I saw this fish...

[joe123321]

The bala shark (not a shark, but another member of the carp family!) is a beautiful and peaceful fish, but it is large, active and sociable, so you are right to choose something else.

The selection of fish will depend on whether the water in your area is hard or soft.

For reasonably soft water:
Tetras (neon, glowlight, x-ray and many others)
Angelfish (but there are a lot of unhealthy mass-produced angelfish around at the moment)
Corydoras (bronze, peppered, panda and many others)
Bristlenoses (Ancistrus - one of the smaller plecos and funny looking, may even breed in the tank)
Otocinclus (very small pleco, about 3cm, can get lost in the tank!)
Small barbs (cherry, rosy, golden)
Kribensis cichlids

For hard water:
Platies (in my experience one of the easiest tropical fish, and some beautiful varieties such as the Moonlight and Sunset platies)
Swordtails
Guppies (can be surprisingly difficult!)
Mollies (can be difficult, may need salt in the water, which means they can only be kept with other salt-tolerant fish)
Malawi cichlids (only with other Malawi cichlids, not with any other species)

For an unheated tank (in a normal temperature house!):
Weather loaches (can escape, so need a tight fitting lid!)
Paradise fish
White Cloud minnows (very small)
Zebra Danios
Goldfish (many different colours and breeds, will eat very small fish, so only with other similar fish or with Weather loaches)

I will post any more I find. They may have different names, so if you don't know what they are, I can give you the Latin name.

Lucia

Thank you for the help as for soft and hard water, that refers to the PH yes? soft-acidic hard-alkaline?

 

[naiad]

Yes, soft water is acidic or neutral and hard water is alkaline. Some species of fish are more fussy than others, but most will be happier if the PH is right for them. A few, like the goldfish, don't seem to mind at all.

 

[naiad]

And some species of fish which are NOT good to keep, but often sold in pet and aquarium shops:

Clown loach, Tinfoil barb, Giant gourami, Most species of catfish, Carp of any variety (they all grow big)
Most plecos (unable to compete for food with other fish, so they need specialist feeding, and most can grow big)
Dwarf clawed frogs or any other frogs (not good with fish)
Terrapins and turtles (will eat fish, can carry disease)
Sucking Loach or Chinese Algae Eater (can attack and kill fish much bigger than itself)
Disco Fish and Jelly Bean Cichlids (these are dipped in or injected with coloured paints, which damages their health)

Some to be careful with:

Siamese fighting fish (likely to get bullied by other species!)
Tiger barbs (can bully other fish)
Sailfin mollies (need salt in the water, so not suitable with other species)
Anything with very long fins (delicate, can get bullied)

 

[joe123321]

Thanks for the tips, Ill be sure to avoid those. Betas getting bullied? Hmm, Would think it the other way.

How do you know so much about fish!?

 

[naiad]

I used to keep tropical and coldwater fish (now I only have goldfish), and I am studying Ornamental Fish Management.

Bettas are slow-moving and have long fins, so they can get bullied by more active fish. They only fight with their own kind, or similar looking fish. They are not a problem apart from that, and do well in a single-species tank or with peaceful companions. I have seen them on display in plastic cups, as they are very hardy and breathe air (but I don't recommend keeping a fish in a plastic cup!). They have an interesting mating ritual. The male makes a nest by blowing bubbles until there is a mass of foam on the surface. The female inspects the nest and if she is satisfied, they wrap around each other and squeeze tightly, releasing eggs and sperm. Then they separate and the male picks up the eggs from the bottom of the tank and puts them in the nest. The female drifts off unconscious for a few minutes, then recovers and swims away. The male guards the nest until the eggs hatch, then the fry leave the nest and become independent. They are extremely small (the eggs are under 1mm!).

I forgot to mention the Blue Gourami. I think it is a beautiful fish, with similar habits to the Betta but more suitable for a community tank. They can become striped like a Mackerel.
Image:Trichogaster trichopterus2004.jpg - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

All Gouramis, Bettas, Plecos, Corydoras and Loaches need some air space at the top of the tank, as they breathe air and are essentially holding their breath!

 

[BatRay]

Good info, Lucia. Wish I'd known that before I bought my pleco. It's growing larger all of the time. Are Otocinclus (sp?) good as algae eaters? Mine seem peaceful and industrious. I had no luck with the chinese algae eater. They got mean.

 

[naiad]

The Otocinclus should be good algae eaters, and they are small and peaceful. Ancistrus will eat more algae, but they are larger, 8-12cm. Still not too big for the average tank. The common pleco and many others which are often sold can easily grow to 30cm. As for the biggest, this one is next to a scuba diver...
[ame=http://www.plecofanatics.com/forum/showthread.php?t=11891]Huge panaque in amazon - PlecoFanatics.com[/ame]

Chinese algae eaters do get mean. They chase each other constantly, and attack other species by attaching to their sides and eating them. I have known small ones (4-5cm) to kill angelfish, mollies, gouramis, fancy goldfish and each other. They also die suddenly for no apparent reason. Many books recommend them as peaceful algae eaters, or say that there is only the occasional rogue that chases other fish, or that only the older ones cause trouble. I haven't seen any Chinese algae eater of any size that has been peaceful and lived a long time. Maybe they need something that the normal aquarium can't provide. I don't know why aquarium shops still sell them - I haven't known any other commonly kept species of fish to be so troublesome.

 

[BatRay]

I had a couple of those some years back. They grew quite large, between 4 and five inches each. They did chase each other, and eventually both of them ended up committing suicide at the same time by jumping out of the tank Very weird.

I suspect that the pleco has been munching on my goldfish and possibly the dojo loaches. It will be time to get rid of him soon, I guess. Do they do okay in outside ponds?

 

[naiad]

Unfortunately plecos will not survive in outside ponds, unless the water temperature is 20-26C all year round. Maybe someone with a large aquarium will want him, or a display tank like a shop or public aquarium. There is a big problem with unwanted large plecos - someone here mentioned that he had an indoor koi pond with lots of them which people had given him.

 

[naiad]

I forgot to say - Otocinclus are not good for keeping with goldfish, large dojo loaches or similar. The bigger fish may try to eat them, and their fin spines get stuck in its mouth, so they are almost impossible to separate and one or both fish will die. The same applies to small Corydoras and similar.

Also, most tropical fish (including Otocinclus, Corydoras and Ancistrus) need a temperature of 22-25C and goldfish prefer a temperature of 18-22C. Goldfish can be kept with tropical fish, but the temperature is not very good for them. They are also vacuum-cleaners, and will eat small fish and plants, and stir up the gravel, and consume large amounts of oxygen.

 

[bdurrett]

I have 4 Otocinclus in my tank and they did a number on some of my plants. Other than that, they are fine. I also have 2 pairs of what are called L-Wels in German that each grow to be a maximum of 12 cm. One pair is spotted and one pair striped. Add to that about a dozen Amano Shrimp and I still have algae....

The rest of the tank is..... about 20 neons (50% blue neons and the others are red neons), a pair of Schmetterlinge Buntbarsche (Roughly translated they would be "Butterfly colored somethings" - They are a dwarf cichlid - Microgeophagus ramirezi), 3 Vieletas (1 male and 2 females - also a cichlid), a pair of Kakadoos (1M, 1F - another cichlid race), a Beta (siamese fighting fish) who likes to terrorize the Butterfly cichlids who in turn, have done a number on his fins) and a couple of squads of Corys - 4 metallic and 5 marbled/spotted..... Of course, my tank is 240 liters and I have a decent number of plants, CO2 system, bottom heater, etc., etc., ad nauseum.

Bret

 

[BatRay]

Don't plecos tend to enjoy eating the slime coats and sometimes the scales off of goldfish and others? What would be a good algae eater to keep with goldfish and dojo loaches, or should I just give up on the idea? I'm planning to set up a tropical tank once my 40-gallon setup is complete for the goldfish and dojo loaches. The Otocinclus will live in there. The pleco will probably make a trip to the pet shop in exchange for store credit.

 

[wet]

Plecos eat slime and scales?

Are they the fish that the spas in Turkey use for people with skin disorders?
(From a story in The Guardian)

Yahoo! Groups

Are there some fish that feed off the skin of whales, manatees or seals?

DDeden

 

[BatRay]

Doubt it. I remember reading one time that plecos like to eat goldfish slime coats, and was hoping to hear if that was true or not. It would make sense, because it's always trying to attach to my goldfish.

 

[bdurrett]

Doubt it. I remember reading one time that plecos like to eat goldfish slime coats, and was hoping to hear if that was true or not. It would make sense, because it's always trying to attach to my goldfish.

What about Mollies? Just not sure of the temp range.....

B

 

[Marwan]

wow, its like the science channel on this post , you should ask David Attenborough to narrate

 

[naiad]

I have 4 Otocinclus in my tank and they did a number on some of my plants. Other than that, they are fine. I also have 2 pairs of what are called L-Wels in German that each grow to be a maximum of 12 cm. One pair is spotted and one pair striped. Add to that about a dozen Amano Shrimp and I still have algae....

They must be tough algae... rofl

There are actually several types of algae, and some are easier to control than others. The soft green algae that grows on plants, rocks and tank sides is usually eaten by plecos, Amano shrimp and others.

There is also a hard green algae which forms a slow-growing 'crust' on rocks and tank sides. This is too hard for most fish to eat, but does not usually cause any problems except for being unsightly. In my experience it is a sign of good water quality anyway, so there is not much point in trying to stop it completely.

The hair algae forms tufts of green 'hair' on objects. Some fish will eat it, and it can also be pulled off objects it is stuck to. If there is a lot of it, fish and other animals may get tangled in it, so too much is a bad thing.

The 'green water' algae are single-celled and drift around in the water, making it green. Only filter-feeders or water changes can remove it.

Blue-green algae are not algae, but a kind of bacteria (cyanobacteria). They are dark green or blue-green, and form a slimy layer on objects which is very easily peeled off. These are very fast-growing, and nothing will eat them, so the only way to control them is to clean them off things, or to add plants and a more powerful lighting system. They don't like bright lights or competition from plants.

Don't plecos tend to enjoy eating the slime coats and sometimes the scales off of goldfish and others? What would be a good algae eater to keep with goldfish and dojo loaches, or should I just give up on the idea? I'm planning to set up a tropical tank once my 40-gallon setup is complete for the goldfish and dojo loaches. The Otocinclus will live in there. The pleco will probably make a trip to the pet shop in exchange for store credit.

Some plecos will eat the slime coats and scales off other fish. This is usually because they were not fed enough, and once they have got into the habit, they will continue even if they are well fed. Most plecos in community tanks and in pet shops don't get enough food, because they are unable to compete with faster moving fish. They eat algae wafers (from pet shops), some vegetables (potato, spinach, squash and others) and other foods depending on the species. Despite looking very similar to each other, many plecos are specialist feeders and need a different diet from each other. The Zebra Pleco is a scavenger and eats mostly fish, so it needs pieces of white fish. The Panaque eats mainly wood, so it needs a plentiful supply of bogwood in the tank, as well as algae wafers. One species has even taken to spearfishing. It uses its long cheek spines to impale small fish, then waits for its prey to float to the surface before feeding on it.

I can't think of a good algae eater which can live with goldfish and dojo loaches. For a tropical tank, the Ancistrus and Otocinclus are good. If there are plants in the tank which may be damaged by plecos, another good species is the Flying Fox (Epalzeorhynchus sp, Crossocheilus sp.).

The fish used to treat skin disorders are not plecos, but Garra rufa, a member of the carp family. Some fish do nibble at the skin of marine mammals, but I am not sure which species. All the plecos, loaches and carp family are freshwater.

What about Mollies? Just not sure of the temp range.....

Mollies are happier at the higher end of the tropical temp range (26-30C). This means that they can't be kept with goldfish. They are also not good for a mixed tropical tank, because of their liking for a high temperature and some salt in the water. If the conditions are right, they are easy to keep and breed, and they will eat algae. The Black Mollies are beautiful fish, jet black all over, even the fins and eyes. They give birth to little miniature fish which are identical to the adults, even in colour! Some of their offspring are all-female clones, identical to their mother.

 

[BatRay]

I had mollies that produced babies some years back. They proceeded to eat them, though.
It sounds like I need to do some rearranging in my tanks. The Otocinclus are currently in a tank with smallish goldfish, but the goldfish are growing rapidly. The pleco is in with large goldfish and a couple of dojo loaches, and they don't seem happy together. It's really a shame that plecos are touted as being peaceful community fish. They don't even seem to like each other very much.
I'm thinking of a tropical tank of rasbora hets, zebra danios, cardinal tetras, and possibly ghost shrimp. Will those guys probably get along?

 

[naiad]

Those should get along, except that the zebra danios may prefer a cooler temperature than the rest (18-22C) so maybe another species would be better. Although they are considered tropical fish, I have seen them kept in coldwater tanks with fancy goldfish and similar, and they will do better in these conditions. The same goes for White Cloud minnows. Large goldfish will eat zebra danios and minnows, but I have seen large goldfish and carp living with small fish without eating them. I don't know why this happens - maybe they have all agreed to be friends.

Most tetras and rasboras are peaceful. They are shoaling species, so they like to be in a group of at least 6 of their own kind. The Otocinclus will be better off with the tetras and rasboras than with the goldfish and dojo loaches. There is always the possibility of a goldfish or loach trying to eat the Otocinclus, which has spines which will catch in its mouth, with fatal results for one or both of them.

After 20 years of fishkeeping, I have learnt two important rules:

If I find myself thinking 'Does that fish fit in the other one's mouth?' the answer is yes. It will either eat it or die trying.

If I find myself thinking 'Can that fish jump out of the tank/pond/bucket?' the answer is yes. The next time I walk past it will be on the floor.

 

[Fondueset]

Don't forget chunk feeders! I once put a tiny smallmouth bass in with a bunch of larger african ciclids and a Jack Dempsey. Guess who won.
Saltwater aquariums are a freakin' nightmare.