What Species Should I Get?

[mrvillicus]

well there is one yes, ill give them the list and see what they can do, im never going to petsmart again..all 6 of the fish from there have died, the only survivors are from A & D aquatics my LFS

 

[mattlee]

mail ordering fish can be a bit hit and miss tbh. firstly you cant see which fish you are buying, you may get small or large, dull or colourfull.... i always prefer to choose my own. secondly, you cant see if the tank or occupants are heathy. any sign of infection/disease and i leave well alone, you will not be able to judge this as you wont see it. thirdly, fish in the post has a high success rate if done correctly but unless its a very hard to find species that cant be got locally i dont like the increased stress levels on my fish. its bad enough for them to travel for a couple of hours and put in a new tank let alone overnight in a box filled with water of deteriorating quality. you then have to pay quite high delivery charges as they will need to be a next day early guarenteed time delivery....

personally i like to see what im getting and to know to the best of my judgement that they are healthy fish that have suffered as little stress as possible.

non of the fish on your list will be difficult to source and should be at most lfs

 

[mrvillicus]

youve persuaded me against post...it makes sense definately, if my shop havent got them in stock i suppose they can source them for me!

 

[mattlee]

youve persuaded me against post...it makes sense definately, if my shop havent got them in stock i suppose they can source them for me!

dont get me wrong i have mail ordered fish in the past but only species i cant get without a mamouth drive. ive had mixed results with it too.

the fish you want are very common and should be available pretty much anywhere and to me its not worth paying £16 ish for delivery of them

 

[mrvillicus]

super, i think with those on the list Ill have a varied, colourful and active aquarium! if you can think of any additions please say, thanks for your input mattlee I really appreciate it

 

[SamLovesCorys]

Boosting the tetra shoals to 5+ would be good

 

[JDs4me]

I do apologise if I'm making a daft comment here mrvillicus...I don't know how those digital thermometers work so unsure how it senses the tank temperature, and hesitate to point out the bleedin' obvious, but its not affected by your boiler overhead is it? Looks like a hot zone!!

 

[mrvillicus]

to samlovescorys I was going to boost the shoal to 10, and jds4me the lcd thermometer has a sensor hangin in the tank! and no the boiler has some heatshield reflective stuff on the bottom!

 

[JDs4me]

to samlovescorys I was going to boost the shoal to 10, and jds4me the lcd thermometer has a sensor hangin in the tank! and no the boiler has some heatshield reflective stuff on the bottom!

good stuff... hope your stocking goes well!

 

[mrvillicus]

thanks Ill see what the water results are tomorrow, it cant be that bad s the other fish are ok...

 

[mattlee]

super, i think with those on the list Ill have a varied, colourful and active aquarium! if you can think of any additions please say, thanks for your input mattlee I really appreciate it

with

3 x colombian tera
10 x cardinal tetra
2 x dwarf gourami (Red Dwarf Gourami/Powder Blue Dwarf Gourami)
? x red wagtail platys
2 x bolivian rams
? x shrimp

this i squite a lot for a 2ft tank. maybe forget the platys and up the tetras to 6 of each and i would be tempted to leave out the gouramis too but its your call.

6 x colombian tetra
6 x cardinal tetra
2 x bolivian rams
? x shrimp

this sounds better to me and maybe add a few more cardianls when the tank has settled and you get an idea of whats going on with it room wise. i would also go for amano shrimp and get the biggest you can as the rams may eat cherry shrimp as they stay too small. colombian tetra do get to a decent size as tetras go and can be a nippy fish so i would up them to 6 or get rid of the 3 you have and add a trio of platys instead or maybe just up the cardinal tetras to 10-12

8 x cardinal tetra
3 x platy
2 x bolivian rams
4 x amano shrimp

plenty of movement and colour in either of those stock lists, just dont get too carried away trying to get lots of different species in the tank as it is only a small tank dont forget. less species and more of them is best in my eyes. personally i would go with a nice low light planted tank with ferns and anubias, a black background and substarte and stock it with

10 x cardinal tetra
2 x bolivian rams (maybe 3 if you can get 2 females)
4 x amano shrimp
4 x otocinclus

this will give you activity im all zones of the tank and some amazing colours too especially against the plants.

 

[mrvillicus]

you have a talent for persuasion mattlee, thanks again I will keep to either the gouramis or rams..not too sure as im not sure on the size difference between the two, ill up my neon tetras to 10, get some shrimp and maybe something instead of the dwarf catfish but ill definately follow your advice

 

[mattlee]

i would without a second thought go for Bolivians over gouramis. Keep it south American.

 

[mrvillicus]

okies mattlee will do!

 

[maxymax]

Shell dweller cichlids