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Great site. Recently setup a 20g tank and added fish yesterday. 4 Danios and 1 Plecostomus. Profiles here and forums were much help.

I was wondering about the Danios. They are weird. First the all stayed together. Now the smallest one does his own circles lower in the middle of the tank and the other three stick together on the top right of the tank. When the plecostomus gets near them they run away I am glad they don't bug it though... Why do they act so goofy?

Also I want to add some barbs and loaches. I have to double check though I don't have my list with me now. They seem like all four types would get along good.

Saint Paul, Minnesota USA 20g Freshwater Started June 10th 2008
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And corys!

Saint Paul, Minnesota USA 20g Freshwater Started June 10th 2008
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Fish generally fish school (stick together) out of stress or threat. If they are the only fish in a body of water, than they know it and will just swim around. Pleco are very passive fish and generally are not a aggressive, not saying there not an exceptions to the rule, but yours in new and I pretty sure it small still. they grow quite large. Here, in Florida I caught semiwild pleco's 2 to 2 1/2 feet long in the canals.

Djrichie
"So Long, and Thanks For All The Fish" Douglas Adams

So the smallest Danio is the least stressed?

Yes the pleco is very small. I bought the smallest one so I could keep him in the tank as along as possible.

Saint Paul, Minnesota USA 20g Freshwater Started June 10th 2008
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If he not sick than yes... it doesn't seem like any of them are stressed, its just them in the tank.

Djrichie
"So Long, and Thanks For All The Fish" Douglas Adams

The danios' behavior sounds normal. Once schooling fish are used to their environment they tend not to school as tightly. As mentioned above, the pleco is going to outgrow the tank pretty quickly, probably in less than a year. When the tank is established and running well, you might consider replacing him with a few Otocinclus instead.

As for barbs and loaches, keep in mind that many of these types of fish get relatively large as well. 20 gallons is what I would consider to be the bare minimum size for Tiger Barbs]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/449.htm[/link], and if you put in a school of those guys you won't have much room for anything else. Some barbs that would be good for your tank are [link=Cherry Barbs]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/505.htm[/link] and [link=Checkered Barbs, both of which can be found in most stores and are easy to care for.

Some loaches that would be good for the tank are smaller species such as any of the Kuhli Loaches (Pangio spp.) or Dwarf Chained Loaches. These loaches are peaceful and stay small enough to keep in a 20 gallon tank. Corydoras are also an option, but in order to keep a proper school of them, it would be best to choose to go with either corys or loaches instead of both.

It would be best to wait at least four weeks while your tank is cycling before you add anymore fish to it. Are you keeping track of the ammonia and nitrite levels while your tank is cycling to make sure they don't become dangerous? Most fish stores will test your water for free if you bring them a sample in a bag or jar. If you do this, be sure to have them write down the actual numbers from the test and not just tell you it's "fine", "bad", etc. In case you're not quite sure what cycling an aquarium means, here is a good article that explains the basics: Cycling and how to avoid New Tank Syndrome

(The articles on this site seem to be down right now.)

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I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.

Thanks for all the info! Otocinclus is right up my alley. And I'd rather have corys than loaches. ty!

Saint Paul, Minnesota USA 20g Freshwater Started June 10th 2008
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The Danios have settled in... these are great fish to watch! They're all over the tank. The big one tries to gather the smaller ones.

My plecostomus doesnt seem as happy though. He isnt sucking on the walls anymore, probably because they're too clean. He just sits on the bottom and in a rock shelf for hours now.

Know of any blue colored fishies?

Saint Paul, Minnesota USA 20g Freshwater Started June 10th 2008
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That's also normal behavior for the pleco. They are primarily nocturnal, so during the day they tend to hide unless there is food for them to eat. If there is no algae in the tank for him, you're going to have to feed him vegetables or algae wafers instead. If he is still small, try giving him half an algae wafer every other day.

As for blue fish, there are a few different options that would be good for a 20 gallon tank (once it is fully cycled). Powder Blue Dwarf Gouramis immediately come to mind, as well as Blue Danios (a variety of Zebra Danio), Neon Tetras, and Cardinal Tetras. Platies and Swordtails have also been bred into blue-colored varieties.

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I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.

seen some kind of new blue tetra at the fish store the other day so there out there ,betas are nice colored and Gouramis what kind of filter you using ?

I think it's a Whisper 20. With the charcoal bag and foam screen.

The pleco barely touches the algae wafer, I guess he is small though and won't eat much. About 1.5" in size. He doesn't seem as dark colored as when I 1st got him.

Saint Paul, Minnesota USA 20g Freshwater Started June 10th 2008
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What color of gravel are you keeping him on and what was he kept on in the store? Most fish will become lighter in color when they are kept on white or otherwise light-colored gravel, so that might be the reason why he is not as dark.

If he (and the other fish) doesn't eat all of the algae wafer within a few hours, be sure to remove the uneaten portion so it doesn't rot and pollute the tank.

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I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.

I dont remember the store gravel... maybe dark blue... my gravel is black though. I didn't feed the danios the other day so they cleaned up the bottom for me.

Saint Paul, Minnesota USA 20g Freshwater Started June 10th 2008
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