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i like the way that rainbow fish look! i want to know if there is any specicf species that stay small enough to keep in a 29 gal

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Hi Sadasddict

You can find heaps of info about the various rainbowfish species on this page. there are so many out there to choose from.

I personally really like the threadfin rainbows (Iriatherina werneri) - they stay small, and once settled in to a nicely planted tank are really very beautiful.

G_T


Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark. A large group of professionals built the Titanic.

Depending on which other fish you might be going to keep in there with them, most all Rainbows will do fine in a 29 gal. Most breeders I know spawn all theirs in 29 gal tanks. And many in just 10 gal tanks.

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There is always a bigger fish...

ok thanks acid for that tidbit of info. i ask becuase several websites reccomend 40-55 gal and my lfs also reccomended about a 40 gal

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Dwarf neons are quite nice as well, they have more of the steriotype rainbow fish shap IMO as well.

You could probably have a pair of boasmani or red iranians in a 29 as a feature fish though?

In my personal opinion most of the average sized rainbows (approx size 5-7 inches)should be kept in a 55 gal or larger with a little flow to keep them at peak fitness, they swim faster and more constantly than many other fish, they are a superfit species. Not many people own truly mature shoals like I do, with some adults over 5 years old, and some of them are truly too big for 30 gals.Admittedly they can be slow maturing, and while up to 3 to 4 inches they could be kept in a 30 gal, but if kept to a good standard, they will need more swimming space as they mature.

That said, most of the bigger species are tough and peaceful, and are without doubt some of the best shoaling fish for an aquarium you can buy.

Smaller ones, like blue-eyes, threadfins, and neons can be kept on around 20 gallons, but are often more fragile, a few require special water conditions, and will consequently be a bit of a disappointment for the beginner. If youre just starting out with rainbows , try sticking to the kutubus, new guinea reds, and boesmani rainbows. They are big beautiful, vigourous, disease resistant and will probably breed for you. Fine in 3's and 4's , all the way up to mixed species shoals of 60 or more.

Heres probably the best rainbowfish info on the net if you care to take a look.

http://members.optushome.com.au/chelmon/

hows 3 dwarf neons?

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Up until a couple of months ago when I sold my breeding group, I kept 7 neon rainbows in a 29 gal tank, with some breeding Apistos, and a pair or breeding BNs.

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There is always a bigger fish...

my gf wants bigger fish and something more flashy than the tetras that we have. thats why i was looking at the rainbows. but i think i got my info wrong becuase, i saw the neon dwarf gourami at my lfs, but it was labeled as a rainbow fish. at the time i didnt know a thing about eigther so that why im here asking questions. i think im gonna end up going with the gourami.(not neccisarily the neon dwarf)

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