Plecos... What does L### mean?

I keep seeing these L### in front of pleco names, what does it mean?

 

It means there are too many kinds to keep the names straight

 

Pretty much lol

 

oh, I thought it had something to do with coloring or generations... I guess, KISS, keep it simple stupid. lol

 

Numbers are a far better for common names, especially when the fish aren't all that common.

 

Many new species of fish are being discovered all over the world, as more out of the way places become accessible.

One of the groups of fishes in which many new species are being discovered is the Loricariidae ( or sucker mouthed catfish).

To avoid, the confusion generated by common names, such as zebra catfish, the German aquarium magazine DATZ, started assigning numbers based on photographs.

Before a species can be given a name, it must first be scientifically described.
Many fish in the hobby are around for years before this is done, as there is such a backlog of animals needing to be described.

So, to help cut down on the chaos, the L system is used for these fish.

 

o, thanks for explaining. So, if there is, for example, an L208 common pleco and an L316 common pleco, (just examples...) what would be the difference?

 

The common pleco would not be added.
It would be L208 and L316.

 

so its more like a sub-species?

 

No, each L number describes what will wind up being a described species.

 

o, seperate. gotcha.

 

Cool!

 

sorry, thanks for being so understanding.... lol

 

No worries.

We all started out knowing nothing. And learn more as we gain experience.
But, anyone who thinks they know everything about even a single species of fish, let alone the whole hobby, is fooling themselves.

Almost daily, I learn something new, and I have been at this for almost a third of a century.

 

Ha! that's longer than I've been alive!

 

Yeah, I get that a lot.