Pleco wont eat :(

Lupin

fish_4_all, are you sure that lower pH slows down their appetite? BNs originated from habitats where the pH is generally low or at least, water is soft. 7.2 is just about higher than neutral.

I find it odd that BNs will not do well in lower pH.

fish_4_all

I'm not absolutely sure what did it but when my pH stablized at 7.2 or just above he became more active than I had seen him in months. It could have been CO2 levels but they were always around 30-40ppm with a KH of 6-8 and my GH was and still around 7-10. My KH is a little lower now but still sits around 3-5. Could have been a lot of factors but the pH is the only one that I can identify. I have also seen a lot of articles that say BN will only breed above 7.0

That out of the way, try giving your pleco somethng new. Maybe it is simply bored to death with the same old food and needs a boost. Try sweet potato, grapes, low or salt free green beans, squash, anything different to try and get it's attention. Blood worms, frozen brine shrimp, a piece of raw prawn, maybe it needs some protein. My BN love blood worms to the point I have to limit how much I give them or they would turn red. Even citrus fruit might do it. Maybe all it needs is a piece of driftwood to rasp on to get some stiff fiber for it to digest properly.

Lupin

So detailed.

Yes, they do need driftwood to rasp on. I have a female rasping all the time. She also loves eating my plants. Fine with me as long as she isn't my Nymphaea stellata which I consider valuable. She hasn't touched my stellata but my pair of golden angels are munching on the leaves.

Now where do I get a male? Can anyone mail a male BN for me free of charge? Thanks to the Law of Supply and Demand(which I keep mentioning previously), no BN would ever be available. I was just lucky my lfs called me when they acquired only one during shipment.