ideas... need ideas....

Hiya,

I posted a similar sort of thing to the cichlids group recently
so sorry for any overlap...

I'm trying to think of some new inhabitants for my 4ft tank.
It's 200 litres in size and currently has the following fish:

2 x 7" catfish who only come out at night
3 x clown loaches (who started out small and stuck together but
now are very different sizes and all hide in different caves
rather than together, and they don't come out except when hungry!)
Sizes roughly 2" 3" and 4".
2 x ickle danios
3 x old and battle-worn tiger barbs
4 x kribs
1 x ram

(a sort of haphazard mixture of fish I transferred to it when I
got the big tank, fish I've been given by people running out of
space, and the clown loaches which I bought specifically to live
in this tank!)

During the day, the only fish you see are the little fish.
At feeding time the clowns will join them.
At night, the catfish are out.
Although that sounds like a lot of fish there's not actually that
much activity.

I'm trying to think of what to do with the tank to change it and
make it a bit different. It's in the dining room so other people
see it too!

The danios will fit into another tank, and the barbs are fullgrown
and less enthusiastic than they used to be, so I don't know how
long they will hang about (although they surprise me!)

That leaves catfish, the loaches, and the kribs and ram, so my
first thought was whether a few more cichlids would be suitable,
and which ones - but I went to the fish shop yesterday and realised
just how many cichlids there are, and I know nothing about them!
I can't even recognise which are which or remember the names!
So some suggestions would be good, and then I can do some research,
learn the names, check the ID and then see if the shop has them

It doesn't *have* to be cichlids if anyone has any different ideas
- I just thought there are some fairly small ones, and they should
get along with my kribs I hope.

Some more info: the back half of the tank is planted, with bogwood
and caves as well - the front half is left as open swimming space.
The water is medium-hard and around pH 7.6. It's filtered with
a fluval 204 at one end, and a fluval 3 internal at the other.

Interesting ideas welcome!

--
Flash Wilson Visit my website: http://www.gorge.org
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"Flash Wilson" wrote in message
...
Hiya,

I posted a similar sort of thing to the cichlids group recently
so sorry for any overlap...

I'm trying to think of some new inhabitants for my 4ft tank.
It's 200 litres in size and currently has the following fish:

2 x 7" catfish who only come out at night
3 x clown loaches (who started out small and stuck together but
now are very different sizes and all hide in different caves
rather than together, and they don't come out except when hungry!)
Sizes roughly 2" 3" and 4".
2 x ickle danios
3 x old and battle-worn tiger barbs
4 x kribs
1 x ram

snip

Well, how about this: more fish! I would ditch the catfish
for some bristlenose (2 of them would be the same length
as one of your current ones). Then add more danios and
more clown loaches. Once you get a critical mass, the
loaches will probably start schooling (usually 4-6 IME).
The Tiger Barbs are probably doomed to life as a cranky
trio, but if your feeling adventurous you could try to add
3-5 big ones. (Be prepared for carnage).

Other than that, fish are generally hardest to see when
there is more open space. So the paradoxical solution
is to give them more places to hide and you will see
them more. Maybe you could move some of your plants
from the back to the front? Maybe you could put
something in the middle of the tank to provide some
security (I use a HUGE Amazon sword in my 4' tank).

There are lots of cool cichlids, but most are somewhat
aggressive and will claim an area equal to 10x their
body length when spawning, so your 4 kribs may be
enough cichlids (assuming 2 breeding pairs).

-coelacanth

On Mon, 09 Feb 2004 02:38:45 GMT, coelacanth wrote:
snip

Well, how about this: more fish! I would ditch the catfish

Ah... can't do that. 1) My pleco is my oldest fish (one
of my first ever and he's the only one I'm really "fond"
of) and 2) Dot the Clown Syno was a rescue fish... I said
I would house her and her old owner watches her in the
fish-cam!

as one of your current ones). Then add more danios and
more clown loaches. Once you get a critical mass, the

Hmmm... the danios look lost in the tank TBH. There
were more of them before, and also Dot does rather like
to eat them if she's not full enough... I suspect one or
two have gone that way... more would be easy pickings
and rather a waste as well as a nasty surprise to the fish.

loaches will probably start schooling (usually 4-6 IME).

Ah, but they will get huge... they did school before, and
then "Biggie" started eating more and getting huge,
"Heidi" went off to hide (geddit) and that left "Snouty"
who does his own thing.

The Tiger Barbs are probably doomed to life as a cranky
trio, but if your feeling adventurous you could try to add
3-5 big ones. (Be prepared for carnage).

No no no! I'm done with tiger barbs! There used to be
more and I don't want more again!!!

I take your points but you're suggesting more of the
same... I've done them, want to try something new!

Other than that, fish are generally hardest to see when
there is more open space. So the paradoxical solution
is to give them more places to hide and you will see

Good idea... but there are quite a few already. I've
got some huge pieces of slate (we got a new roof)
although they've been on my house for 100 years so they
will need scrubbing and boiling for ages before I trust
them; that will mean I can make a few more caves.
There are already more than are used, though.

them more. Maybe you could move some of your plants
from the back to the front? Maybe you could put

That has two problems - 1 is that the gravel is graduated
and in the front it's not deep enough to keep the plant
anchored when the fish go digging (they don't appreciate
my gardening efforts, apparently!) and 2 is that the catfish
do like to swim along the length of the tank in the clear
space at the front (although I only see that at night!)

There are lots of cool cichlids, but most are somewhat
aggressive and will claim an area equal to 10x their
body length when spawning, so your 4 kribs may be
enough cichlids (assuming 2 breeding pairs).

1 breeding pair, 1 juvenile which I shall assume will try
to breed. Mind, the breeding pair have never succeeded
(lay eggs but no babies) and in the last few months have
been much nicer to the other fish when trying to spawn.

I read advice at The Cichlid Recipe site which said
that as long as the tank is over-filtered you should
keep them slightly overcrowded... I sort of see the
logic but it's also a scary thought if it goes wrong

After a bit of research and looking in the shop the
only thing I recognised/remembered were peacock cichlids
which appear to be quite peaceful... not sure if the
Kribs would bother them, though.

Thanks for the ideas. I'm still not sure what to do!
--
Flash Wilson
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Word of the contest: Quim, on a triple word score (45 points)

"Flash Wilson" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 09 Feb 2004 02:38:45 GMT, coelacanth wrote:
snip, again
After a bit of research and looking in the shop the
only thing I recognised/remembered were peacock cichlids
which appear to be quite peaceful... not sure if the
Kribs would bother them, though.

Thanks for the ideas. I'm still not sure what to do!
--
Flash Wilson
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Word of the contest: Quim, on a triple word score (45 points)

Well, be sure to let us know what you do decide--
and how it works out! I learn the most about fishkeeping
from other people's experiments...

-coelacanth

I read advice at The Cichlid Recipe site which said
that as long as the tank is over-filtered you should
keep them slightly overcrowded

This is true - if you look at those big cichlid tanks in the chinese
restaurants