# Rare fish for 60x40x40 tank



## Palm Tree (22 Aug 2012)

Im gonna get a new tank in a few months so im looking for ideas on stocking. I understock my tanks and im looking for something uncommon. Im not too keen on shoaling fish but any suggestions would be great. The tank will be densely planted and Low tech as well as open topped so no jumpers.
My ideas are:
Pygmy sunfish of the genus Elassoma - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pygmy_sunfish
Killis
Apistos 
Some of the rarer livebearers
Bettas
Temperate fish 
Dwarf cichlids
Like I said im open to *ANY* suggestions


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## hinch (22 Aug 2012)

take the heater out and put a couple of perch in there


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## scifficus (22 Aug 2012)

Good one mate. 

He can put a couple of Perch if the tank measures are in feet.


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## hinch (22 Aug 2012)

i was thinking small perch not fully grown ones they're generally no bigger than you're hand (indeed at this time of year you can get ones from this springs spawn which are finger size)

once they get above the 8 inch or so mark he can put them back in the river


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## Palm Tree (23 Aug 2012)

I should of said the tank is in cm not inches as a cool as perch are im looking for something that I could keep for lilfe. On the subject of natives though im hopefully setting up a 700l in the shed for Eurasian minnows (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_minnow) and mabey some gudgeon


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## darren636 (23 Aug 2012)

was going to suggest sticklebacks....


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## Palm Tree (23 Aug 2012)

How would natives like room temp like sicklebacks and minnows for example


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## darren636 (23 Aug 2012)

hmmm. Probably going to want cooler temps....


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## OllieNZ (23 Aug 2012)

I keep N.Brevis







A good little cichlid if you live in a hard water area. Well behaved with small fish like tetras etc and fine with amano shrimp (mine are bigger than the brevis) but will eat small shrimp


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## Palm Tree (24 Aug 2012)

The N. brevis look cool but i've got my heart set on temperates or natives. Has anyone kept florida flag fish and what do you think of them if you have?


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## mark4785 (24 Aug 2012)

I would recommend the Bolivian Ram dwarf cichlid (lives for around 7 years) and reaches about 10cm in length. Stay away from blue rams as they are difficult to keep and only live around 3 years.


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## Palm Tree (26 Aug 2012)

I may be able to go up to 80x50x50 if necessary. Im downgrading but upgrading from a 4ft 240l tank and a 600l tank to an 8x2x2 and one 2-3tf tank but im so picky with fish.  I will probably go for 80x50x50 and some blue spotted sunfish which im 90% sure will happen


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## Kristoph91 (26 Aug 2012)

Where would you get the Pygmy Sunfish from ?


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## Palm Tree (26 Aug 2012)

Tyne valley aquatics have them and  they do postage http://www.tynevalleyaquatics.co.uk/ 
or wildwood usually stock some kind of sunfish


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## OllieNZ (26 Aug 2012)

How about one of the dwarf channa species most can be kept in an un heated tank and would be ideal in a low tech
http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/content.php?sid=2974


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## Garuf (26 Aug 2012)

Highland species of sworld tail, green, montezuma et al would be suitable for a unheated tank especially wild strains. Fresh water pipefish would need a heater but are impossibly rare. 

Fish from the congo are rare in the hobby and might prove interesting? Elephant nose's etc?


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## Palm Tree (26 Aug 2012)

OllieNZ said:
			
		

> How about one of the dwarf channa species most can be kept in an un heated tank and would be ideal in a low tech
> http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/content.php?sid=2974


The only reason I decided against channa was because they are renowned jumpers and as the tank will be open topped and rimless with emergent plants that wouldnt work too well. I love C. bleheri though and I am considering having a closed top tank just so I can have a pair.


			
				Garuf said:
			
		

> Highland species of sworld tail, green, montezuma et al would be suitable for a unheated tank especially wild strains. Fresh water pipefish would need a heater but are impossibly rare.
> Fish from the congo are rare in the hobby and might prove interesting? Elephant nose's etc?



I've just been looking at Xiphophorus malinche and they are now a serious contender its just finding a place to get them. As much as I would love pipefish they are too finiky for me personally especially their eating habits and like you said they are impossibly rare to find. Its also funny that you mention fish from the congo as in my biggest tank I have 4 Ropefish and they are by far my favorite fish.


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## Garuf (26 Aug 2012)

Try Tri Mar, I've seen them on their lists before. (sword tails) one of the members on here is based in Leeds and has them, if you're in the north Paws for Thought regularly has them in. 

 They're meant to be fine as long as you keep them on a varied live food diet. I suppose the issue with rare fish is they're rare for a reason, usually eating or hardiness related. (pipefish)

I'd love to see some small Congolese fish in the hobby, something a bit different, it's a real shame that war and the like prevents interesting new things coming in from that part of the word, the Okavango alone bust have hundreds of species of plants we could cultivate as well as fish from all the small tributaries. I'd love to give a okavango biotope a go.


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## Palm Tree (27 Aug 2012)

Yeah I know what you mean about the pipefish and I suppose you would have to feed them multiple times a day whereas I usally feed once daily and occasionaly sometimes miss a day and I wouldn't feel ok keeping them in sub par conditions. I like Ctenopoma multispine and I belive they've been collected in the Okavango delta or the Okavango river and throughout Botswana so a Okavango biotope would be pretty cool. I will definatly keep my eye out for highland sowrdtails and I have the chance to go up to 100 cmx 50cm footprint.


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