyfish
5 in · 30+ gal · 73–86 °F
Pearl gourami
4.5 in · 29+ gal · 77–82 °F
Angelfish
6 in · 29+ gal · 76–84 °F
Three-spot (blue) gourami
6 in · 29+ gal · 72–82 °F
Electric blue acara
6 in · 40+ gal · 72–82 °F
Rainbow cichlid
6 in · 30+ gal · 72–84 °F
Keep apart
White cloud mountain minnow: No shared temperature: butterfly plecos need 77 to 84 °F, white cloud mountain minnows 64 to 72 °F.
Reticulated hillstream loach: No shared temperature: butterfly plecos need 77 to 84 °F, reticulated hillstream loaches 68 to 75 °F.
Pea puffer: Pea puffers belong in a tank of their own.
Fancy goldfish: No shared temperature: butterfly plecos need 77 to 84 °F, fancy goldfish 64 to 74 °F.
Convict cichlid: Convict cichlids are aggressive towards peaceful fish such as butterfly plecos.
Crystal red shrimp: No shared temperature: butterfly plecos need 77 to 84 °F, crystal red shrimp 62 to 76 °F.
What a butterfly pleco tank needs
A tank of 30 US gallons or more (such as the 30 gallon) with a cover, and the equipment below.
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Aqueon PRO QuietFlow Power Filter 20
Rated by the maker for up to 30 US gal, which covers a 30 gallon butterfly pleco tank without being built for a far bigger one.
Aqueon QuietFlow Internal Power Filter 15–30 gal
Rated by the maker for 15–30 US gal, which covers a 30 gallon butterfly pleco tank without being built for a far bigger one.
Fluval E100
Butterfly plecos need 77 to 84 °F; most homes run cooler, so a heater holds the temperature.
API Freshwater Master Test Kit
Tests ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH, the readings that matter most before and after adding butterfly plecos.
Seachem Prime 100 mL
Removes chlorine and chloramine from tap water at every water change.
Fluval Edge Thermometer
Shows the water temperature at a glance, so you know it stays within 77 to 84 °F.
We don’t list fish food: any good brand of the foods under Diet will do. Plan the whole tank's equipment →
Common butterfly pleco problems
- Its flat body hides well; check that it eats, since tank algae alone will not keep it fed.
- Males defend a cave or a piece of wood from other plecos.
Test the water first whenever fish look unwell: see what your readings mean, then match the symptom. For disease, a vet who treats fish can diagnose it and advise treatment.
More to compare
Sources
Name, origin and adult size checked against Wikipedia: Dekeyseria picta. Temperature, pH, hardness, group size, lifespan and minimum tank size are common hobby guidance, not figures from that article. Ranges are the range the species tolerates; aim for the middle. Minimum tank sizes are for an adult group. Drawings are our own; photo credits follow.
Photo credits
Real photographs from Wikimedia Commons, resized and cropped to fit; each is used under the license named.
- Butterfly pleco Alberto Alcalá (iNaturalist), CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Amazon puffer O. Schneider, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Moonlight gourami H. Zell, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- African butterflyfish Toniher, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Pearl gourami h080, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Angelfish Citron, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Three-spot (blue) gourami Peter Jung, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Electric blue acara 5snake5, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Rainbow cichlid Happy Birthday To You!, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
- White cloud mountain minnow Petrtyl, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Reticulated hillstream loach Spiketooth, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Pea puffer Beta Mahatvaraj, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Fancy goldfish Benson Kua, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Convict cichlid S. Olkowicz, CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons
- Crystal red shrimp DirkBlankenhaus, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Pygmy corydoras Birger A, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Salt-and-pepper corydoras D.W., CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Bronze corydoras Quatermass (English Wikipedia), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
- Panda corydoras Chronotopian, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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