Fish Stocking

[The Duke]

Hi, I am new to this forum. I have had a Juwel Trigon 190 for about a year. Current stock is as follows:
3 angelfish
2 pearl gourami
6 platys
7 sterbai cory
5 x-ray tetra
5 black widow tetra
3 guppies
2 Bolivian rams
10 neons

I have seen a really nice severum which I would like. I know I am probably at the limit if not overstocked but could I accommodate a severum? I was even thinking about returning one of the Angels which would create more space. What do you think? Feedback greatly appreciated.

 

[KittyKat]

No, severums grow too large for your tank. We're talking about a 12" fish here, it won't be able to do much more than just turn around in your tank, which is not really fair on the fish. Heros spp. are one of the fish on my "want" list that I have never had the space for, and when I finally get around to keeping them, I will be looking at a tank that is at least 6*2*2 ft in size, and preferably larger, to keep a pair with some other compatible fish.

How long have you had your angels for and what size are they? Normally, 3 adult angels would not work in a tank the size of yours because of their temperament, but it is possible for that stocking to work out.

If I had your tank, then my primary goal right now would be on improving current stocking. For example, I would get the schooling species into group of 10-15 per species (probably by reducing the number of species) and I would look at my water parameters and review which fish do best in them.

 

[The Duke]

Hi. The three Angels are about 4 inches in size. Very placid and get along fine swimming about with each other. Seems to be a very healthy tank with weekly water changes. Thanks for your reply.

 

[KittyKat]

4" body is probably adult, but 4" including fins would still babies. If they are babies, you will need to watch for aggression with age. If they are adult, you might want to avoid removing one, as that can sometimes trigger aggression between the remaining fish.

 

[The Duke]

Ok so thinking about taking out the five black widow tetra, the three guppies and one angel. With the extra room would a severum be ok? Read that my size of tank is ok for one. See my current stock list above. Thanks

 

[The Duke]

Anyone?

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

Ok so thinking about taking out the five black widow tetra, the three guppies and one angel. With the extra room would a severum be ok? Read that my size of tank is ok for one. See my current stock list above. Thanks

Still sounds very risky, three cichlid species including 2 possible pairs in a ~3-foot 190l long term, but I'd say even without other cichlids a Severum needs a bigger tank (an issue I think you will get at some stage with your Angelfish, not to mention conspecific agro as they grow).

 

[The Duke]

Hi. Yeah I think I need to listen to people's advice. Love severums but would be cruel to get one in my tank. Thanks guys

 

[KittyKat]

Ok so thinking about taking out the five black widow tetra, the three guppies and one angel. With the extra room would a severum be ok? Read that my size of tank is ok for one. See my current stock list above. Thanks

To elaborate on the size point… If a fish does not have enough room to actually swim, then it is unlikely to be a happy and healthy fish. Small tanks do increase the chance of stunting by quite a lot. The amount of room that the fish need depends on the species: for example, a 2" zebra danio can get across a 4-5 ft tank in under 1 second, but a 2" Betta splendens will easily take 5-30+ seconds to cross the same space, so to have a similar amount of movement, the danio would need a bit more space than a Betta, does that make sense? Also, different species have different territory requirements, and that is another point that needs to be considered.

To get a very rough estimate for medium activity fish such as severums, the adult fish length * 5 is the minimum length of the tank, adult length * 1.5 is the narrowest (front to back) that the tank should be and adult length * 1.5 is the height of the tank. This *very rough* guide is only valid for tanks starting from 3 ft long and 15 inches in both other dimensions. It also does not apply to fast fish like zebra danios and to slow fish like Bettas.
So, based on this guideline (which is not amazing, but better than any other one I've seen), a severum would need a tank that is at the very least 60*18*18 inches in dimensions, which is 150*45*45 cm, which is 305 litres / 67 imperial gallons / 81 US gallons. This is the absolute minimum and I like to see fish have some companions, which is why I recommend a 72*24*24 inch tank for the species.

In other words, you can remove *all* your current fish and the tank will still be too small for the severum because it is too short.