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Okay, I am starting over in my 30 gallon, due to a recent move. I don't even have any water in it yet. I am considering what kind of fish I want to go with this time. Last time I had more bottom dwellers than anything else, and so sometimes it didn't look like there were any fish in there at all! Lol. So this time I want to primarily have fish that occupy the upper regions of the tank. I'm sure I'll end up with some bottom dwellers too, because I just like them so much. I am thinking of angel fish maybe. I haven't had those since I was a little kid. I would appreciate any suggestions.

Also I would really like some suggestions of maybe some really colorful fish that would stay visible in the tank.

Thanks so much,
Lauren

I think a pair of angels would be fine. You could have them, a school of tetras or rasboras, and some cories or small loaches.

*Kristin*

Hi there,
assuming the tank is a standard 30g, if it is,
and if it measures a minimum of 18 inches tall,
then you could definitely have a pair of angels.
2 Angelfish
6-8 of a schooling fish - rummynose, cardinal, black neons, lemon, glowlight, pristella tetras all come to mind.
Avoid neon tetras that are liable to be eaten.
White cloud minnows and a small rasbora come to mind as well.
Or a nice group of small rainbowfish would work as well,
threadfins, celebes, blue eye furcatas, dwarf praecox all come to mind. A group of 4-6 would do nicely.
Then finish with a bottom feeder of some kind,
some corys (in a group of 6 minimum), or maybe
some Kuhli Loaches, or a cool small pleco, or a group
of Angelicus Botia, all would work.


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Thanks, I think thats a good idea. Maybe just two angels and then some other stuff. So it would be okay to put cardinal tetras (I just love those) in with angels, but not neons? Aren't they pretty much the same size?
Thanks,
Lauren

Cardinal tetras are significantly larger and
more full bodied than Neons.
Neons grow to about 1 inch, Cardinals to 1.5 inches and
their body thickness is about double that of a neon.


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I have heard many stories that if your angels are small when you buy them and you get a school of neons, the angels will not eat the neons they grew up with. They will eat any additional ones put in the tank, but not the ones they grew up with. I am sure there are stories the other way too where the angels ate them all!

Looking for a Tetra species that won't be eaten by Angels? Try Lemon Tetras. They have nice chunky bodies and are quick enough to escape any attempts by the Angels to chase them.

Rummies are even quicker, but they like their aquarium warm, which might prove to be a problem with the Angels, as the maintenance temperatures Rummies prefer are close to the breeding temps for Angels.

Rosies would be a good choice too. Again, too large for the Angels to eat and also pretty quick off the mark. Even the juveniles in the shops tend to be good looking despite their being kept in bare dealer aquaria, and if you purchase a group of juveniles, feed them live Daphnia and colour flakes for six weeks, the rsulting adults are stunning to behold. That trick works for most Tetras (it certainly worked with my Lemons when I had them) but it works especially well with Tetras that contain red colouration. Do that with juvenile Rosies and you'll have little jewels in no tims.


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Those rosy tetras aren't fin nippers are they? I ask because I used to have a small school of serpae tetras, and they were such nippers that I had to remove them from my community tank. I am sure nothing could be as bad as they were, but I am wary of anything that looks so similar.

What if I get whatever other fish I decide on first, and then add some (hopefully) young angels a bit later? Would that help the angels to be less aggressive?
Thanks,
Lauren/:'

OH and would 4 angels be too many to have together? Is it better to have only two?
thanks,
Lauren

4 angels in a 30 gallon, IMO, is too much. They do get big and very long. Even in a 55 gallon they sometimes get too long. My friend had one he named Kako, because it got so long, it top fin was always bent over. As far as agressiveness, they will probably chase each other alot cause there is not a whole lot of room. I have 3 in a 55 and they chase each other now and again. You should get as many as you want the first time though. I have heard that if you get some now, and some later. The first ones will be very aggressive towards the ones you got later.

OKay, thanks. I'll definately stick with only 2. I didn't realize they got so big! I certainly don't want them to be cramped.

The 3 I bought have about doubled in size in the last month and half. The were about 1 inch wide and about 3 inches long. Now they are about 2.5 inches wide and about 5 inches long. They are so beautiful. I have them with a school of ten neons. They are not at all aggresive towards them. They eat together with no problems. The neons stay out of their way most of them time. I am hoping that they will stay that way!

Rosy Tetras are regarded as safe with Angels from the standpoint of fin nipping. It's Serpaes and Red Eye Tetras you have to watch - they're little demons in that regard.

Don't forget male Rosies have tall dorsal and large anal fins, so fin nipping would be a somewhat pointless behaviour for them to pursue.


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

That makes total sense! Lol. I will see if I can find those. I think I will work on getting may tank ready today. After all this talking about it, I am so excited!

thanks,
Lauren

Just to mention, when you said you didnt know
how big angels get, I thought Id give you some
specifics.
Angels can grow to be about 8 inches from
snout to where tail fin starts.
Height wise, depending on the specific variety/species,
Angels can get to be 14-16 inches tall.
They are actually quite a massive fish at maturity.
However, as they are a relatively sedentary fish,
not a zoomer like say a danio or the like,
they require a relatively small space for their size.
I think a nice group of Rosy tetras would offset the
angels very very nicely.
Rummynose tetras also are very nice with angels, due their
extreme difference in shape.


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Back as a teenager I had a male Angel that was 9 inches tall. One of the natural colour scheme Angels. Under the light he had a lovely lavender iridescence along his back. Didn't have a camera back then so I wan't able to take pics (sigh).

Personally, I happen to think that the natural wild colour scheme Angels are the best. They'll also have the advantage of not being inbred to death, though breeders who produce fancy strains for shows line breed several lines and back cross to maintain genetic health - if you want a selectively bred colour scheme Angel, strong ones from proper line breeding are the ones to go for.


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Wow, I didn't realize they got that big!!! Certainly two is the limit on those!