i just got a new pleco!!!
however, in the lfs is had the label "chocolate pleco"
i checked it out on the internet as soon as i got home but all the pictures i found look nothing like him!

Do you have any picture's of him by chance?

From most that I've seen about Chocolate Pleco's,they usually turn out to be alot like the Common,and maybe just a different color variation.It's really hard to know for sure.I've seen articles that say they get pretty large.I'd personally try and check out Planet Catfish,and see if you can find yours for sure.

that is where i found the pics that were not what i have, but i could check all the stuff

sorry, i dont have a pic

If ur pleco is indeed chocolate pleco, then according to planetcatfish.com it's gonna grow to almost 1 foot

I'm pretty sure they are just a color varient of the common pleco, still though...they grow large, larger than a foot sometimes. I have seen them close to two feet long.

if it doesn't have loads of space will it not just grow to a suitable tank size?

It will continue to grow to a point where it won't even be able to turn around in that small tank.It will compromise your other fish's health because when they spook (which is rather easily),they tend to jump like a speeding bullet,and if someone's near enough,well,that's it for them. I lost two Angelfish like that.The Angel's just happened to be in the way. I'd definately try taking it back and telling them that you aren't equipped for something that size. They are also worse than Goldies when it comes to waste/mess.

No, fish don't do that. It would grow as much as possable, maybe even outgrow the tank. What causes a fish to stop growing is the stress caused from it growing too large in a small environment, this added wtih the amount of waste fish produces can seriously hurt the fish, causing illness, stress, deformations and pre-mature death.

ok....
ill sort that out, i will keep it untill it starts getting too big, at which point i will give it too my friends dad!!
(his tank is 2" high by about 7" long and 1 1/2" wide)