L027 ‘New Locale Mae Maria’ Royal Pleco (Panaque armbrusteri)

A distinctly marked locality based color form of Royal Pleco or L027, this impressive pleco is collected from the Rio Mae Maria, a tributary of the lower Tocantins in Eastern Brazil and features a high contrast pattern of jet black stripes against a light body color, similar in some ways to the Rio Araguaia variant of L027. Like all species of Panaque, they have specialized teeth and are adapted to eat and even digest wood, although the Woodgrain Royal Pleco also feeds on submerged vegetation and invertebrates. Conditions in the aquarium should be as close to their wild habitat as possible, with moderate to strong current, warm temperatures, and excellent water quality. Due to their specialized diet, we recommend providing driftwood for grazing and feeding a specialty diet like Repashy Morning Wood.