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Are rainbowfish compatible with angelfish?

gouramis are good. i have a nice size school of zebra danios in with mine. the rest all depends on how large the tank is

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Yes, Rainbowfish are compatible with angelfish.
Tank size sets your bounds for species type.
There are many smaller rainbows from 2-4 inches,
and many more 4-6 inches +
Dwarf neons would be nice, or threadfins,
or celebes, or blue eye forktails if you want
small rainbows, or Irian reds, Turqoise, and Boesmani
are all nice if you want bigger ones.


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Hey there! I love angelfish, probably my favorite...In my tank, along with my 2 angels, I have 4 rainbow cichlids, a silver dollar, 2 silver sharks, and a couple of swordtails! They all get along just wonderfully!

Rainbows would look nice, and so would denisonii barbs. I have 3 Denisoniis with my angel. I would say a gourami for a companion would also be good. They would have the occassional tiff, but it would be a good centrepiece fish with the angel.

If you are thinking about something for the bottom, I would go with a few botia striata (zebra loaches) and some kuhlie loaches.

I have 3 angels with a bunch of rainbowfish and SAEs, and the riot of color and activity in that tank is amazing. Never a dull moment!

Here, you can see what I mean:
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~illustrae/Aquaria/pictures/p1010037.html

Hoping that there must be a word for everything I mean...

I have two VERY large male angels in one tank with 5 tiger barbs, 4 black skirt tetras, a pleco, etc... They are doing very well. They bicker amongst themselves sometimes. I also have a breeding pair in another tank. This is a different story. They run the tank and no one else can move (literally).

Barb

I would not recommend tiger barbs or skirt tetras as angel tankmates in most cases. Both are very nippy fish and are very likely to tear up an angels fins. It may be these angels are too big and intimidating but most of the time tiger barbs are a poor choice. I also wonder about threadfins. They are quite small and thin bodied(slimmer than neons) which could mean they end up as angel lunch when the angel gets bigger.

First of all, let's deal with the BAD choices. And the reasons why they are bad choices.

BAD choices of companions include:

Neon Tetras, Rasbora maculata, Ember Tetras : these fishes are all small enough to end up as lunch when the Angel Fishes grow.

Tiger Barba, Serpae Tetras, Red Eye Tetras, Black Widows (otherwise known as Black Skirts, White Skirts and about two dozen other names!) : these fishes are known fin nippers with well deserved bad reputations for shredding the fins of long finned fishes. Tiger Barbs and Serpae Tetras are among the worst in this regard, indeed Serpaes can be evli little critters!

Now for some GOOD choices.

These include:

Tetra species that grow to 2 inches or larger - Lemons, Rosy Tetras, Rummy Nose Tetras, and if space allows, Congo Tetras;

Harlequin Rasboras, certain other Rasboras such as Rasbora borapetensis;

Giant Danios, and at a push Zebra Danios (because they are fast moving fishes);

Rainbow Fishes - select members of the Genus Melanotaenia as these are large enough to avoid becoming lunch for large Angels. Small species such as Melanotaenia mccullochi are good choices (large enough not to be eaten, small enough to fit in a modest space), while the likes of Melanotaenia bosemani are ideal larger rainbows for a spacious aquarium setup.

I would NOT put Iratherina werneri in with Angels because this species is VERY small and somewhat delicate.

I would also caution against mixing Blue-Eye species with Angels becuse of the small size of the Blue Eyes.

Among the more unusual companions that can be placed with Angel Fishes include Rivulus - these are South American Killlifishes that share the same native waters as Angel Fishes. Most species grow to be too large to become lunch, and have interesting behaviours all of their own - these fishes are natural "velcro jumpers" that sometimes leap out of the water and stick to the glass, seemingly for the sheer fun of it! Needless to say, they are rocket propelled jumpers and need to be kept VERY well covered! Other than that, many Rivulus would make good companions for Angel Fishes.



Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Threadfin rainbows at maturity are
way bigger than neons.
Ive seen many threadfins tipping
the 2.5 inch mark, and no way an angelfish
could eat them.
If angels cant eat fish cardinal tetra
size its highly unlikely they would eat threadfins.

Also, I have kept Red Eye tetras with angels,
and have kept buenos aires tetras with angels
for literally years.
These fish are not at all what I would consider
Nippy.
Buenos Aires Tetras are one of the most peaceful
fish I have ever kept.
Currently I have a school of 7 in with my
3 new Juvi angels and my 2 discus.


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