Overstock?

[Crunchycrouton]

So I’m setting up a 40 gallon breeder, and I wanted to double check with some people if this would be overstocked. The tank will be planted. I may get 6 gold zebra danios, 6 regular zebra danios, 1 male albino paradise fish, 2 female paradise fish. The place I am ordering from sells the danios in packs of 6, and I didn’t know if I should get one instead of two.

 

[Freshyfishy]

sounds a perfect to me.. I go by 1 fish per gallon (of non to semi-agressive species/small) except for the paradise fish

 

[Byron]

First on the danios. This is a shoaling/schooling fish so it must have a group of its own species, and 10+ is advisable. As the two varieties are the same species you can have six and six, no problem. If you do get this fish, do the 12.

However, there is another issue, the paradise fish. Species is Macropodus opercularis. This fish is an anabantid, and thus sedate. It does not appreciate active fish, and danios are much too active. It is found in any type of lowland habitat including river backwaters, small streams, ditches, ponds and paddy fields showing a preference for still and even stagnant waters. ...i.e., it needs very slow-flowing water, something the danios would not appreciate. You also need to be aware of any fish that may fin nip. Reverse, the paradise fish is not a good community fish for the average aquarium. Smaller fish will be eaten, fins will be nipped, and any similar-looking fish will be attacked. Very aggressive with its own, males in breeding form will often kill rivals; females are less aggressive. Best kept as a pair on its own.

These two cannot be in the same aquarium.

 

[10 Tanks]

So I’m setting up a 40 gallon breeder, and I wanted to double check with some people if this would be overstocked. The tank will be planted. I may get 6 gold zebra danios, 6 regular zebra danios, 1 male albino paradise fish, 2 female paradise fish. The place I am ordering from sells the danios in packs of 6, and I didn’t know if I should get one instead of two.

Hello Crunchy. I think this a good number of fish for 40 gallons. Danios stay small and the Paradise fish are around two to three inches maximum. Just acclimate the fish properly, feed a little every day or even two and change half the tank water every week. This is basically all I do for my fish.

10 Tanks (Now 11)

 

[Slaphppy7]

First on the danios. This is a shoaling/schooling fish so it must have a group of its own species, and 10+ is advisable. As the two varieties are the same species you can have six and six, no problem. If you do get this fish, do the 12.

However, there is another issue, the paradise fish. Species is Macropodus opercularis. This fish is an anabantid, and thus sedate. It does not appreciate active fish, and danios are much too active. It is found in any type of lowland habitat including river backwaters, small streams, ditches, ponds and paddy fields showing a preference for still and even stagnant waters. ...i.e., it needs very slow-flowing water, something the danios would not appreciate. You also need to be aware of any fish that may fin nip. Reverse, the paradise fish is not a good community fish for the average aquarium. Smaller fish will be eaten, fins will be nipped, and any similar-looking fish will be attacked. Very aggressive with its own, males in breeding form will often kill rivals; females are less aggressive. Best kept as a pair on its own.

These two cannot be in the same aquarium.

Agreed...I would just add that the paradise fish thrives in cooler water (around 60F mid-range) than the danios would prefer

Macropodus opercularis – Paradise Fish (Macropodus chinensis, Labrus opercularis) — Seriously Fish

www.seriouslyfish.com

 

[Crunchycrouton]

First on the danios. This is a shoaling/schooling fish so it must have a group of its own species, and 10+ is advisable. As the two varieties are the same species you can have six and six, no problem. If you do get this fish, do the 12.

However, there is another issue, the paradise fish. Species is Macropodus opercularis. This fish is an anabantid, and thus sedate. It does not appreciate active fish, and danios are much too active. It is found in any type of lowland habitat including river backwaters, small streams, ditches, ponds and paddy fields showing a preference for still and even stagnant waters. ...i.e., it needs very slow-flowing water, something the danios would not appreciate. You also need to be aware of any fish that may fin nip. Reverse, the paradise fish is not a good community fish for the average aquarium. Smaller fish will be eaten, fins will be nipped, and any similar-looking fish will be attacked. Very aggressive with its own, males in breeding form will often kill rivals; females are less aggressive. Best kept as a pair on its own.

These two cannot be in the same aquarium.

Thank you, I’ve kept danios and paradise fish together before without any issues for 3 years before I moved. I’ve never had any issues but I will keep this all in mind

 

[Byron]

Thank you, I’ve kept danios and paradise fish together before without any issues for 3 years before I moved. I’ve never had any issues but I will keep this all in mind

When the question is asked, we can only provide the norm for the species. Why individual fish sometimes act differently is just one of those things, but not knowing your experience it is always wisest and safest to go with the expected norm for a fish species. I am not one that believes in experimenting to see if "x" will work, that is just not fair to the poor fish.

 

[Crunchycrouton]

First on the danios. This is a shoaling/schooling fish so it must have a group of its own species, and 10+ is advisable. As the two varieties are the same species you can have six and six, no problem. If you do get this fish, do the 12.

However, there is another issue, the paradise fish. Species is Macropodus opercularis. This fish is an anabantid, and thus sedate. It does not appreciate active fish, and danios are much too active. It is found in any type of lowland habitat including river backwaters, small streams, ditches, ponds and paddy fields showing a preference for still and even stagnant waters. ...i.e., it needs very slow-flowing water, something the danios would not appreciate. You also need to be aware of any fish that may fin nip. Reverse, the paradise fish is not a good community fish for the average aquarium. Smaller fish will be eaten, fins will be nipped, and any similar-looking fish will be attacked. Very aggressive with its own, males in breeding form will often kill rivals; females are less aggressive. Best kept as a pair on its own.

These two cannot be in the same aquarium.

Hello Crunchy. I think this a good number of fish for 40 gallons. Danios stay small and the Paradise fish are around two to three inches maximum. Just acclimate the fish properly, feed a little every day or even two and change half the tank water every week. This is basically all I do for my fish.

10 Tanks (Now 11)

I think I’ll do a paradise fish only tank with one male and 3-4 females. And if I have issues, I’ll move them into their own tanks. No danios.

 

[TaylorAnn]

First on the danios. This is a shoaling/schooling fish so it must have a group of its own species, and 10+ is advisable. As the two varieties are the same species you can have six and six, no problem. If you do get this fish, do the 12.

However, there is another issue, the paradise fish. Species is Macropodus opercularis. This fish is an anabantid, and thus sedate. It does not appreciate active fish, and danios are much too active. It is found in any type of lowland habitat including river backwaters, small streams, ditches, ponds and paddy fields showing a preference for still and even stagnant waters. ...i.e., it needs very slow-flowing water, something the danios would not appreciate. You also need to be aware of any fish that may fin nip. Reverse, the paradise fish is not a good community fish for the average aquarium. Smaller fish will be eaten, fins will be nipped, and any similar-looking fish will be attacked. Very aggressive with its own, males in breeding form will often kill rivals; females are less aggressive. Best kept as a pair on its own.

These two cannot be in the same aquarium.

Instead of the paradise gouramis, would recommend dwarf gouramis! They can have some pretty colors too. I have a few in with my danios and everyone is happy! Never had any aggression problems. Good luck!

 

[TaylorAnn]

Instead of the paradise gouramis, would recommend dwarf gouramis! They can have some pretty colors too. I have a few in with my danios and everyone is happy! Never had any aggression problems. Good luck!

Dwarf gourmis are also generally less aggressive too. They only get about 2.5-3 inches.

 

[Essjay]

The trouble with dwarf gouramis is that many of them are infected with an incurable disease by the time they reach the store. You may have been lucky and found a healthy one, but if it's a recent purchase keep an eye on it for signs of dwarf gourami iridovirus.