I've just redesigned my 300l and it is now ready to populate. Currently heavily planted but still growing in, with plenty of bogwood and rocks, pebbles etc, housing dwarf pencilfish. I haven't added any leaf litter yet, but will do as soon as I get my hands on some (beech and oak normally). I'll possibly be getting some small corys (pygmaeus, hasbrosus or hestata) and maybe a few otos and an outside chance of sparkling gouramis, depending on what I decide to do with the main inhabitants: Apistos.
One thing I've always fancied in my display tank is having a big group of mixed Apistos, I guess similar fashion to the way malawis are kept. Not with the intention of breeding just to look pretty.
A) In a 300l (4ft x 1.5ft) would this work with Apistos?
B) Which ones could I house in this fashion? Which to avoid?
C) How many would be 'safe'?
But after oh so many years I suspect I'll opt out of trying this (again) and go with the tried and tested breeding pair/group as usual. My LFS currently have nijsseni, aggies, macs and cacas. Having bred macs and cacas before I'm tempted by the other tw0. I've already picked up a pair of nijsseni for another tank. Never kept them before, loving them, so cute and right at the front looking for food if I even move in the room.
As I'm still undecided, and usually only keep one species per tank, I thought I'd gather a few opinions, here's where my brain's gone already...
1) Debating trying a pair of nijsseni together with a pair of aggies. I believe different complex so would be ok? (Or a quick way to dead fish?)
2) How many nijsseni could I house safely if I go for more than one pair? Maybe a couple of males and four females?
3) Same question for aggies?
4) Would an alternative, say borellii or trifasciata work better with either of these two if I mixed them?
5) Just move the existing pair of nijsseni to the 300l and enjoy the show? (They seem to be a pair, only just sexing out, lots of showing off, but still very young. She's gorgeous but he's still colouring up, just starting to show some blue with a tinge of orange in his fins)
6) See if I can get my hands on something a little bit different say barlowi, abacaxis etc and give them a go (very tempted by trying something not necessarily rare but seen less often in LFS, but would be distraught if I lost one of a pair and couldn't replace it)
One thing I've always fancied in my display tank is having a big group of mixed Apistos, I guess similar fashion to the way malawis are kept. Not with the intention of breeding just to look pretty.
A) In a 300l (4ft x 1.5ft) would this work with Apistos?
B) Which ones could I house in this fashion? Which to avoid?
C) How many would be 'safe'?
But after oh so many years I suspect I'll opt out of trying this (again) and go with the tried and tested breeding pair/group as usual. My LFS currently have nijsseni, aggies, macs and cacas. Having bred macs and cacas before I'm tempted by the other tw0. I've already picked up a pair of nijsseni for another tank. Never kept them before, loving them, so cute and right at the front looking for food if I even move in the room.
As I'm still undecided, and usually only keep one species per tank, I thought I'd gather a few opinions, here's where my brain's gone already...
1) Debating trying a pair of nijsseni together with a pair of aggies. I believe different complex so would be ok? (Or a quick way to dead fish?)
2) How many nijsseni could I house safely if I go for more than one pair? Maybe a couple of males and four females?
3) Same question for aggies?
4) Would an alternative, say borellii or trifasciata work better with either of these two if I mixed them?
5) Just move the existing pair of nijsseni to the 300l and enjoy the show? (They seem to be a pair, only just sexing out, lots of showing off, but still very young. She's gorgeous but he's still colouring up, just starting to show some blue with a tinge of orange in his fins)
6) See if I can get my hands on something a little bit different say barlowi, abacaxis etc and give them a go (very tempted by trying something not necessarily rare but seen less often in LFS, but would be distraught if I lost one of a pair and couldn't replace it)
