I am so stuck on what fish to get for my new 37 gallon tank. Right now its cycling so I am still only in the planning phase but every time I get a good idea for fish I do research and am told it wont work. I wanted cichlids originally, tank is too small. I wanted Gourami's but then males are aggressive and unsure if an all female tank works for them? Anyways, I want a bigger fish than say a tetra, I am looking at maybe 3 inch or larger for any type of fish I stock in here. I LOVEEEEE colorful fish so anything with striking colors I am all for. I know they have dwarf cichlids but I personally have never found any local pet store or fish store that carries them so they are not easy for me to obtain. Any ideas? MUCH appreciated!
what should I stock my tank with? stuck
- Thread starter xxaprilrose
- Start date
Welcome to AC!
I'd say you could have EITHER 1 angelfish (they're cichlids too ya know) or 1 pearl gourami (my choice). Add a shoal of 8-12 harlequin rasboras & EITHER 8-10 corydoras or 8-10 kuhli loaches (all of the same species). I prefer striped pangios (kuhlis) but have kept black & many different corys. I love my bottom feeders! Just some ideas...All of those should be available just about anywhere. Don't be afraid to ask if you shop can get other fish, even some chains can order sometimes. Be nice & polite, it can go a long way
This is asuming your 37 is 30 x 12 x 24 inches high. Live plants are always good. Java fern & anubias are easy in almost any tank. Several varieties of each are available, try at least 1, you'll like it! & so will your fish. Neither is planted in the substrate but attached to wood or rock with sewing thread or super glue gel. They can go in while you're cycling & may even help with that.
Now that things are opening up more, maybe there's a club near you if you live by a bigger city. That would be a possible source of smaller cichlids & clubs are fun!. Or maybe a day road trip, also fun!
I'd say you could have EITHER 1 angelfish (they're cichlids too ya know) or 1 pearl gourami (my choice). Add a shoal of 8-12 harlequin rasboras & EITHER 8-10 corydoras or 8-10 kuhli loaches (all of the same species). I prefer striped pangios (kuhlis) but have kept black & many different corys. I love my bottom feeders! Just some ideas...All of those should be available just about anywhere. Don't be afraid to ask if you shop can get other fish, even some chains can order sometimes. Be nice & polite, it can go a long way
This is asuming your 37 is 30 x 12 x 24 inches high. Live plants are always good. Java fern & anubias are easy in almost any tank. Several varieties of each are available, try at least 1, you'll like it! & so will your fish. Neither is planted in the substrate but attached to wood or rock with sewing thread or super glue gel. They can go in while you're cycling & may even help with that.
Now that things are opening up more, maybe there's a club near you if you live by a bigger city. That would be a possible source of smaller cichlids & clubs are fun!. Or maybe a day road trip, also fun!
You could definitely do smaller cichlids in a 37 and there’s plenty of gouramis that will work as well. If you would be willing to buy fish online, it would open up your options dramatically. So I would start with advising you to shop around online. I know you there’s a lot of small tangs like shell dwellers and some julies that would work in your tank, even some smaller mbuna would work like a mbamba for example. There’s lots of NW dwarf cichlids too but I’m not familiar with many of those aside from apistos. I think keyholes are another option, but like i said, start online. Here’s a list of some good ones to start with
Imperial Tropicals
Aquarium Fish Depot
Wet Spot
Trinsfish
Exoticfishshop
Tangled up in cichlids
Tampabay cichlids
These should really open up your options
Good thoughts, FA. I've only done mail order a few times...but good experiences...none on your list any more, it was a long time ago. I did bring home some fish from the Wet Spot a couple years ago but not mail ordered...we drove home with them 
packed like for shipping, it was great!
packed like for shipping, it was great!