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i've been in the hobby for 12 years but have never had a community tank. i currently have three biotope tanks; a 125gal tanganyikan, 75gal mbuna, and a custom setup for L-numbered catfish housing L270, L260. and ancistrus claro. i now have an empty 29 i'd like to set up as a community tank. i'd like to keep something unique. my current fish are all wild or F1, is there anything available at the LFS like this? my H2O comes from the tap slightly acidic (pH6.8) and super soft for some reason. i think it is treated to be like this. i have an incredible time getting the water right for the africans, so i'm looking at fish that will do well in the water i have.

You might consider getting a large school of Danio margaritatus, the Galaxy Rasbora AKA Celestial Pearl Danio. They are very small so you could easily get at least 15 or 20 for a 29 gallon species tank. Personally I'd go for this, but I really like D. margaritatus so I'm a little biased.

Tons of catfishes are wild-caught. South American Bumblebee catfishes and Banjo catfishes are quite interesting, if you don't mind them hiding out all the time (which I assume you don't too much since your plecs probably hide a lot as it is!). Honeycomb Tatias (Centromochlus perugiae) are an active little fish and have been bred in captivity, but are almost definitely wild-caught currently. I wouldn't 100% trust any catfishes except except plecs with D. margaritatus as they tend to have huge mouths, but they're an option for a community with slightly larger fishes. Otocinclus are all wild-caught, AFAIK.

Those are some things I can think of off the top of my head... Restricting it to wild and F1 will make your stocking rather interesting.

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

they don't absolutely have to be F1, i just want to avoir the super inbred fish that are so common at the LFS these days. i already have 2 ancistrus cirrosus for the tank which are about 2" long. i was thinking about bleeding heart tetras and maybe something dark for contrast? i would like a nice tank just to look at, as you're right, i rarely see my L catfish. a shame, as the L260 is a beautiful fish. thanks for the input

i just want to avoir the super inbred fish that are so common at the LFS these days

haha do you mean you don't want "to have"...
are you french?
avoir is the french verb for "to have"

as for your stocking you might not find any special wild caught of F1 species although if you find what you like you could persuade your LFS to order some of what you want.

if only your tank was larger I'd recommend discus as they would do well in your water IMO.

-Brandon

\\\\\\\"an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of the cure\\\\\\\"

I found a group of F1 Asian Rummynoses at a local LFS, a big box LFS too, was very surprised. I lost a few of the first batch I brought home, I intend to build the group out some more... Having F1 or wild caught fish is really interesting for sure, but they have been a tough find for me so far.