white clouds changing color?!?!

[cutechic]

hi everyone ive just got 2 quick questions.

first of all: ive had 2 white cloud minnows for about 2 1/2 years now, but recently ive noticed that one of my white clouds has turned a reddish color (almost the colour that cherry barbs turn), and he is being chased by the second white cloud, who is constantly flaring his fins. is the color change and the fin-flaring normal?

secondly, i've got the two white clouds, as well as 1 black neon, in a 5 gallon aquarium. if i add a betta will the tank be overstocked?

thx in advance to everyone for your help

 

[William]

Which sex are your W.C.M.M.s? The flaring is done by the male usually and the redness of the other could well mean you have two males. The males are smaller and narrow bodied whereas a female (especially egg laden) will have a deep body and look more ungainly

 

[playfulalliecat]

Not knowing anything about your set up other than it is 5 gallons, I would say you have enough in it. With extra filtration, you can overstock and get by but in a tank that small I wouldn't recommend it. Water parameters are much harder to keep in check in a small tank like that. Things can change quickly before you can even catch it!


I would, however, recommend saving up and buying a bigger tank........

 

[cutechic]

i'm not sure about the sexes of the white clouds. . . the one with a reddish colour has a rounder body, and the one which does the flaring is much narrower. the flaring fish is also darker in colour, but i think this might be either frum mild ammonia poisoning when he was younger (and i was less experienced). i also thought the flaring one was smaller because when he was younger the other fish nipped at his finsa bit, and he clamped his fins and hid for a while, until i moved him to an isolation tank. (now that hes older and bigger, i put him in the tank with my other fish, and he doesnt get bullied)

anyway, sorry to babble like that. i have a hex-5 system (marineland) with a power filter and bio-wheel (both came with the tank), one 15w lamp, and a bubble wand, which doesnt work very well anymore )

 

[playfulalliecat]

Should you decide to get more fish, bear in mind that without a heater, you need to watch what you get because most tropicals require temps in the mid 70's to low 80's. White clouds and various goldfish make good coldwater fish. Be careful with goldfish though because a lot of them get quite large. They do have heaters they say are ok with 5 gallon tanks. I am a bit wary though about trying to use a heater with anything less than a 10 gallon. A faulty thermostat can cause problems really fast if it heats too much and you aren't there to catch it immediately. Any problems that arise in fishkeeping can be escalated in a hurry in a small tank!................JMHO

 

[cutechic]

oh, sorry, i forgot to mention that i have a heater. i keep the temperature at 26 degrees, which is good for the tetra, and the white clouds dont mind it either (they can adapt to various conditions)

anyway, rite now i'm saving up for a 54 gallon corner aquarium ive been wanting it for over a year. . . but i'll probably end up getting a 20 or 30 gallon because of the cost.

so. . . do you think i could add another fish?

 

[shark89]

the answer to your second question is. To know how much area a fish will take up is for every inch of a fish it should have a gallon of water. so if you have a two inch fish you should have two gallons of water.

 

[cutechic]

ok thx hmm i guess since ive got 3 fish that r all the same size. . . 1 1/2 inches, that would be 4 1/2 inches. . . so i could have another 1/2 inch of fish! no just kidding i guess i shouldnt put any more fish in the aquarium