Need some fishy inspiration for aquariums

[pharaoh2653]

to the OP, check out fish forums about the puffers.

here is a couple of articles about them by people who soley keep just puffers:

http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/puffers-in-focus/fig8/
http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum...cus/an-introduction-to-green-spotted-puffers/

while there are true, obligate freshwater puffers, they are not as attractive as the brackish water ones with one exception, Carinotetraodon travancoricus. i hardly see these available here (US) and when i worked at a fish store, i never saw them available.

and contrary to what someone has posted, all animals in the family Tetraodontidae have continually growing teeth similar to rats. THEY MUST HAVE SHELLFISH IN THEIR DIET OR WILL DIE WHEN THE TEETH GROW TOGETHER.

you posted links to everythink but dwarf puffers. contrary to what you have said dwarf puffers DO NOT need shelfish. they are small fish and eating their regular food is enough for their beak. you havent even seen them so how would you know? i got mine special ordered from my lfs and they were $5 a piece. for more info on Dwarf puffers check out dwarfpuffers.com

here is a reply from one of the forum members there
DREXEL "Most of us find that dps don't have the same problem with beak overgrowth just from whatever regular food they eat. I generally never get enough snails together to give mine regular feedings--they're lucky if they get snails once a year at this point. And I've never had a beak problems, or tooth problem. I kind of figure that dp teeth are fairly soft and get worn down just from regular food--worms, daphnia, brine shrimp, etc., just from snapping up their food. I've had dp from birth to old age now and none of them have any tooth or beak problems. Maybe there are a few dps who are born with misaligned teeth or with some other genetic beaky problem but in general, unlike other puffers, dps don't seem to need to grind down their teeth on shells and things. Snails are nice natural food sources for them, and hunting them down gives the fist something interesting to do but they aren't necessary for the fishes' good health."

 

[Cirith Ungol]

For your 60g tank i would recommend a AAA Super Red Arowana or a AAA Golden XBack Arowana..They are really beautiful fish but a pretty high price..Due to the fact they are show fishYou can get some cheaper breeds but AAA or A+ sp. are really beautiful! you should check them out other Arowana sp.

They are beautiful, but I think the tank would be too small after a while.

The catfish, also stunning, but probably the same problem.

Back to dwarf puffers for a sec, how big is the risk of fin nipping in long or short finned fish company?

 

[pharaoh2653]

Back to dwarf puffers for a sec, how big is the risk of fin nipping in long or short finned fish company?

they tend to be nippy. many people keep them with only oto cats and shrimp. i have a ten gallon with two dp, three harlequin rasboras, several cherry shrimp, and lots of live plants. they leave the rasboras alone but thats my personal experience. it depends on the individual fish and having lots of plants help

 

[Cirith Ungol]

they tend to be nippy. many people keep them with only oto cats and shrimp. i have a ten gallon with two dp, three harlequin rasboras, several cherry shrimp, and lots of live plants. they leave the rasboras alone but thats my personal experience. it depends on the individual fish and having lots of plants help

Alright, thanks!

How about putting them with something tough, like Tiger Barbs (Puntius tetrazona) or something big. Would they leave either alone?

 

[pharaoh2653]

not sure i will ask on the dwarf puffer forum

 

[Lorgakor]

Arowanas? Tiger Shovelnose? Clown Knife? Pacu? Good lord, are people even reading what size tank you have?

Even your four Bala Sharks are going to need a serious upgrade before too long.

Angelfish, dwarf rams, rainbowfish, some nice apistos, some nice barbs, emperor tetras, some of the smaller plecos like L200 or L128, those are some that I would think about putting in a 60 gallon. Or maybe some nice Lake Victorian african cichlids.

 

[GiantVinegaroon]

I'll catch myself some Perca fluviatilis. The only problem is, if they don't have a heavily planted tank, they'll try to break through the glass every time you approach the tank too suddenly. Eventually they'll do the opposite, hug the class in front of you waiting for foody bits. Do the slightest thing they're not expecting and they'll slam right into the glass again. Luckily, where I get them there are going to be about.... 43094 megamillion of them.

One thing is for sure. They. Are. Awesome.

Those are some sweet looking fish....get some ASAP

 

[dtknow]

Golden wonder killifish(Aplochilus lineatus).

Get about 5-6 inches long(some even bigger)...hang under the surface like a barracuda waiting to strike. Voracious predators...I had a pair I used to feed fiery skipper butterflies...I would throw them in the tank and as the buzzed against the hood these guys would leap up and smash them!

 

[Cirith Ungol]

Even your four Bala Sharks are going to need a serious upgrade before too long.

When they get that size I eat them

 

[mitchrobot]

you may have to sooner than later ...i had a trio in my big tank of days past that were 12-14". they got that big very quickly.

dwarf puffs are awsome, not hard to care for at all IMO. i raised mine on pond snails, bloodworms, tiny mealworms and gammurus shrimp. they are very nippy though and i ended up keeping mine in a species only tank.

if you want someting really cool and that wont outgrow your tanks, look into a.betrachus (i think?)...gulper catfish. more pricey, but worth every penny.

your 60g would be a fine tank for a mid-large central american cichlid and some clown loaches. i would recommend a red tiger motaguense or a cuban cichlid, both are beautiful fish, lots of personality and wont get too large too fast. and clown loaches are a riot. i love those guys.

madagarscar cichlids (any of them, paratilapia are my personal favorite) are also awsome wet-pets. and if you can find one...a female red terror would be ok in the 60 for a good while, it would eventually need something bigger, but htey are not that fastest growing cichlids, but IMO the best looking...heres a pick of an old girl i had a while back

[/IMG]

 

[Cirith Ungol]

Again, thanks for all suggestions, tips, info, help, encouragement and all!

I don't tend to overfeed any of my animals. I rather tend to underfeed a bit. Add to that that the temperatures here in summer seldomly go over 25C, which all results in animals growing rather slowly.


And thanks for the pic Mr. Robot. That's one stunning fish! I've actually never seen a fish of that body type with so much red. That's very nice!

P.S.
I've actually seen a video of you, you're rather agile I must say! :clap:
D.S.

 

[mitchrobot]

np. they are one of my favorite (A.festae), they do get on the big side as far as cichlids go (ive seen males and females in the range of 12-14"+) but they are worth it. lots of personality and the color is unbeatable.

AND depending on mood...they can flash blue or black stripes.

~m

 

[Lucas339]

you posted links to everythink but dwarf puffers. contrary to what you have said dwarf puffers DO NOT need shelfish. they are small fish and eating their regular food is enough for their beak. you havent even seen them so how would you know? i got mine special ordered from my lfs and they were $5 a piece. for more info on Dwarf puffers check out dwarfpuffers.com

here is a reply from one of the forum members there
DREXEL "Most of us find that dps don't have the same problem with beak overgrowth just from whatever regular food they eat. I generally never get enough snails together to give mine regular feedings--they're lucky if they get snails once a year at this point. And I've never had a beak problems, or tooth problem. I kind of figure that dp teeth are fairly soft and get worn down just from regular food--worms, daphnia, brine shrimp, etc., just from snapping up their food. I've had dp from birth to old age now and none of them have any tooth or beak problems. Maybe there are a few dps who are born with misaligned teeth or with some other genetic beaky problem but in general, unlike other puffers, dps don't seem to need to grind down their teeth on shells and things. Snails are nice natural food sources for them, and hunting them down gives the fist something interesting to do but they aren't necessary for the fishes' good health."

direct from your dwarfpuffer.com:

http://dwarfpuffers.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=10560

"I was not able to get a good picture of their teeth. When I looked closely though I found that their beaks were indeed overgrown, especially the bottom on one of them!"

http://dwarfpuffers.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=12058

"It seems like he can't open his mouth anymore to grab the worms. He makes an effort to eat them but can't pick them up. Also, his teeth are very prominent"

browsed the site for a couple of minutes and found 2 threads about deaths related to overgrown teeth. maybe the "experts" there need to revamp their thinking.

 

[Lucas339]

Arowanas? Tiger Shovelnose? Clown Knife? Pacu? Good lord, are people even reading what size tank you have?

i reccomened the fish and also added that he would have to get rid of it after a while. not that big of deal.

 

[Lucas339]

ill add one more thing to this thread, and then move on.

funny how in the background hobby of this site we research the habitat requirements of the animals we keep yet with other hobbies, in this case, fish keeping, many flock with the masses and just take peoples word on what the animals will eat and the diet they need or habitat requirements. i will give you a great example. the greek goddess sea slug. fish stores and many people on fourms will tell you that they will eat algae and can survive on just algae when in the wild they only eat sponges.

for those truly interested in fish keeping, i suggest you do background research just like you would for your inverts. and by background research i mean peer reviewed scientific publications. anyone can put a website up and anyone can claim to be an expert at anything. i don't keep dwarf puffers and im not an expert on them but i am an expert at looking up scientific papers which indicate that in the wild this animals feeds on small crustaceans and molluscan prey and thus that diet should be continued in the tank environment.

stop being sheep, stop flocking with the masses.

 

[Dom]

For your smaller tanks Kribensis can be a beautiful species. They're an African riverine species liking neutral water. They vary quite a bit in color and many on the market aren't that colorful but if you find nice ones they can be spectacularly colored when breeding, which they do quite readily. Rearing of the fry is very cool also.

As for the arrowanas, tiger shovelnose I had them in a 125 gallon which was getting a bit small after a year or so. Nothing like putting a hundred + dollars of food into a fish and getting rid of it just as it's hitting it's prime.

 

[pharaoh2653]

ill add one more thing to this thread, and then move on.

funny how in the background hobby of this site we research the habitat requirements of the animals we keep yet with other hobbies, in this case, fish keeping, many flock with the masses and just take peoples word on what the animals will eat and the diet they need or habitat requirements. i will give you a great example. the greek goddess sea slug. fish stores and many people on fourms will tell you that they will eat algae and can survive on just algae when in the wild they only eat sponges.

for those truly interested in fish keeping, i suggest you do background research just like you would for your inverts. and by background research i mean peer reviewed scientific publications. anyone can put a website up and anyone can claim to be an expert at anything. i don't keep dwarf puffers and im not an expert on them but i am an expert at looking up scientific papers which indicate that in the wild this animals feeds on small crustaceans and molluscan prey and thus that diet should be continued in the tank environment.

stop being sheep, stop flocking with the masses.

where are your scientific publications? you posted two links of novices with no pics to prove overgrown teeth. how can one actually know of overgrown teeth without pics and an inexperienced keeper would not know. in both links you posted their were obvious other problems with the fish habitat. no conclusive evidence of overgrown teeth. again i ask WHERE ARE YOUR SCIENTIFIC PAPERS? even that wouldnt give you a clue. there are all of you know it alls on the internet who like yo give advice on something they dont own. i gave several years experience with these animals and have never experienced the so called anomally of overgrown teeth, what you read online may be far from fact. but i have the facts sittin in front of me in my fish tank. please sir, give me proof that you know anything other than how to read, because you show no comprehension of what you read . your just like a sheep, just one without any experience

 

[Cirith Ungol]

For your smaller tanks Kribensis can be a beautiful species. They're an African riverine species liking neutral water. They vary quite a bit in color and many on the market aren't that colorful but if you find nice ones they can be spectacularly colored when breeding, which they do quite readily. Rearing of the fry is very cool also.

As for the arrowanas, tiger shovelnose I had them in a 125 gallon which was getting a bit small after a year or so. Nothing like putting a hundred + dollars of food into a fish and getting rid of it just as it's hitting it's prime.

Yeah, I'm likely to go for too small fish rather than too large fish. However there are a few that will grow quite a bit that I'd wanna get. I'll have to look that up first though.

I already got Kribensis + 25 babies swimming about in the tank =). It's awesome!

 

[Cirith Ungol]

Please keep your discussions as factual as possible, getting emotional won't help either side.

Lucas, if you have references, you could cite them. That shouldn't be a problem I'd assume?

I have to pitch in by mentioning that scientific papers don't by default contain indisputable information, neither that they are the only source of knowledge. However, they sure can be a big, reliable help.

 

[mitchrobot]

mini puff tooth care is way easy...
honestly...feed em pond snails and mini mealworms (among other things). they will be fine. they should be eating plenty of snails anyway

not to say their beaks dont get over grown, but ive never ever had that problem with them, and i kept them for years. proper diet is the only realistic way to control it, and setting up a small 'snail factory' isnt hard.

for smaller tanks, other mini aquatic things that are neat are: mouth brooding bettas, any of the freshwater shrimp...some now a days are very pretty or maybe a school of galaxy rasboras