Eel Like Fish Ofor My Tank

[ANIM4L]

I have a 60 gallon tank and i have 3 angels in it, all about 4 inches long, 5-6 inches tall, striped raphael catfish at 5 inches, and a sunodontis eupterus at 6 inches. I also have 2 rasm in there, both at 3 inches, i had neons, but they got moved out. I want a fish that looks eel like and isnt a meanie in my tank, so i was looking ata few kinds:

Black Ghost Knife: LOVE THEM TO DEATH, but i am pretty sure i cant have it... darn it!

Senegal Bichir: Love this little guy, can i keep him.. pleease? lol

Peacock Eel: Dont know much about him, but he is cool , and only gets a foot....

Violet Goby: Want him, if i can find the fw version



Can you please suggest any others, or i fpossible, tell me if any of these would work out in the tank? I would like ant of them, i am guessing the peacock and the senegal are capable of being in the tank, but i am asking eveyrone else first, ideas, suggestions, experinces, ANYTHIGN please!

 

[pica_nuttalli]

i'd vote for the peacock eel. only a danger to thin fish under 3", if i recall. shouldn't be able to eat anything currently in your tank, unlikely to attack anything out of spite. may have difficulty competing with food, but i could be remembering that wrong.

make certain that its a peacock eel and NOT a tire-track or fire eel. the latter two will both outgrow your tank and be perfectly capable of chowing down on their tankmates.

 

[plecoguy]

bichir i would say no, i hear the get big and mean, and same with the goby...but thats just what i have read. black ghost is a possiblilty, it may like a bigger tank eventually, and same with the eel. The bigger the tank the better for eels cause if they ever feel cramped....they jump out.

 

[ANIM4L]

hmmmmmm, ok well i know that gobies are peaceful, and that one is a filter feeder, but finding the one would be hard. Also i read a lot that senegals were nice, but they will still eat anything 2" and under when adults. They are very fun to watch too! the bgk would be a cool fish, but iwant my fish to be happy and i wouldnt get it unless i knew it owuld be happy. The pecock eel is not a tire track (those are awesome looking, but HUGE), it is a pecock eel, anyone else have any info, experinces, suggestions on the fish? or any others i dont know about?

 

[CFC]

The only suitable fish is the peacock eel.

BGK grows too large

Senegal bichir will eat smaller fish

Violet goby wont be able to compete for food with the other fish.

 

[plecoguy]

violet goby is definatley not what i was thinking of, the supplier from where i worked called those dragon gobies, and violet gobies were somthing different completely.

 

[ANIM4L]

well the violet goby is the same thing as a "south american dragon fish" or a "dragon goby" but there r two types. Does ANYONE have any inof suggestions or whatnot for me?

 

[OohFeeshy]

well the violet goby is the same thing as a "south american dragon fish" or a "dragon goby" but there r two types.

Yeah, and its about 99% its the brackish one.

 

[Dwarfs]

Peacock eels would fit in but IME, they are almost as hard to feed as leaf fish, and they are usually never out. Mine only eat live worms and they are easily beaten to those by the other fish. I'm not saying that any eel you pick up may be this difficult, just warning you


What about ropefish, one would fit into your tank and IMO wouldn't be able to eat anything over an inch tall (body height) They may get to over a foot, but they really are just long and skinny

 

[plecoguy]

:: looks up :: thats the fish i was thinking of i think....in your signature....dont know if its mean...but it looks feirce..

 

[xautomaticflowersx]

Hmmm... well that's a picture of a gudgeon, so not terribly eel like. I would think that a peacock eel would be your best bet. They should take frozen bloodworm and brine shrimp, but as Dwarfs said they can sometimes be beaten to it by the other fish so you have to be observant when feeding.

 

[Fruitbat]

Dwarfs' suggestion of the Rope Fish (Erpetoichthys calabaricus) is a good one if you want a tough, adaptable 'eel-like' fish. They are Polypterids, like the Senegal Bichir, but have much smaller heads than their chunky cousins so they won't be as much of a threat to their tank-mates.

-Joe

Here's a picture of one of mine:

 

[ANIM4L]

ok so i am looking at getting a senegal bichir and a peacock eel, but how big does that ropefish get, i knwo who sells them around here, i have friends that own a specialty store, so they have all the fun stuff, but can u tell me more about them?

also im looking for another catfish for the tank, like i have the striped raphael and the synodontis eupterus, and i would like one more cleaner upper I was looking into the columbian shark/catfish but i know he needs brackish atleast so i guess that is out of the question, i had one once and loved him to death, i just didnt wanna see him die any ideas on this too?

 

[pica_nuttalli]

ANIM4L, i seriously think that the bichir will be completely incompatible with your fish.

bichirs are large, powerful predators and an adult is more than capable of destroying your happy little community.

it is my vote that ONLY the peacock eel is suitable for your current community.

 

[xautomaticflowersx]

ANIM4L, i seriously think that the bichir will be completely incompatible with your fish.

bichirs are large, powerful predators and an adult is more than capable of destroying your happy little community.

it is my vote that ONLY the peacock eel is suitable for your current community.

I agree... just because you really *want* one, it doesn't mean you should get one. Your tank is not suitable, so you can either find a suitable alternative fish or set up another tank centered around the polypterus.