Fish To Fit Fantasy Themed Tank

[Vethian]

well, if i did a ruined out castle wall...i get get ghost glass catfish to be wondering spirits.  

 

[Akasha72]

you could .... if they work with your water parameters ... not a fish I know much about.
 
What about Khuli loaches ... they look like snakes ...my Dad had Khuli loaches when I was a kid and I thought they were snakes!

 

[Ch4rlie]

Sounds cool, though hate to say it, your tank is not quite long enough for Ghost / Glass Catfish, needs 3 foot tank
 
Also they do prefer softer water and have range of 4.0 - 7.0 pH.
 
And they are not really suitable for new aquariums afaik.
 
Glass Catfish

 

[TwoTankAmin]

 A fish site upon which I have relied heavily for years states this:

General Hardness

0 - 4 dH, 0 - 70 ppm : very soft
4 - 8 dH, 70 - 140 ppm : soft
8 - 12 dH, 140 - 210 ppm : medium hard
12 - 18 dH, 210 - 320 ppm : fairly hard
18 - 30 dH, 320 - 530 ppm : hard
higher : liquid rock (Lake Malawi and Los Angeles, CA)

from http/fins.actwin.com/mirror/begin-chem.html#reference
 
My tap tests TDS at 83 ppm. When I use the API kits I read about 5 and 4 dg for GH and KH respectively. I consider my water to be soft and I have always had great results keeping soft water fish.
 
More interesting is the derivation of the term hardmess to describe water:

 
The term hardness comes from an expression of how difficult or "hard" it is to wash clothes with the water. When soap is mixed with hard water, these minerals combine with the soap and form a precipitate, or a solid. This decreases the cleaning efficiency of the soap and forms soap scum. As more soap is added, solids continue to form until the minerals are depleted. When the minerals are no longer available, the soap forms a lather and works as a cleaning agent.

from http/www.hach.com/hardnessguide

 

[eaglesaquarium]

I was thinking swordtails, but flutter's suggestion looks pretty good.  
 
 
An alternative to the khuli loach, which are primarily nocturnal might be the black-lined loach (aka negro loach).
 http/animal-world.com/encyclo/fresh/loaches/Black-LinedLoach.php They are more active during the day.

 

[Vethian]

Sounds cool, though hate to say it, your tank is not quite long enough for Ghost / Glass Catfish, needs 3 foot tank

 
Also they do prefer softer water and have range of 4.0 - 7.0 pH.
 
And they are not really suitable for new aquariums afaik.
 
Glass Catfish

 
It is funny on the differences between sites.  Is serious fish more reliable then live aquaria?  It says 4" in length and minimum 10 gallon tank.  http/www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=830+836+2519&pcatid=2519
 
edit:  I see!  different fish.  

 Kryptopterus vitreolus vs Kryptopterus bicirrhis
 
Also, I see they hide from light.  like a ghost.  they will come out under moonlight...muahaha

 

[Ichthys]

6dGH is what I would also call fairly soft. Too soft for Swordtails, which can grow to 6", which is far too big for your tank.

Kuhlies would be a good choice, but they're best in large numbers.

Only my opinion of course, but I can't for the life of me see a dragon in a Gouramy lol.

 

[Vethian]

Im not sure about live bearers either.  I fear a bunny boom.

 

[LyraGuppi]

Maybe a shoal of harlequin rasbora, and then a gourami?

 

[Akasha72]

Im not sure about live bearers either.  I fear a bunny boom.

 
 

 that made me laugh!!
 
Educational for a child though
 
Next you say - I fear too many awkward questions lol

 

[Baccus]

Ok, so a Whiptail or two could be the equivelent of a Dragon(s). Or be daring and go for something like Desert Gobies (not sure if they are available overseas, but if they are they are a great fish).
A breed of Corydoras could be the equivelent of the peasant population, hard at work toiling in the "soil".
Congo Tetras could be knights in shining armour (the longer middle part of their tail reminds me vaguely of a knights feathers on his armoured helmet).
Or Emperor Tetras could be the knights or nobility in the tank.
Then because medievil/ fanatasy kingdom had some form of religion/ believe sysyem, Pacific blue eyes could occupy the niche of Angel/ Fairy/ celestial body.

I'm not really sure how well these suggestions will go with your water, but it gives you a bit of an idea of how some fish species could be added to "equate" to something else.

 

[Akasha72]

would congo tetra's be good for a child? I was once told they have teeth and can bite quite viciously. Maybe something you want to research Vethian before considering them.

 

[Vethian]

Well...my son is 16.    the congo tetra does look sweet.  I like the pacific blue eyes.  I checked and dont see them available.  Maybe a hatchet fish for the sky?
 

would congo tetra's be good for a child? I was once told they have teeth and can bite quite viciously. Maybe something you want to research Vethian before considering them.

 
 

Ok, so a Whiptail or two could be the equivelent of a Dragon(s). Or be daring and go for something like Desert Gobies (not sure if they are available overseas, but if they are they are a great fish).
A breed of Corydoras could be the equivelent of the peasant population, hard at work toiling in the "soil".
Congo Tetras could be knights in shining armour (the longer middle part of their tail reminds me vaguely of a knights feathers on his armoured helmet).
Or Emperor Tetras could be the knights or nobility in the tank.
Then because medievil/ fanatasy kingdom had some form of religion/ believe sysyem, Pacific blue eyes could occupy the niche of Angel/ Fairy/ celestial body.

I'm not really sure how well these suggestions will go with your water, but it gives you a bit of an idea of how some fish species could be added to "equate" to something else.

 

[Akasha72]

ahh so at 16 he's not likely to be dangling his fingers in the tank. The person that told me about congo's (this was on another forum) actually said that pirahna's are less likely to bite. He said he'd happily put his hand in the tank with a pirahna but would be wary of putting his hand in a tank that contained congo's! I was shocked!
 
I did type in congo tetra into a google search and up popped 'congo tetra teeth' so there must be something in it. I didn't click on it cos I've got a phobia about things with sharp teeth!!

 

[fluttermoth]

Congos get a bit big for a 30" tank, IMO
 
(you can't really see their teeth normally, but they can be nippy; I had to separate them from my angel)