http://www.plecoplanet.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1598
this profile- i am almost positive this is what my 'sailfin' pleco really is, a gold spot. only difference is mine has virtually circular markings right now. he's great, very outgoing! doesn't hide much at all. this says he gets a foot long- he was sold to me as a sailfin that would only reach 4-6". yeesh. guess he's NOT going to suit a 55gallon tank for long!
http://www.plecoplanet.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1603
this looks a lot like the one i'm most confused about- only the markings differ very slightly, mine has more 'lined' markings on the fins more like common's i've kept. when i google imaged the L006 Peckoltia Oligospila however i can't find belly pictures (to see if they have plain or markings) and found a lot that were much more brownish, and all had more circular spots... all 4 of mine were bought so wee, we were surprised to see such tiny ones, really barely an inch if an inch. the albino bristlenose has far outgrown the one i am confused about- it's about half as long as the bristlenose. just as thick bodied and same feeding opportunities. hence my confusion. i know pleco patterning and even to some degree coloring can be variable within a species- there were differences between large plecos of the 'common' variety we kept in decades past, though body shape was very uniform. i do wonder if this one could have been somehow 'stunted' before coming to live with us- exposure to something in the water or such, that big chain pet store i just found out (last time i was in from an employee) runs 3 different chemicals in just their plant tank and often runs various meds through their fish tank systems without informing customers, and i know plecos are sensitive, this one appears perfectly healthy and outgoing and eats what it does eat well-just isn't growing like the others- though the gold spot has slowed as well it's much larger, the bristlenose and common both grew faster at first by far, common still is, bristlenose seems to have slowed some.
my main reason for concern is what i'll actually need to do for tank size and community down the road. we do keep cichlids- but most plecos really can't be kept with cichlids long term, not if the cichlids get big and could maby try to swallow the plecos. commons would have been fine, as would a true sailfin, and both are great in 150gallon tanks with big cichlids, we used to have one in each and one 150 had 2 commons, they found all the dropped cichlid food and enjoyed veggies i put in as well. i planned a planted peaceful for the bristlenose long term- and cichlids for the other 3, well i'm thinking only the one will suit that, the gold spot seems far too soft for living with cichlids, and that wee one.... it's with guppies/small danios for now. as is the gold spot looking one in another tank. long term? i just am unsure. and i'm not one to be keen on rehoming fish- tank to tank is hard enough on them, new ownership altogether? we saw how our old commons were stressed having a new home when we first got them and they seemed to have a difficult time adjusting to a new diet. i wouldn't want to see mine go where they might not get the vegetables they love or the other foods each prefers, never mind where filtration and water changes are not suited. i know many around here believe monthly is all the water changes any fish needs and i happen to feel a pleco in a tank means weekly w/c, daily excess food removal, and twice the filtration as the filters claim they do for tank size- plus frequent water testing! some fish keepers around here don't even have test kits. i just... need to provide for them myself, even if they do not end up as i'd been led to believe.