Harlequin Rasbora Tankmates

[Discomafia]

I have 7 of them in a 33 gallon planted tank, want to get three more, and the only other ocupant is a juvie BN pleco.

Any ideas as to what peaceful bigger showpiece fish I could have in there? I wanted to go with either a moonlight or opaline gourami, think that'd be a good choice? I have 370gph of filtration in the tank, would that be too much for the gourami?

 

[osteoporoosi]

I would go with honey or dwarf gourami(1 m+2-3 f), as they stay smaller. Opalines and moonlights grow in my opinion too large for 33gallons, and tend to get aggressive in smaller tanks.

Edit: If there is too much current, you could always kill it by pointing the filter against the tank wall.

 

[Discomafia]

Thanks for the reply.

I'm not liking the idea of dwarf or honey gouramis too much as they only get to 2 inches if I'm not mistaken, so I'd rather skip on them as I want a bigger centrepiece fish.

Does anyone else think that the opalines and moonlights grow too large for a 33 gallon? If they're agressive in smaller tanks, then even if my tank is big enough, I'm still not getting them.

Anyone else have any ideas as to what else I could keep there, apart from gouramis. Looking for a larger fish, doesn't have to be colourful, but must be active and have a peaceful temperament. If nothing else works, I'll try a trio of dwarf or honey gouramis as suggested.

And as for pointing the filter against a tank wall, they're both HOB filters, so I'm not sure how I would go about pointing that.

 

[osteoporoosi]

How about colisa labiosa, thick-lipped gourami? They grow up to 3-4 inches.

 

[modernhamlet]

I think a 33g would be great for a pair of pearls (IMO, the most beautiful of the gourami).

Thick-lipped would work nicely as well, if you can find them.

 

[Weaver]

Yes,agree with modernhamlet.Ive a pair of pearls in my 28g and they are stunning fish.They may be a little shy at first and hide in your plants a lot but will soon gain confidence and be out swimming about
Have never kept thicklips so know nothing about them

 

[Discomafia]

Thanks for the replies. I've made a few calls and I've found a lfs that stocks pearl gouramis, but they won't get a new shipment in til Thursday. If I get 2 males, would there be any agression problems? Also, how will the current in my tank affect them?

 

[Weaver]

There shouldnt be any trouble with two males although they will set up their own territory.Ive had 8 so far, all males and only 1 has been the slightest bit aggressive and that only meant chasing the tetra away from his patch.Even that has stopped.None of the rest are remotely aggressive
Ikeep 2 in a 28g uk and its filtered with a fluval2 and a fluval 3 which osent seem to stress them although I have the nozzles pointed to the sides of the tank to lessen the turbulence.
I should point out that Im no expert in gouramis and this is only based on my experience
BTW I keep 2 more in both my 4ft tanks and again havent seen aggressive behaviour.You could probably get more detailed answers from some of the experts in the gourami section.
Good luck.You wont regret getting them

 

[Discomafia]

Alright, thanks for taking the time to type that long reply. Do you think the presence of 2 pearl gouramis will make the rasboras school more?

 

[modernhamlet]

Alright, thanks for taking the time to type that long reply. Do you think the presence of 2 pearl gouramis will make the rasboras school more?

Having kept both in a 29g, I would say yes. Harlequins are already great schoolers, but the bigger fish did keep them a little more in line.

2 male would probably work out, but I would really suggest a male and female. You get much more natural behavior and the coloration you'll see with a boy and girl courting is phenomenal.