# Fish Ideas For New Tank



## JM155 (3 Nov 2018)

I have recently purchased a 55l Dennerle Scaper’s Tank and am looking for some ideas in terms of inhabitants.

I currently have one Neon Tetra from a previous tanks and 5 Amanos.

I was thinking of getting some Celestial Pearl Danios. However, on a trip to my local fish store I came across a planted tank with Cherry Barbs. I really like the look of them.

Does anyone know if they are suitable for a 55l tank?

Are they safe to keep with shrimp (Amano and Red Cherry) and my Neon Tetra? 

I have read about them being jumpers, is this true? My tank does not have a lid, so obviously a key consideration.

All thoughts on Cherry Barbs and other suitable fish would be welcome.

I have included a link to my jounal thread below so you have a rough idea of how the tank looks:

https://ukaps.org/forum/threads/55l-dennerle-scaper’s-tank-first-attempt.55626/


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## Millns84 (4 Nov 2018)

A group of cherry barbs should do well in a tank tank size.

Not sure about others but with mine I had to buy more females as the males were scrapping constantly. Shame really as its the males who are the lookers!


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## Jayefc1 (4 Nov 2018)

Ember tetra would stand out really nice with the reds just don't get them.from.p@h they don't colour up like others for some reason


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## Conort2 (4 Nov 2018)

Cherry barbs will be a good choice, just make sure you purchase at a ratio of roughly one male to two females. As mentioned the males can get abit feisty when they wanna breed. 

Mine are fine with cherry shrimp. Started with about 10 shrimp, now got about 100 so they can't munch too many baby shrimp.

Cheers


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## JM155 (4 Nov 2018)

Millns84 said:


> A group of cherry barbs should do well in a tank tank size.
> 
> Not sure about others but with mine I had to buy more females as the males were scrapping constantly. Shame really as its the males who are the lookers!



Thanks, I was thinking of going 2 females for 1 male, but agree that the males are more attractive! Is your tank open? If so did you have any jumping?

Did you have any luck with spawning?


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## JM155 (4 Nov 2018)

Jayefc1 said:


> Ember tetra would stand out really nice with the reds just don't get them.from.p@h they don't colour up like others for some reason



That is a good alternative, just seen your thread, they look great in your tank!



Conort2 said:


> Cherry barbs will be a good choice, just make sure you purchase at a ratio of roughly one male to two females. As mentioned the males can get abit feisty when they wanna breed.
> 
> Mine are fine with cherry shrimp. Started with about 10 shrimp, now got about 100 so they can't munch too many baby shrimp.
> 
> Cheers



Great, thanks for that. Did you have any luck spawning? Glad they are Shrimp safe, would love to get a colony of Red Cherry Shrimp going!


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## Conort2 (4 Nov 2018)

JM155 said:


> Great, thanks for that. Did you have any luck spawning?



They spawn pretty much continually. I have two males and the dominant one spawns with all four females. Unfortunately as with most egg scattered, they turn round and eat them as fast as they come out.

Just make sure you add the shrimp first. Gives them a chance to put on size and hopefully get a colony going as fish will eat little shrimp no matter what.

Cheers


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## Andrew Butler (4 Nov 2018)

Most fish you will get the odd jumper; although some are worse than others.
You might find this surprising but the tiny little Celestial pearl danios will eat your shrimplets given the chance.
If you like your neon tetra then why not stick with them? - I prefer Cardinal tetra (Paracheirodon axelrodi) as the line is a little longer along the body.
I think Lambchop Rasbora (_Trigonostigma espei_) and Harlequin Rasbora (_Trigonostigma heteromorpha_) are nice in that size aquarium - I prefer the pattern on the Lambchop.


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## Hendre (4 Nov 2018)

If you ever see blue eye rainbowfish then don't pass them up! Lovely little fish with wild behaviour, I love my group to bits


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## JM155 (4 Nov 2018)

Conort2 said:


> They spawn pretty much continually. I have two males and the dominant one spawns with all four females. Unfortunately as with most egg scattered, they turn round and eat them as fast as they come out.
> 
> Just make sure you add the shrimp first. Gives them a chance to put on size and hopefully get a colony going as fish will eat little shrimp no matter what.
> 
> Cheers



Have you managed to get any fry from the eggs? Thanks for the tip on the shrimp, noted! The tank is pretty well planted, so hopefully I can get some baby shrimp to survive in there!



Andrew Butler said:


> Most fish you will get the odd jumper; although some are worse than others.
> You might find this surprising but the tiny little Celestial pearl danios will eat your shrimplets given the chance.
> If you like your neon tetra then why not stick with them? - I prefer Cardinal tetra (Paracheirodon axelrodi) as the line is a little longer along the body.
> I think Lambchop Rasbora (_Trigonostigma espei_) and Harlequin Rasbora (_Trigonostigma heteromorpha_) are nice in that size aquarium - I prefer the pattern on the Lambchop.



Thanks for the heads up on the CODs, surprised to hear that! Yes I do like the Harlequin Rasboras, I thought the might get a bit big but perhaps not!



Hendre said:


> If you ever see blue eye rainbowfish then don't pass them up! Lovely little fish with wild behaviour, I love my group to bits



Just looked the blue eyed rainbow fish up, they are stunning! What sort of tank do you keep yours in?


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## Millns84 (4 Nov 2018)

JM155 said:


> Thanks, I was thinking of going 2 females for 1 male, but agree that the males are more attractive! Is your tank open? If so did you have any jumping?
> 
> Did you have any luck with spawning?



My tanks not open and I've not seen any jumping. That being said, they're extremely active little guys and the males do love posturing, fighting and chasing which I'd assume could result in jumping... I've probably not seen jumping as they're in a 450 litre tank so have all the space in the world to get away.

They do spawn constantly but I've not seen any fry survive, probably due to my cichlids.

If you're open to suggestions I'd have a look at a group of sparkling gouramis. Absolutely stunning little fish with bags of personality and they'd do great in a smaller tank.


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## Hendre (4 Nov 2018)

JM155 said:


> Just looked the blue eyed rainbow fish up, they are stunning! What sort of tank do you keep yours in?


Just a temporary 30l holding tank at the moment, they're destined for my 60l scape once it's running! I have Pseudomugil gertrudae, popular and colourful species! Will try breeding them soon as well, apparently it isn't difficult!


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## mort (4 Nov 2018)

JM155 said:


> Thanks for the heads up on the CODs, surprised to hear that!



tbh there isn't such a thing as a shrimp safe fish (well 100% pure herbivores), people do seem to agree otto's are but with anything else there is a risk. I've heard people run into problems with most of the small species but also people who have kept fish i'd expect to be trouble get away with it. I'm surprised by the cherry barbs to be honest and its a reason I've always stayed away from them but sciencefiction I believe, has kept cherry shrimp with clown loaches, so anything is possible with a bit of luck and bravery.


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## JM155 (4 Nov 2018)

Millns84 said:


> If you're open to suggestions I'd have a look at a group of sparkling gouramis. Absolutely stunning little fish with bags of personality and they'd do great in a smaller tank.



Yes, they are a good shout! I really like Sparkling Gouramis and Dario Dario but read that both are natural predators and can attack mature shrimp! So hard getting the balance right!



Hendre said:


> Just a temporary 30l holding tank at the moment, they're destined for my 60l scape once it's running! I have Pseudomugil gertrudae, popular and colourful species! Will try breeding them soon as well, apparently it isn't difficult!



I need to look into these more, look so unusual! How many do you keep out of interest? Just so I know as my tank is 55l, so close to your tank.




mort said:


> tbh there isn't such a thing as a shrimp safe fish (well 100% pure herbivores), people do seem to agree otto's are but with anything else there is a risk. I've heard people run into problems with most of the small species but also people who have kept fish i'd expect to be trouble get away with it. I'm surprised by the cherry barbs to be honest and its a reason I've always stayed away from them but sciencefiction I believe, has kept cherry shrimp with clown loaches, so anything is possible with a bit of luck and bravery.



Yes, that makes sense, I guess a lot of it has to do with the scape and the hiding places etc.!


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## Hendre (5 Nov 2018)

JM155 said:


> I need to look into these more, look so unusual! How many do you keep out of interest? Just so I know as my tank is 55l, so close to your tank.


I only have five, but I want to increase the number. Could easily have 10+ in a tank.


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## MirandaB (5 Nov 2018)

I currently have a shoal of Pseudomugil luminatus in mine which seem to work well and they don't bother the shrimp at all


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## JM155 (5 Nov 2018)

MirandaB said:


> I currently have a shoal of Pseudomugil luminatus in mine which seem to work well and they don't bother the shrimp at all



Great, love the look of them so that’s reassuring! What kind of tank size do you have and how many? Also wondering if you have had any luck spawning? Read that it is quite achievable to raise fry.


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## MirandaB (9 Nov 2018)

I have 12 in the 55lt Scapers tank and they will spawn quite readily once conditioned up although it's best to use mops rather than leave them to their own devices


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## JM155 (10 Nov 2018)

MirandaB said:


> I have 12 in the 55lt Scapers tank and they will spawn quite readily once conditioned up although it's best to use mops rather than leave them to their own devices



Sounds good! I also live near the Norfolk/Suffolk border, so was wondering if you got them locally? If so, can you let me know the store name?


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## MirandaB (10 Nov 2018)

I got them from a guy in Belton near Gt Yarmouth who goes under the name of Shed Aquatics on FaceBook and they were very well priced at £3 each.
Although as the name indicates he runs from a small fish shed at the back of his house he is fully licensed and does quarantine for a week or more if required after he's got the fish in.


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## Matt @ ScapeEasy (18 Nov 2018)

Another suggestion is that you might want to think about having fish for the bottom layer of the tank. Pygmy cories for example...


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## JM155 (19 Nov 2018)

Matt @ ScapeEasy said:


> Another suggestion is that you might want to think about having fish for the bottom layer of the tank. Pygmy cories for example...



Yes, did think about Pygmy Cories. Do you know if they are easy to keep? Presumably they help to keep the substrate clean too.


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## tam (19 Nov 2018)

I think pygmys are fairly mid-water dwelling (?) but Habrosus or Pandas are also small and more likely to be found on the bottom.


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