At what temp to keep gymnos?

[CatsMeowww]

I have a pair of gymnos (1 male + 1 female) in a 25 this week as I am transferring them to a 30g. shortly...it will be a tank specifically for them, and I am wondering what temp. are they at in the wild? I know they are a colder water cichlid, but how cold is "cold"?

And one question to go along with that is, are there any small/med. size fish that would be compatible in that temperature range? I've been doing some research, but haven't found much.

[toddnbecka]

Their normal temp range is between 60-72; a bit warmer is alright as long as they have a cooldown period in the winter. I have some juvie Australoheros oblongum available that would work well in a 30 with them. They live in the same temp range, and are very mellow fish toward anything other than their own species. They will eat anything small enough, but aren't aggressive in general.

[abarilot]

What species of gymnos? As for temps they can handle temps from the 50s to the 90s in the wild. My tank is unheated and ranges from the low 60s to the low 80s. Search MFK cuz there have been a couple threads on gymnos over there recently.

[CatsMeowww]

They are gymno. gymnensis (sp.?)

The info I've found so far confirms my feeling that they will be just fine w/out a heater.

I still am looking for a smaller (but not tiny) fish that might coexist in the same tank...any ideas?

[abarilot]

Almost positive you are refering to G. gymnogenys. They occur in harems in the wild so I'd get another female or two. The 30g might be a bit tight btw. As for other tankmates I'd go for either serpae or blackskirt tetras. Or if you arent concerned having fish from SA you could go for a type of live bearer (Ameca splendens for example) or white clouds. Yeah no heater is needed plus they do a lot better if you allow them to cool down.

Btw if you want to see where these fish come from this a great site to peruse http://aqvaterra.com/

[CatsMeowww]

Thanks for the info..I didn't know they occur in harems...I might need to rethink things. I don't want to over stock the tank. Hmm. Would 2 more females be sufficient do you think? And what size would you keep them in? The two I have must be close to full size, and they are probably about 4 in. (female) and 5-6 in. (male).

I would like to keep it to a biotope as much as possible...I found some info on the "Uruguay Tetra" (not sure of the scientific name). It's a possibility, although they aren't very exciting.

Would peppered cories be picked on?

[CatsMeowww]

I just took a closer look at that site, abarilot, and I think the variation I have is G. Gymnogenys "Maldonado". Which means mine are NOT as full grown as I thought, lol.

Setting up a new tank can never be easy, can it!

[FSM]

Room temperature is fine. It gets pretty cold in Uruguay.

[abarilot]

New tanks are never straight forward but it makes it exciting! Anyway I'd go for a 55g if you can afford it. There are usually pretty good deals online. With a bigger tank you can add more fish and not worry. Also maybe add another species of gymno. If your not going to upgrade then maybe just 1 more female, could be pushing it though. Not positive but I believe serpae and buenos aires tetras are from Uruguay. Peppered corys will be fine, my gymnos leave them alone. Corydoras aeneus is another option for corys. Lets see some pics :naughty:

[CatsMeowww]

I'll get some pics up tonight. The problem is our apartment changed the policy on large tanks, becuase new management took over. I can't have anything over a 20 gallon, so I'm already over the "allowed" limit. I am talking to them about having at least a 40 gal. though, because I really want to keep these guys!

[abarilot]

Thats a bummer! What is the foot print of a 40g? 36"x18"? Something like that should be fine for a harem.

[FishfarmUSA]

Temp in Uruguay do fall below frezing in the winter, Gynos can take water from 40F to 100F, but room thep is fine, just don't use a heater. If you don;t have a collection loction form your fish, don't assume they are from Maldonado, Those are very rare in the hobby and expensive, if you can't get some more from the same source then don't mix different type (whom ever you got them from should be able to give you the location, all Gynos in the hobby are usually sold with a collection location). Many are undiscribed species and just labled gymnogenyes out of convienence by [people who don't know any better, I have collceted in Uruguay three times and there are at lest 100's undiscribed species of Gymnos we have caught and we have not come close to collecting in every water shed yet. Ken