Hillstream Loaches (hong Kong Plec)

[LongS]

They were being kept at 27 degrees in the shop. I now know that they are indeed sub-tropical. So 20-24 degrees?

Basically i just need to know how to fit them into my community setup.

At present there are 7 White clouds, 3 guppies, 1 male dwarf gourami, 1 female dwarf gourami, 1 zebra loach and the two hillstream loaches now.



Is 24 degrees suitable for all fish?

Is it advisable to get more of these fish to encourage them to come out more?

How can i create a river enviroment suitable for the hillstream loaches?

And would this environment be suitable for the other fish?

Could i add an airstone in to add more oxygen to the water? would this help?

 

[mixmaster jay]

they should be ok at that temp mate have a look at this care shhet for them its off my website


Scientific Name(s): Gastromyzon borneensis, Gastromyzon punctulatus, Pseudogastromyzon myersi



Common Name(s): Stingray Pleco, Hong Kong Pleco, Borneo Sucker, Hillstream Loach, Chinese Butterfly Fish, Butterfly Pleco, Butterfly Loach



Family: Balitoridae



Species Type: Asian Loaches



Maximum Size: 3 inches



Life Span: 6 years



Natural Habitat: Asian rivers and streams.



Minimum Tank Size: 20 gallons



Tank Region: Bottom.



Possible Tank Mates: Other peaceful fish with similar water requirements.



Description: A good community fish, they are gentle and peaceful. They will do well with non-aggressive tank mates as well as enjoy other members of their own species. It is recommended that they be kept in groups of at least 3, with larger groups of five to seven being recommended. They are rather shy, but when they move they are quite quick. Although many of the common names for this species contain "Pleco" these are not plecostamus, but loaches.



Temperature Range 68°F - 75°F



pH Range 6.2 - 7.2



Hardness 5° - 15°



Breeding Information: There are reports of the Chinese Hillstream Loach having spawned for hobbyists but not much is known about their breeding habits. They are not yet bred commercially.



Sexing Information: Males tend to be larger than females.



Diet: Omnivorous - Does well with any sinking food.



Temperment: Generally peaceful but may become territorial.



Common Diseases: None specific to species.

 

[loachman]

You're going to have a hard time with a river environment with that stocking. The guppies and gouramis will not do well with a huge amount of flow.

WCMM are one of the more common mid-level fish put with the hillstream loaches, so you should be fine there. They do fine with decent flow and cooler water. Most danios also do well.

Airstone could help add more oxygen to the water, but remember that the surface agitation and water movement is the main factor. Not the bubbles themselves.

In a dedicated hillstream loach tank, most people will setup with a few powerheads to provide flow and surface agitation. The easiest way is to set it up so that there is a circular flow around the tank with 2 powerheads. Face them in opposite directions, one in the back corner facing down the rear of the tank, and the other on the opposite corner facing down the front pane of the tank.

Here are a couple good articles on hillstreams, including a bit more complex tank setup 1, 2

 

[bagu]

wow nice little fact part there in that post!

how many do you have at the moment?

 

[LongS]

Thanks for that loachman. do you keep these yourself?

At the moment i have an internal filter running so that the outlet is above water level and creating a waterfall type effect i guess.

The agitation looks pretty strong but im not sure if it strong enough.

They seem to keep company with each other and also try to sit next to my Zebra loach, although he likes to think noone can see him and tries ignoring them. (But he's not fooling anyone)

So about the two outlets at the front and back. Is this just basically two seperate internal filters going at the same time? Or can this be done with one single filter and some sort of extension.

My original plan was to keep the strong filter flow and also add an airstone at the opposite end of the tank. And set my temp at 23-24 degrees. This way i was thinking it would still be suitable for the Gouramis and Guppies becuase there would be no real current but just high oxygen levels.

But going by that rather complicated link i'm not sure on this ha ha.

What do you think loachman?

 

[Amunet]

Your setup sounds ok. So long as there is some area with a good flow, they should be ok.
I mean of course, a stronger flow throughout the tank would be ideal, having a little area where the current is good should be enough.
I'm sure the loaches will love an airstone as well and will probably spend time on the wall in the bubbles.

We had one in our 29gal tank. Kept the tank at a steady 80F and it was perfectly fine. The tank at the time had 2 HOB filters and 1 internal. It always used to hang out on the internal filter b/c of the current it created.

They are fantastic little fish.