Near Empty 20g needs occupants...

[nanahachi]

Hi all,

Other than my ailing planted tank, I have another 20g setup and I need to fill it with some fish! :)

The tank is cycled, and all that is in the tank is a Ram, who has been healing and recovering (for at least 2 weeks now) from being severely hurt by a vicious cichlid i temporarily had in the tank. Again, the ram is alone now and has the 20g all to itself.

The ram's fins and tail are growing back nicely, and looks like he's almost in perfect health (i think perhaps its right main fin and tail could grow out a bit further still).

I just found a local source for rams, and was hoping to add some to this tank, but I really don't know how many I could add, and what other fish could accompany them.

I've searched and read the threads on Rams, and it seems like have 2 males (alone?) in a tank is a bad idea. But could I buy a small group (3? 4? 5?) and add them to the tank? I also need a pleco, but don't want to add too much of a bioload at once.

So in addition to any extra rams, any suggestions on some other fish that would get along in these water conditions? (Rams like softwater and warm temps, it seems)

Thanks for your help, it is always very much appreciated!

[Richer]

Personally, I'd add a female ram. Since many plecos get too large for a 20 gallon tank, I'd probably just add a couple of ottos and call it a day.

HTH
-Richer

[nanahachi]

thanks Richer!

Other than asking the folks at the LFS, any tips on determining the sex of rams? I'm not certain of what species mine is (probably German Ram?), but here is a pic of a similar looking Ram:

http://www.plantedtank.net/images/fish/ramcichlidfemale.jpg

(pic stolen from http://www.plantedtank.net/ramcichlid.html)

My Ram is very pale in color, perhaps due to all the punishment it has put up with (when I bought it, it looked a bit beat up, and then my mbuna did a ton of damage...). the Rams at the LFS I believe are the same species, but far more colorful. I was hoping to add several to my tank, but i guess only pair would be appropriate.

Does anyone else have any suggestions? In the meantime, I'll keep searching the forums for Ram threads and ideas.

thanks!

[MSmith]

You might try doing a search for rams and sexing. I know I've seen threads on that before.

You should be able to fit some other fish in the tank as well as a ram pair. I'm setting up a 20 gallon tank for a rams right now. I plan to have a pair and a school of cardinal tetras. Cardinal tetras do well at the high temps and in soft water. I've heard neons prefer cooler water. Rummynose tetras might work as well and I'm sure there are others. Unless I decide to have a few ottos, the cardinals and rams are all I'm planning to have. I want the rams to have plenty of space, so I'm not going to have any other bottom feeders in the tank.

Melissa

[Jayhawk]

I've got a 20 gallon long tank with a trio of Bolivian Rams, 3 black phantom tetras, 2 otos, and a clown pleco.

The Bolivian rams by themselves keep the tank interesting since they're so outgoing, and they've been getting along fine for months now. If I had it to do over again, I'd probably skip the black phantom tetras and add two more ottos.

So, I agree you can add more fish, and a clown pleco or bulldog/rubberlip pleco would work fine in your tank.

Eric

[medge00]

you can add more german rams... start with females, like about 2. the females can actually be quite colorful, especially when in breeding colors. I have a girl now about ready to breed with a bright magenta belly. The male is not as bright as his girlfriend, but still pretty none the less. Look for one at the store that already has tinges of pink in her belly and that is active. When I bought mine she had a touch of pink in the belly and was being followed by the boys. She's a gorgeous fish.

[nanahachi]

thanks for the comments guys!

I'm gonna head over to the LFS this weekend, and see what they have. I'll probably only add one/a couple of rams at first so as not to increase the bioload too rapidly.

feel free to keep posting your ideas :)

thanks again!!