55g stocking question

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napkinman

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May 16, 2004
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hey ya'll,
i've got some stocking questions for my brand new 55g aquarium. the following are the types of fish i like so far and i was wondering in what quantity i should get the following fish:
a) bala sharks
b) pictus cats
c) tiger barbs
d) african chichlid
e) dwarf gourami
f) Neon tetras
g) Betta

these are the fish i like the best. i know some of the fish will eventually get too big but i'm going to be upgrading to a much bigger tank so i figure it'll be fine. please let me know a combination that would work with these fish and let me know any pertinant info concerning their care, feeding habits and all that.

I already know about cycling the tank and will be doing that with both the 55g and the larger tank. thanks a ton. take care
 

RioXingu

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Fish a, b, and c might go together, but bala sharks can get very large.
Fish e, f, g are peaceful and can go together, but I prefer to see tetras and anabantids by themselves.
Fish d with neither a, b, c, e, f, or g. That is, an African cichlid tank is usually a distinct endeavor.

Fish a, b, c generally don't mix with e, f, g.

I would continue to search the net for info on all these fish, especially the compatability issues, because the fish you mentioned are a mix of passive and aggressive species.
 

LongTime

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Never put tiger barbs with a betta. They will strip it of all its fins and pick it to death. The pictus will eat the neons 1 by 1.
When it comes to numbers tiger barbs do best in schools and for some reason, odd numbers seem to work better. I believe 3 is to small a number, so I would not have less than 5 tiger barbs.
A pictus can do 5 to 6" and they like to school when young but like smaller groups when older. As active as they are, I wouldn't put in more than 2. They can get a little scrappy with each other. I am considering putting 3 in my 125.
 

napkinman

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thanks i was also wondering about cichlids because i know now that the african ones are mean sob's but are the south american ones as bad i read somewhere that they aren't that agressive. can anyone also recomend any other types of fish that they think are particularly cool or interesting?
 

LongTime

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Some south/central/American cichlids can be pretty mean, but not all of them. Red Devils are Central American and fish do not come too much meaner.
 

sirasoni

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some of the larger SA/CA cichlids such as the dovii and festae (red terror) can take up 100s of gallons of territory for themselves. for a 55 you might try a breeding pair of convicts.
 

LongTime

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Originally posted by sirasoni
some of the larger SA/CA cichlids such as the dovii and festae (red terror) can take up 100s of gallons of territory for themselves. for a 55 you might try a breeding pair of convicts.
Sevrums are nice.
 
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