Can i have any of these together?

[sarahw20000]

Hi sorry to post another boring stocking question but i'm going to be aquiring my boyfriends 55 gal tank soon and i'd like some cool fish.

I'd either like one of each of whatever fish below you'd think would be compatable or a largish puffer with any possible tank mates?

Peacock spiny eel
Purple spotted Gudgeon
False leaf fish
Senegal Bicher
Yellow panchax killifish
kissing gourami
African knife fish
Ceylonese green snakehead

and something that would clear up my algae if none of the above do this?

Thanks

 

[CFC]

The snakehead would kill the gudgeon and eat the panchax so thats one group that cant be mixed.

None of those fish eat algea apart from maybe the gourami which might eat little bit.

None of those fish are compatable with large puffers which should only be kept in species tanks.

 

[sarahw20000]

Thanks in which case ignore the snakehead, how do the others sound?

Is there any sort of algae eating catfish that would be compatable?

I might consider a puffer only tank but with the size of the tank i've got it's too small to have just one large puffer and the other types i could have together are a bit small (as far as my limited knowledge tells me) coz i was kinda hoping for some decent size fish (4 inchs +)

 

[pica_nuttalli]

just remember that for fish over 5 inches, the "inch per gallon" rule actually results in overstocking. so in a 55 gallon tank, in order to keep 11 5-inch fish happily, you'll need to have to some serious filtration going on.

also remember that most larger fish are a bit territorial, so make certain that you aren't trying to cram in too many top/mid/bottom-dwellers. your current list looks like:

Bottom Dwellers
Peacock spiny eel
Purple spotted Gudgeon
Senegal Bicher



Mid-Level Dwellers
kissing gourami
False leaf fish
African knife fish

Top Dwellers
Yellow panchax killifish

see how unbalanced and empty that will look most of the time? also, a standard 4-ft 55g tank simply does not have enough floorspace to happily accomodate ALL of those fish. crowding fish generally exacerbates aggressive tendancies and makes it more difficult to make a tank work.

i suggest that you research each of these species for their pH, gH, feeding, and planting needs. probably three or four of these will have overlapping needs. i also suggest that you pay special attetion to those species who's pH/gH requirements match what is available through your tap water. its a lot easier to keep tricky larger fish if you don't have to fiddle with chemistry every time you do a water change.

 

[sarahw20000]

Oh i realise i couldn't have all of them, i thought by the time some had been cancelled out for various reasons i'd be left with about 5 possibles

I also forgot to add African butterfly fish to the list although i've read that they will get agressive with other top dwelling fish so it'd be him or the killifish

 

[Fruitbat]

After looking over the list you posted, I'd like to suggest that you might stick with an African river 'biotope'. In a 55 gallon tank you could certainly house a Senegal Bichir (Polypterus senegalus) along with a couple of African Butterfly Fish (Pantodon buchholzi) as surface dwellers. The African Knife Fish (as long as it is the 'Brown' African Knife - Xenomystus nigri) will also fit in happily. I'm not sure what is currently being sold as a 'False Leaf Fish' but if it is one of the Bush Fish (Ctenopoma) species then you could put a couple of those in the tank as well.

For a clean-up crew....try some of the African river species of Synodontis cats. The only tough part will be finding an algae eater that will co-exist with your bichir There aren't a whole lot of commonly-available African algae eating fish and the 'Pleco'-type cats are occasionally known to develop a real liking for the bichir's slime coating and will rasp on it until the bichir develops some serious skin maladies.

Toss in plenty of driftwood and/or rockwork to provide hiding places and maybe even some plants in the form of Anubias or even some of the Aponogeton species (like A. crispus) and you can have a spectacular tank with some spectacular fish.

-Joe

P.S. - here are a few of the fish I mentioned, all of which are currently happily residing in various tanks together.

Polypterus senegalus - the Senegal Bichir

Xenomystus nigri - the African Brown Knife Fish

Pantodon buchholzi - the African Butterfly Fish

Ctenopoma acutirostre - the Leopard Bush Fish

Synodontis brichardi - Brichard's Squeaker

 

[pica_nuttalli]

....that's not how i remember listing those fish according to what level they prefer.

could somebody please verify that i identified the mid/bottom dwellers correctly? i could have sworn that what i posted was:

Bottom Dwellers
Peacock spiny eel
Purple spotted Gudgeon
Senegal Bicher
False leaf fish
African knife fish


Mid-Level Dwellers
kissing gourami

 

[Dwarfs]

After looking over the list you posted, I'd like to suggest that you might stick with an African river 'biotope'.  In a 55 gallon tank you could certainly house a Senegal Bichir (Polypterus senegalus) along with a couple of African Butterfly Fish (Pantodon buchholzi) as surface dwellers.  The African Knife Fish (as long as it is the 'Brown' African Knife - Xenomystus nigri) will also fit in happily.  I'm not sure what is currently being sold as a 'False Leaf Fish' but if it is one of the Bush Fish (Ctenopoma) species then you could put a couple of those in the tank as well.

For a clean-up crew....try some of the African river species of Synodontis cats.  The only tough part will be finding an algae eater that will co-exist with your bichir  There aren't a whole lot of commonly-available African algae eating fish and the 'Pleco'-type cats are occasionally known to develop a real liking for the bichir's slime coating and will rasp on it until the bichir develops some serious skin maladies.

Toss in plenty of driftwood and/or rockwork to provide hiding places and maybe even some plants in the form of Anubias or even some of the Aponogeton species (like A. crispus) and you can have a spectacular tank with some spectacular fish.







-Joe

P.S. - here are a few of the fish I mentioned, all of which are currently happily residing in various tanks together.

Polypterus senegalus - the Senegal Bichir

Xenomystus nigri - the African Brown Knife Fish

Pantodon buchholzi - the African Butterfly Fish

Ctenopoma acutirostre - the Leopard Bush Fish

Synodontis brichardi - Brichard's Squeaker

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Those fish are a good mix (I have almost all of those together, but my syno is a eupterus and I don't have a knife ATM ) and purple spotted gudgeons do very well with them

And one little thing about the alse leaf: They will only eat live food, and should not be kept with other fish because
A: the other fish will eat the live food
B : The other fish will intimidate the shy leaf fish
C: Any fish that can fit in a leaf fish' mouth, will end up in it's mouth.
False leaf fish are best kept alone in a 10g tank with plenty of plants and a steady supply of live fish. False leaves are also very hard to find

Pica:
Bottom Dwellers:

Peacock spiny eel-Bottom dweller/substrate burrower

Purple spotted Gudgeon-All levels

Senegal Bichir-When young, the top, when older, all over IME

False leaf fish-Either hiding at the surface or near the bottom

African knife fish-Bottom dweller

 

[CFC]

Pica, i edited your original post to put the leaf fish and knife fish as mid dwellers which is where they should be if they are happy in their surroundings, both fish like to hang in tall plants or near to vertical structures where they wait to ambush passing small fish.


Bichirs usually only hang out at the top if they are uncomfortable on the bottom, given pleanty of hiding places and no bothersome tankmates they will spend most of their time slinking around on the substrate looking for something to eat. Of course there are always exceptions to the rule though.

 

[sarahw20000]

I've got a bristlnose that could go in the tank but would he pester the bicher? i know he's an excellant algae eater, if not has anyone got any other suggestions?

 

[pica_nuttalli]

Pica, i edited your original post to put the leaf fish and knife fish as mid dwellers which is where they should be if they are happy in their surroundings, both fish like to hang in tall plants or near to vertical structures where they wait to ambush passing small fish.


Bichirs usually only hang out at the top if they are uncomfortable on the bottom, given pleanty of hiding places and no bothersome tankmates they will spend most of their time slinking around on the substrate looking for something to eat. Of course there are always exceptions to the rule though.

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i thought i was going mad!

 

[andywg]

And one little thing about the alse leaf: They will only eat live food, and should not be kept with other fish because
A: the other fish will eat the live food
B : The other fish will intimidate the shy leaf fish
C: Any fish that can fit in a leaf fish' mouth, will end up in it's mouth.
False leaf fish are best kept alone in a 10g tank with plenty of plants and a steady supply of live fish. False leaves are also very hard to find

I'd just like to add that I have a pair of spotted climbing perch (Ctenopoma acutirostre) or false leaf fish or bush fish (and probably many other common names) and they have no problems taking frozen or even pellet food. They are nowhere near as fussy as the true leaf fish which tend to be a pain to get off feeder fish. Obviously they prefer live food, but then most fish do which is why I treat all mine to live food every so often.

I would be careful about putting two of this particular species in a 55 gallon as the max size is 6-8" and they are known to start fighting once they start maturing. I certainly would not keep a pair of these in a 10 gallon.

I dispute about being kept with other fish as mine are second only to the 5 chalceus they are with to getting to food. They are not shy but are ambush predators, and can miss out to particularly active feeders. This can easily be counteracted by feeding both ends of the tank to ensure there is some getting to the bush fish.

They are, however, a fantastic fish and great fun to watch feeding.

Andy

 

[Fruitbat]

In my earlier post I made note of the problem with the 'False Leaf Fish' name. Unfortunately, some of the larger chain pet stores have taken to selling Ctenopoma acutirostre (an African fish) as 'Spotted Leaf Fish' or 'False Leaf Fish'. The name does, however, often get applied to Polycentrus schomburgki (a South American fish) which, like its cousin the 'true' Leaf Fish (Monocirrhus polyacanthus) often will feed exclusively on smaller live fish and will often starve to death if these are not available. Also occasionally called the 'False Leaf Fish' is Polycentropsis abbreviata which is an African nandid (like the South American leaf fish). This fish also often starves to death if living prey is not available.

On a personal level, I've kept numerous species of 'Bush Fish' (Ctenopoma and Microctenopoma) and I've also noted the aggressiveness that andywg mentioned. However, in a large enough tank with adequate hiding places, the less dominant fish will beat a hasty retreat when confronted by the more dominant fish and I've never seen any actual damage done. Currently I'm keeping Ctenopoma acutirostre, Ctenopoma kingsleyae, Ctenopoma ocellatum, Ctenopoma weeksii, Microctenopoma ansorgii and Microctenopoma fasciolatum (not all in the same tank, mind you) and have had excellent success with all of them. As andywg also mentioned, they'll eat practically anything including flake food, pellets, and any 'meaty' food they can swallow.

-Joe