plecostomus has brown trail of ?

Question
I have a 55 gallon tank with 14 fish in it including 3 algea eaters. Within the past two months I have noticed that the 2 largest plecostomus have what appears to be a feces trail coming out of them. The "links" are held together by clear matter and are all over the tank. Each fish, especially the one that is approximately 8" long, is producing a foot of this matter daily. Is it a disease or just nature? It's really making the tank a mess. Thanks for any help you can give me on this. If I don't come up with something soon both fish are leaving.

Answer
Hi Tim,
 Plecostomus eat a lot and they produce a lot of feces.  As long as the feces are dark, that is a great thing.  Lots of good long feces is a great sign that your plecos are eating well.  If there are white clumps in the feces, that is a very bad thing and indicates internal parasites.

-- Ron
  rcoleman@cichlidresearch.com
  Cichlid Research Home Page <http://cichlidresearch.com>