[allaboutfish]

So far what I have in this 55 is
3-minnows(the kind from a bait shop I think they're shiners)
2-Congo*tetras*( I want to move this up to 6 even thought the school with the minnow)
1-female cutter I cichlid (male was too mean so was moved out)
1-Senegal bichir
As a final stocking I was thinking
3- minnows
6- Congo tetras
1- female cutteri cichlid
1-Senegal bichr
1-leopard ctenopoma
1-african butterfly fish
I have a tetra 30-60 and*aqua clear*70 for filters.
I plan to have a lot of*driftwood*rocks and leaf litter at the bottom. The only plants will be lillies and anubius. I'm going for a loose Congo biotope.
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[jaysee]

I've had my african setup going for about 4 years now. Congo tetras, ctenopoma, butterfly, bichir, plus an african knife and a featherfin catfish. They started in a 55 but outgrew that, so I upgraded to a 75 which was better. The extra width is important. Now its a 90 gallon.

 

[allaboutfish]

I will probably upgrade to a 75 soon. I don't like the 12in widths they're so hard to aquascape. Will this stocking work in the 55 though?
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[jaysee]

Assuming the cichlid is not a problem (dont know about them), it will be fine for a while - a year, maybe 2 if they're all small.

 

[allaboutfish]

What would be problems in the future? (Cichlid is very peaceful)
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[jaysee]

The congos not having enough room to chase and escape. Once they get big they will need that 50% larger footprint. They started really beating each other up in the 55 - stopped instantly in the 75. Not that they didn't display and show anymore, but they had more room to maneuver.

The ctenopoma getting aggressive with other fish in the tank. It grows into a large and powerful fish that needs space. I know profiles say they are supposed to be shy and all, but I have raised 2 from the size of the end of my finger, to 4 inches (not full grown), and both were quite aggressive - first one so much so that I gave it away and started over with a new one.

You'll know when it's time.... you'll start to get a sense of unrest when looking at the tank. You'll start to feel the angst in the tank. At least that's how I determined it was time to upgrade. The only reason I moved them to the 90 was because I sold the 75 to make room for the new 125.

 

[allaboutfish]

OK thanks!!
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[allaboutfish]

Could I keep a delhezi too since I'm upgrading or would the Senegal and delhezi fight?
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[jaysee]

They both have similar size potential. As long as one isn't significantly bigger than the other, it should be fine.

 

[allaboutfish]

OK thanks so much for your help jaysee!
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[jaysee]

I have a palmas and would like to get a delhezi, but they were so much smaller than the palmas and I didn't want to take that chance. The LFS has a big palmas for a good price, so I might go pick it up early next week.

 

[allaboutfish]

Yea I was thinking about palmas for a while but Im making a fish order and I noticed they had delhezi.
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[jaysee]

I think that the delhezi looks better.

 

[allaboutfish]

Yea they have a darker pattern but the palmas seem like they're more yellow.
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[allaboutfish]

Am I fully stocked with
6-Congo tetras
3-minnows
1-cutteri
1-Senegal bichir
1-delhezi bichir
1-leopard ctenopoma
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[jaysee]

Understanding that an upgrade will be in order at some point, I think that you can get a couple more tetras, as well as an african knife. That's one of my favorite fish in the collection. Not much to look at for colors, but what it lacks in that department it more than makes up for in coolness. Unlike other knife fish like the BGK, africans are pretty active during the day. Very cool fish to watch.

 

[allaboutfish]

How many more tetras? I actually was looking at the African knife. They look pretty cool.
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[jaysee]

i would get 2 more.

You'd really like the knife. It took mine about 3 months to let me see it though. They are wild, and can take a while to adjust. However, once they get comfortable they are quite active. The congos serve as dithers for the knife, as well.

It's a long video showing an incident between the knife and the big alpha tetra. They would square off from time to time. It's a good depiction of the knife and how it swims. Most of the other fish make an appearance in the video. If you make it through the whole thing, you'll see how it ends.

 

[allaboutfish]

That's awesome! Now I just need to find one.
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[jaysee]

Petsmart carries them.


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