4.2 Gallon (16 Litre) Stocking

[April_ht]

About a month ago, I bought a 16 litre tank for some platy fry (tank dimensions around 35cm x 20cm x 25cm maybe). I’ve placed 5 into the main tank to see how they do with adult platy and White Cloud Mountain Minnows, the latter of which chased them though could not fit them in their mouth. I’ve seen a few swimming around the bottom of the tank and am going to add the rest in within a few weeks until they are old enough to be sold. After these are moved, I would like to do something with the tank rather than have it sitting away in storage.
My initial plans were a betta, though I’m unsure if I’m ready for those requirements yet and think the tank may be too small as I’ve heard the minimum is 5 Gallons (18 liters).
My next idea was a planted shrimp tank. I’ll stick with this if I can’t find any other options.
I’ve thought of having a small school of Chili Rasboras, around 4-6 though preferably the higher end as they are schooling fish, as they are pretty small though am unsure of the requirements. Would the tank be too small?
Are there any other fish able to go in a tank that small? Also, I’d really like to do a black water tank if possible so if there were any fish/invertebrates suited that would be great. Any advice is greatly appreciated, thank you.

 

[nik_n]

You could safely add a betta in that sized tank, if there are enough plants and a heater+filter. The shrimp colony would do absolutely great in that sized tank and they would reproduce relatively quickly. You could also add some snails together with the shrimp or betta.

Other then chilli rasboras, you could add celestial peral danios, scarlet baddies, rocket/clow killifish (and other types of killifish). Before getting any of the fish I would suggest doing research about them to learn how to properly care for them and what they requirer.

I suggest you check out a video by Aquarium Co-op, they did a video about a few ideas for a 3 gallon tank. All those fish will work in a 4 gallon as well. I think the name of the video was: Teeny tiny ideas for your aquarium. Great video, helped me decide on the stocking for my 3 gallon

 

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

Although it's always handy to have a 'spare' tank for hospital/quarantine purposes.

 

[April_ht]

Thank you, I’ve actually been looking at Clown Killifish and Scarlet Badis, however the Scarlet Badis are now illegal to import to Australia so very little are around and all Clown Killifish seem to be out of stock. I’ll check out the video by Aquarium Co-op, and if I don’t find anything suitable I may just end up with it as a spare. Thank you for the advice, much appreciated.

 

[April_ht]

I’ve had a look into some ideas, here are my thoughts so far, please let me know if you believe these aren’t suitable or have any advice:

• 6 Clown Killifish with Cherry or Ghost shrimp (not too worried about eating the baby shrimp)
• 6 Chilli rasboras (boraras briggitae) or boraras species with Cherry Red shrimp
• Pair of killifish (gardeni? Other?) with shrimp
• Scarlet Badis with some bigger shrimp species

As for the fish requiring low PH, I’ve been looking into black water tanks recently and heard that Chilli rasboras (and other similar species) are from that environment. Would anybody happen to know if Cherry or Ghost shrimp would be able to survive in that environment? And I’m assuming a heater would be required for this setup/fish?
I’ve had the tank running for a month or so with some platy fry and a sponge filter so should be starting to get established (is that the word?) the fry should be able to go in the main tank soon, which is why I’m looking into these new ideas.

 

[nik_n]

All those combinations should work. Shrimp require higher ph and harder water, so they won't do as well in softer water with low ph. You could keep the clown killifish without a heater, if the room is heated. They can go from 20-26°C.

 

[April_ht]

I might just leave the blackwater tank for now (or at least until this fish addiction prompts me to get another tank). I guess I'll just continue researching and decide which one best fits in with my water parameters. Thank you for the advice, it's much appreciated