Fish Compatability!!!

[blueknight0303]

as far as i can tell you dont have any fish on your list thats going to kill them.

[Fishnut]

You'll still have to scrub the glass with the snails in there.  They eat algae but not always all of it.

[blueknight0303]

to add up, if you want effective algae eaters, get nerite/zebra snails.. they do breed and lay eggs but eggs wont hatch on freshwater. also eggs are a pain to remove on glass if you dont like stuff sticking on your glass.

[masoud100]

Ya the Zebra Thorn Snails arwe the same thing as Zebra Nerile. So your saying they will still lay eggs will it look obvious, and wouldnt my fish eat the eggs?

[blueknight0303]

zebra snails are probably 5x larger than zebra thorn snails. yes and no... the eggs are like white spots that will stick on anything and fish wont even try to eat them. try doing a s research about them.

[masoud100]

Well I got my Zebra Thorn Snails before I saw your post and now got to live with them. They look good though but are pretty small and I have 6 of them. I could return them and get 4 zebra snails (bigger size) instead. What should I do? I dont want to get extra snails and I know zebra thorn are infertile in freshwater does the same hold true with zebra snails?

Also now my stocking is 10 Tiger Barb, 10 Green Tiger Barb, 1 Red Tail Black Shark, 1 Golden Algae Eater, 6 Zebra Thorn Snail (will trade them for 4 Zebra Snails), and 1 HillStream Loach (also may sell). I cant find any siamease algae eaters anywhere and will continue to look for them.

I found an amazing fish yesterday called Leopard Ctenopoma. I am interested in getting it. Need some experience forum members input because sotre employees dont know anything i.e.) zebra thorn snails will get as big as zebra snails, apistomgramma is good with tiger barbs, etc. "I have done research on the Leopard Ctenopoma and found they are from Africa and are kind of predatory fish but will not eat anything that is fairly its size. It will eat tropical flakes, bloodworms, etc and even feeder fish once its big enough (max size 6 inch)

[Fishnut]

Well I got my Zebra Thorn Snails before I saw your post and now got to live with them. They look good though but are pretty small and I have 6 of them. I could return them and get 4 zebra snails (bigger size) instead. What should I do? I dont want to get extra snails and I know zebra thorn are infertile in freshwater does the same hold true with zebra snails?

This is why I keep recommending you read more before buying.  There is never ever going to be a time when you absolutely MUST buy a creature for your tank.  Patience is the key in this hobby.  There should be absolutely no reason that you should regret purchasing a creature after the fact, if you do thorough research.

The Leopard Ctenopoma is a very fascinating fish.  Carnivore though and it's mouth opens up almost as wide as it's body.  If the info you found says it eats feeder fish, what do you think will become of your tiger barbs and hillstream loach and algae eater when the Leopard Ctenopoma quickly attains it's adult size?  Don't stop researching after you find a little bit of info.  Keep digging.

[Nerine]

2nd that - it will eat your fish. But if you're ok with that, then go ahead and get it!

also - it MAY eat snails too? - it says it will eat anything that fits in it's mouth...and trust me when they say that, it means they will TRY to put everything in their mouths! My Zamora's snack on EVERYTHING except the fish that are bigger than it...They have even consumed young convict cichlids...soooo if a small catfish can eat those, think of what would happen to your barbs!!

Just remember if you want to breed something, you should have it in a species only tank - including snails. fish love eating eggs...fish love picking at things...stick your hand in there for awhile, they will pull at the hairs on your arms! Sooo snail eggs = tasty treats!

In my 55 - I had 15 tiger barbs, 1 red tail black shark, 1 blue gourami (because it was a left over from another tank) 1 large pl*co, and a few Zamora woodcats, and that was it!

[masoud100]

I have read about the Leopard Ctenopoma and have come to a conclusion that is should be fine with my tiger barbs especailly at this moment. The only real food that the ctenopoma may eat is the snails, but snails really are not that much of an issue for me if they do die in the future as it is nature. But the Zebra Thorn Snails may have the thorn for defense and therefore make the Ctenopoma fail its mission. I have seen a couple vids as well with Ctenopoma mixed with Tiger Barbs and RTBS and got along since they were big enough. The Ctenopoma is known to eat 1/3 of its size. So at max size it should be able to consume 2 inches. All my fish except for a few tiger barbs are all 2 inches are bigger and the Ctenopoma I will get will be about 3 inches so I should be good. Here is a pic of my tank right now any suggestions are good

[Nerine]

It says they need a lot of areas to hide.

I wouldn't get it for awhile yet...you just added lots of stuff, let the tank settle in.

[masoud100]

Ya I was not thinking of getting it for a while maybe another 1-2 weeks minimum. I will be getting more plants to fill out my tank and also since my light might be too strong 108watts T5H0 in a 50 gallon tank I was thinking of buying something called Bamboo ...(at PEtsmart) its a fake plant but it says you can leave it in as a floating plant and therefore would it decrease the amount of light pressure my plants recieve?

[Fishnut]

Interesting how sound advice is ignored yet bad advice is welcomed because the bad advice supports what you want to do.

As a member of OVAS, I believe this type of fish keeping practice is not something we should be involving ourselves with any more.  No matter how many times someone tries to correct the problems you create for yourself, you do what you want at the expense of your aquatic pets.  OVAS stands for preserving aquatic life and for educating people to become better aquarists, not for supporting people who do whatever they want regardless.

I'm finished with this frustrating, "I want what I want at whatever cost" thread. 

[Brine]

I have read about the Leopard Ctenopoma and have come to a conclusion that is should be fine with my tiger barbs

how did you come to that conclusion?

[masoud100]

@Fishnut I am sorry if I have made you furious and now looking at it I am acting like I want to only accept opinions of what I want. So Fishnut in your opinion I should not have a Ctopoma? Then please give me a stocking list and think of it as your own tank

Currently I have :
10 Tiger Barbs
10 Green Tiger Barbs
1 Red Tail Black Shark
1 Hillstream Loach
1 Golden Algae Eater
7 Zebra Thorn Snails

What should I do @Fishnut because I will only listen to your stocking advise give me a list of other fish I should keep with my current fish.

And I came to that conclusion of Tiger Barb and Ctopoma mixing well is because Tiger Barbs are shaped diferently thus harder to swallow, they are faster and also can hold their own not to mention they are atleast 2 inches and will grow to about 3.5

[Brine]

I don't know anything about them but the first three pages I googled said the same thing....aggressive and carnivorous...they will eat anything that fits in their mouth...it didn't say anything about shape of the fish or speed, just that they will eat it if they can. I would expect them to eat Barbs. That being said there are sometimes exceptions to the rules. I wouldn't put one in with Barbs

[masoud100]

So to my stocking list what would you add? Think of it as your own tank I want something that looks good, maybe a 1 centre piece option, etc

[Nerine]

the red tail black shark should be your centerpiece!