Care
In the wild, the Slate plec is found in the Rio Jaguaribe, a habitat with strongly contrasting flow throughout the seasons. Their body shapes hints at adaptations to fast-flowing water but high oxygen levels seem more crucial.
An aquarium for these fish should be mature, with various pieces of smooth rockwork and bogwood arranged to create lots of shady caves and crevices. Avoid all sharp decor such as lava rock. There should be brisk water movement and a high level of oxygenation, perhaps provided wavemakers (in addition to the current generated by the filtration). These fish require warmer than average water temperatures, and will not do well below 25 °C. However, do remember that the warmer the water, the more important it is to ensure a higher level of oxygenation (perhaps letting the return from filters sit above the water line so that filtered water being returned to the tank splashes down onto the water's surface and incorporates more oxygen). Our observations indicate that this species is fairly outgoing and social, although some sources state that males can be rather territorial with rivals - so be sure to provide a generously-sized aquarium with an abundance of visual barriers amongst the decor, with more than one cave made available for every fish. In small aquaria, keep only one per tank. Companions should ideally occupy the middle and upper levels, be reasonably peaceful, and be able to thrive in warm, soft water with decent current e.g. some of the smaller characins. Although these fish prefer a diet high in vegetable matter, they will not make any real impact on nuisance algae and must be offered a varied diet (see below). When they are actively grazing, they are actually searching for their natural food source - aufwuchs - which is a type of algae biofilm that contains small invertebrate life. Ensure that regular partial water changes are carried out as these somewhat sensitive catfish produce a fair amount of waste and will not tolerate an elevated nitrate level.
Feeding
Offer a variety of different foodstuffs containing a good proportion of vegetable matter. Cucumber, courgette, lettuce, squash etc should all be enthusiastically consumed, and these can be supplemented with sinking wafers/tablets, and the odd treat of meaty frozen foods such as bloodworm and chopped prawns. These fish have a very long digestive tract which is utilised in the breaking down of foods high in vegetable content, so do not offer an excessive amount of meaty foods as this will lead to health problems.
Breeding
This species has not yet been bred in the home aquarium.
