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Hi all,
Having had some movement in my fish,
my 25g tank has come empty.
Well, there is 6 Cory. Aeneus in there.
Now, I was considering keeping the Corys in there,
and moving in my 14 neons, 5 glowlights, and 2 pristella tetras and 2 white clouds.
Or some arrangement of this.
Or, I could move the 6 corys to my 75g tank,
and start the 25g fresh!
What would you do, and suggestions if any of fish?
I am thinking of Cichlids of some kind if I start over,
maybe even africans.
Tank is 25g, measures 20 inches tall, 12 inches wide,
and 24 inches long.
Filtration is Fluval 204.
My tap water is naturally ph 7.6 and gh over 180ppm.



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Dwarf puffers!

Or some kind of shell dwellers tank.

Or if you fancy a bit of a challenge (only a little bit) leave the cories in there, get a pair of german rams, move you're pristillas in and buld the school up to about 10.

My first thought? CORY BREEDING!

Pop in another 4 of the same species, furnish it as a bogwood and Java Moss jungle, and start producing lots and lots of Cory fry!

If you don't fancy that idea, and you want to start anew, there's literally thousands of options available. Among the more unusual ones you could go for are:

[1] Killies. You could maintain some truly resplendent Killie species in a 25G. Among the species you could go for are Rivulus xiphidus (an absolute catwalk star in colour terms), Aphyosemion bualanum (also drop dead gorgeous) and Epiplatys annulatus, the Rocket Panchax. If you fancy the challenge of annual Killies, then Nothobranchius rachovi is an obvious choice - utterly magnificent colouration, and a fish that will be quite a challenge breeding wise.

[2] Unusual Dwarf Cichlids. Just about everyone who keeps Dwarf Cichlids keeps Apistogramma species or Rams. How about some more unusual ones? Nanochromis nudiceps, the rare but beautiful Taeniacara candidi, or the strange Nanochromis transvestitus? Having a fish called the Transvestite Dwarf Cichlid in your collection will be quite a conversation starter!

[3] Small Brackish Fishes. Bumblebee Gobies and Chanda ranga Glassfishes would live hppily in a 25. You'd also be able to pop in a Molly or two that would be a LOT happier in a brackish setup than a freshwater one. I'm sure that with a little research you could find some very unusual fishes for such a collection - again a conversation starter! Among the oddities you could try and obtain, which would probably suit a brackish setup, is a livebearer called Brachyraphis episcopi, the Bishop Fish, which is relatively easy to maintain, but provides a breeding challenge that causes even veteran aquarists to shake their heads in despair. Which, I suspect, is because too many have tried breeding it in fresh water. You could make a BIG name for yourself if you persuade that species to breed without harrowing fry mortality ...

[4] Non-Rift Africans. I've already covered Nanochromis Cichlids above, but there are quite a few other less well publicised non-Rift Africans that would be worth a shot. Try Pseudorenilabrus multicolor, the original 'Mouthbrooder' of the aquarium hobby, before it was superseded by all those Mbuna. Or, if you can find it, the much rarer Pseudocrenilabrus nicholsi, which is a resplendently lovely fish (always assuming of course it'll fit in a 25!). You could also try your hand at a personal favourite of mine, Anomalochromis thomasi

[5] Unusual Small Catfishes. I'm thinking here of something that will cause some laughter when people ask you "How come your Corys have such huge barbels?" The reason - the fishes I'm thinking of are NOT Corys, but look a lot like them. Some even mimic the colour schemes of well known Cory species. Head to Planet Catfish and look up the Genus Brachyrhamdia for some catfishes with a difference that will prove to be highly entertaining to keep!

[6] Oddball Characins. A rich seam of fishkeeping gold very rarely mined here - among the oddities you could try tracking down is the Swordtail Characin, Corynopoma riisei, just one of many unusual species that are not only rare in the hobby, but causing a few headaches among the taxonmists trying to sort out where to place them in the phylogenetic scheme of things! Then there's the Dragon Fin, Pseudocorynopoma doriae, and the original Blue Tetra, Glandulocauda inequalis (males have an asymmetrical caudal fin, making them easy to segregate!), which offers a breeding novelty in that it might be a Characin that practices internal fertilisation of the eggs ... though the details are still shrouded in mystery 70 years after Innes first wrote about them!

This should give you plenty of food for thought!


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

I think you should go with some shellies. Or if you don't want to do that, I'd leave the cories in and get a pair of Apistos and maybe move the pristellas over. Or you could just get a different kind of tetra that you've never kept before.

*Kristin*

Kribs would look great in a tank like that. You could do a pair with some other schooling fish and maybe get some nice Krib fry. I just love the colors of those fish!

---

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

Start fresh with some Flourite, driftwood, plants and Blue Eyed Rainbowfish Threadfins, signifers, furcatas, etc That would be a heck of a nice looking tank!! I might do that with my 40 breeder when i upgrade my snake

Some great ideas everyone!

Cali - tell me more about this transvestite cichlid!
Sounds fascinating!
Also, isnt there another type of small cichlid that also changes gender as well? Kinda checkered looking, neat little guy, cant remember the name.

Fallout - I dont know if I can get blue eyed rainbows here,
but what about Threadfins or Dwarf Praecox rainbows?
Would they do in a 25g? Could I mix the two?
Would they be ok with small corys/ghost shrimps?

Also, are they are brackish water fish that I could do in a 25g....maybe a puffer of some kind or something interesting?

Or ...maybe a paludarium??
Hmmmmmmm.....too many ideas

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Yea, those fish should all get together. You may have to ask if your LFS can get them, they probably don't stock them all the time. Most of the time you can have them order some in

Nanochromis transvestitus acquired the name of 'Transvestite Dwarf Cichlid' because it reverses the usual convention with respect to fish colouration - usually, males are more colourful than females, whereas with this species, the reverse is the case.

Here is a photo of a female. Males are much less colourful even when breeding. It's the females that steal the show.

The phenomenon is so starkly in contrast to the usual convention that it even received the scientific name 'transvestitus' as a result ...

Mind you, Nanochromis Cichlids are fairly unusual in any case when compared to most other Cichlids - for one thing, several species are pearlescent in hue. Here is a photo of Nanochromis parilus that illustrates this nicely.

The Cichlid Room alos has a nice article on the mystery surrounding Nanochromis dimidiatus, which disappeared from the hobby when yet another of those interminable African civil wars erupted and collectors fled (sigh). Heiko Bleher apparently returned to Africa in the late 80s to find this fish, and discovered five different colour morphs, which scientists are still poring over to establish whether or not they represent different species. Here is the article for your perusal.

Enjoy!


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Well, currently I have just popped my small tetras in the tank to keep it occupied. There is 10 neons, 1 cardinal tetra, 5 glolights, and then 2 white cloud minnows.
I think I will be trading in the cory cats on whatever I chose to do next.
I was browsing Rainbowfish online, and came across
this amazing beauty, the Pseudomugil Tenellus,
The Delicate Blue Eye!

Heres the link:

http://members.optusnet.com.au/chelmon/Tenellus.htm

Do you think these guys would be hard to find? Espescially way over here in Canada?
Do you think they would spawn easily enough as with most rainbowfish?
They sure are beauties....If I could get my hands on some of these little guys and gals, there would probably be a good market for them.
Heck, the reward of just breeding them would be worth it!
What do you all think?


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You just alighted upon one of my 'wish list' fishes - Pseudomugil tenellus. Actually, several Pseudomugil species are on my wish list, but tenellus is a nice one.

I'd say you're looking at that fish being a special order. Vey definitely not a mainstream trade fish by any stretch of the imagination (more's the pity).

If you DO acquire some, you will inspire admiration and envy in roughly equal quantities ... if you breed them, well ... when you retire on the proceeds, try to to forget us poor people when you unlock the door of your mansion!

Actually, if you have space, a mix of tenellus and gertrudae would be an absolute blast. That would be a show stopper visually, and would again inspire admiration and envy in approrpiate mixes


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

That hard to come by huh?
I will have to ask the fellow who runs the LFS
near me, if he can search for them for me.
He will probably call the company direct to ask for me.
If not I will ask the people at the Discus store....
they get a lot of direct imports right from the countries of origin.
They certainly are a gorgeous little fish.


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If you're fortunate enough to patronise a fish store that obtians direct imports from Irian Jaya and similar Rainbowfish habitats, then you're probably in business. Psaeudomugil tenellus is normally considered an Australian fish (page says it's found in the Northern Territory) though it's also presumed to be found in Papua New Guinea. Chances are any specimens you obtain will be New Guinea ones, as Australian fishes are subject to very strict import and export conditions by the Australian government. This, of course, doesn't take into account the existence of captive bred Australian stock, and since Rainbowfishes and allies are, I gather, a hot item on the Australian aquarist scene, you could be lucky and obtain some captive bred Australian stock.


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Hi there,
well, I have amazing come across some N. Transvestitus.
They are 2.50 each, from a local breeder.
What do you think?
How many would you suggest?
Could they be mixed with any other fish?


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Due to their specialised water requirements - they are unusual among Africans in that they like ACIDIC water and prefer pH and hardness values more usually thought of as Discus paramnters (!), your chances of housing other fishes with the transvestitus are fairly slim, unless [1] they enjoy the same water chemistry, and [2] they can live alongside the Cichlids when they are spawning.

Nanochromis transvestitus is a cave spawner. It should have LOTS of caves in its aquarium to keep it happy. Peat filtration is an option you should look at for this fish (along with Blackwater Tonic), because its waters in the wild have a pH of (wait for it) 4.0 ... !!!!

In the aquarium, a pH of 6.0 may be acceptable. If you want them to breed, you are looking at water that is even more acidic than this. Basically, it's a maintenance challenge that is well worth the effort (though doesn't unduly tax the aquarist in this regard), and a breeding challenge that will test your skills considerably if you want to raise fry. The fish is variable in this respect: some people claim to have no trouble raising fry, while others claim they're more trouble than Discus - keeping the water chemically stable and clean is the trick with fry apparently.

Oh, make sure your furnishings for this fish are secure and stable, because it is an industrial scale substrate digger. Sand is preferred to gravel. Keepers of this fish advise that you glue your decor to the bottom of the aquarium with silicone adhesive first (or glue it to heavy pieces of aquarium safe slate if you want removable decor) then add the substrate afterwards. With this fish, you can add bogwood that is still leaching a lot of tannins into the water, as this replicates its wild habitat. Just soak the wood enough to rid it of unwanted surface crud, then add it with a minimum of additional soaking. The result will be fairly yucky looking water if you're used to the kind of clear water that many other fishes live in happily, but this is what transvestitus likes, and it should colour up beautifully in tannin laden water.

So, summary:

[1] Cemented decor because it's an industrial scale digger, and thus an undergravel filter is probably a waste of time;

[2] Sand substrate preferred to gravel;

[3] Provide LOTS of caves for the fish - always make sure there's a surplus of caves so that if you have 6 fish, provide say, 10 to 12 caves;

[4] Soft, acid water similar to Discus water is the order of the day, peat filtration is likely to be beneficial and induce spawning.

Oh, as for the price you're quoting - that's a steal. Those fish change hands for £10 each here in the UK, so if you're only paying $2.50 per fish, you're getting a serious bargain!

WHOOPS - almost forgot. The fish can be pretty feisty, so in a 20 or 25, you're looking at that tank being a species aquarium, and once your 6 juveniles become mature, the first pair to start spawning will take over the tank. But then you wouldn't expect anything else with a Cichlid would you?



Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002