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Blue tetras aren't that hard to find and you can always ask if a store is willing to order them in even if they don't carry them often. A few stores near me get them in regularly and I finally gave in and bought 3. We'll see if they behave themselves in my tank. A tank full of these guys is quite interesting. They were all over the place chasing each other in the store tank, but your other fish might end up a little beat up if you put in too many of these guys.

Be careful with the two rams, the males are known to haress females if they arent ready to breed.

"A noble spirit embiggens the smallest man" Simpsons

Alrighty, after much though, I decided not to go with a second big school. However, I am looking at those chochus blue tetras very closely. I am suprised that shipping was only $5. Unfortunately, I don't have good luck with the mail. There is no one home during normal hours and I've so far waited a month for a printer cartrige that is supposed to take 4 days to ship! But if I do get my hand on some blue tetras how about:
2 rams
4 blue tetras
12 serpaes

EDIT: handling's only $5! Does anyone here know how much the actual shipping costs?


Last edited by djtj at 16-Jan-2006 11:09

Personally, i think you'd be better off leaving out the other tetra species and going for something like 14 Serpaes. One, you cn get them easily, two, you would have no compatibility problems because they're already in there (and boosting the shoal to 14 may well result in the patter of tiny fins!), and three, if my experience with Cardinals is anything to go by, getting a big shoal of one species results in your shola of tetras being bold and brave and showy. Not that this is a problem with your Serpaes at the moment, but it might be a problem if you had another shoal of tetras in there that weren't as feisty as the Serpaes.

Trouble is, there aren't that many nippy and feisty tetras that are small enough to live alongside your Serpaes in that setup other than the Redeyes I've already mentioned. At a push, you could add Lemon Tetras, which should be perky enough to live in that roughhouse, but personally I wouldn't do it because I'd want my Lemons to have some peace!


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

I saw two new species at the store today: flame tetras and gold tetras. I've noticed flame tetras are from the same family as serpaes so I figured they might be compatiable. I know nothing about golds. However, I bought 4 more serpaes because the 5 I had were attacking each other like crazy and I needed to distribute the agression. There were 2 males and 3 females and one of the males was destroying the other, to the point of forcing it into a corner 99% of the time.

How about:
9 serpaes
2 bolivian rams
9 ember/gold tetras

Buenos Aires Tetras & Red Eye Tetra's are very nippy & would do well in your tank.

Rummynose Tetra's aren't nippy at all & they prefer peacefull tankmates.


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I really don't think 2 schools of tetras of such size and personality are a good idea in a 20g. It would be quite cramped with more peaceful fish but with nippy leaning towards semi agressive tetras there could be a few dead fish. Not to mention alot of water changes to handle the added bioload of 2 good sized tetra species. That's one reason I suggest looking a little more for the blue tetras. They are quite happy as a pair, trio, or small group instead of trying to fit a whole 2nd school in the tank and would definitely make the tank interesting.

ok, I'm not too psyched about the red-eyes. Sure, their eyes are sweet, but they bodies are kind of a dull, silvery color. I would go for danios, but I'm still trying to go for a SA tank.

Oh, they'd probably work DJ, but whether they'd work in a 20 gallon remains somewhat open to discussion, primarily because Buenos Aires Tetras are big by usual Tetra standards, and are fast swimmers that like lots of space.

I'd need some indication of the dimensions of your tank to make a definitive statement. Compatibility isn't a major issue, but whether there's enough space may be.

That's why I suggested Red-Eyes as an alternative. Another fairly feisty Tetra species, but somewhat more sedate and smaller than the Buenos Aires Tetras. Consequently, more likely to live in your 20 gallon with the other inmates without problems. Because, if you put nippy and feisty fish in too small a space, the lively rough and tumble could turn into serious warfare, which I suspect you don't want.

Hope this helps!


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Actually I saw the buenos ares tetras today and I am a very big fan.
I'm confused, do you think they would work, or not?
I'm thinking:
6 buenos ares tetras
8 serpaes
2 rams

Oh if you want a 'rowdy' Characin to join the Serpaes, Buenos Aires Tetras fit the bill very well. Be advised thought that they're the largest of all the Hemigrammus species, at 3½ inches long fully grown, and at that size are likely to be capable of picking fights with your Bolivian Ram without any trouble! Remember that they're capable of being used as dither fish with Convicts ... which should give you an indication how tough they are. The Serpaes will soon learn not to pick fights with them, as nippy as they are, and the Bolivian Ram might discover that they're a handful too.

But before opting to add some Buenos Aires Tetras, ask yourself if you have enough space. I'm not wholly convinced that a 20 gallon (if that's US gallons) is quite big enough for this option. Plus, even if you did have sufficient water volume, Buenos Aires Tets are fast swimmers and do best in a long aquarium rather than a tall one.

Just don't put anything slow moving and docile in with them, or it'll be shredded in no time. But then, I don't suppose you'd put anything slow moving and docile in with the nasty Serpaes!

A smaller but similarly robust and reputedly nippy option would be Redeye Tetras, Moenkhausia sanctae-filomenae. A nice colour contrast with the rest of your fish, not as big as the Buenos Aires Tets, and likely to be just as feisty.


Last edited by Calilasseia at 23-Dec-2005 11:22

Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

I had a 20 gallon long with 1 bolivian ram, 5 serpaes, and 10 neons. Unfortunately, there was a horrible heater malfunction and the temperature swung up to 90 degrees over a 24 hour period. the serpaes and ram are fine but all 10 of the neons died. I'm had alot of trouble with the neons because they were so fragile (I had lost 6 before the big heater malfunction too). So, I've decided that I will not be replacing the neons.

Now, while I had the neons, I noticed that they really didn't do much. They had their big school, but they mostly hung out near the driftwood. The serpaes and ram on the other hand, would constantly become involved in nipping fights which, I have to admit, were entertaining. The two biggest male serpaes would go at it, then they would get too close to the ram and he'd join in too. After a minute they'd stop. I've decided that I will restock my tank with more nippy fish. I'm not cynical or anything, but I really enjoy the fish chasing each other between the plants and rocks.

So, in short, what are some other types of nippy tetras?

If you want nippy tetras, I don't think the rummynoses will be the best choice. I haven't known them to be aggressive at all towards other fish, and they aren't huge on biting each other. They are poor shippers compared to most other tetras, so I would just drop them.

Black phantoms aren't really that nippy either, except towards each other. They aren't as active or as rowdy as black skirt (just plain black) tetras can be. I suppose you could go with a group of the black skirts, Gymnocorymbus ternetzi.

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And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

Yeah, but I'm not up on paying alot of money for shipping. What about black phantoms or black tetras? Or rummynoses? There is one online place that is shipping to my school so I could probably just buy it from them. How well do rummynoses ship?

I second the blue tetras....here's a link where you can purchase:

http://www.azgardens.com/schooling_fish.php

second fish down!!

That puffer that Cup recommended is cute too!!

Last edited by crazyred at 20-Dec-2005 13:39

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~~Melissa~~
"Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder."

Umm, I need something easier to find...
Would black tetras work or are they too big? If so how about black phantoms, or are they too delicate for the serpaes. Which is more active?

Carinotetraodon irrubesco.

Cochu's Blue Tetras would be a good addition.

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I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.

Get another Ram & add another school of Tetra's, like Lemon or Buenos Aires Tetra's.

Remember to fix or replace the Heater.


http://uk.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/s8xi5heh/my_photos
http://www.geocities.com/s8xi5heh/classic_blue.html
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/buzaqq/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/corydoras/
Member of the Malta Aquarist Society - 1970.
http://www.maltaaquarist.com

O yeah, I want another bolivian. However, I had 2 but the male beat the female up. Is that normal?
As for other fish, could black widows work? I was thinking of black phantoms because they look like serpaes but different color. However, I think they're too placid for the serpaes. I'm afraid of them loosing their fins.