Semi agressive fish for 20gal long?

[coldmachineUK]

I had a pretty bad experience with an RTBS recently: I thought he'd get along fine in a tank of eight malawi mbuna cichlids. If anything I was worried about HIM. Anyway, he bullied them so badly I've moved him out. That was in a 36G, so I'd think you'd have problems in a 20G with one.

I'd go with a pair of dwarf cichlids too tbh. They should be peaceful enough to get along, but also have some personality that will keep your tetra school as a school.
Apistogrammas are lovely as someone said, but I think your tank is too small for them (best kept in groups of 10+ is what I've read recently in Practical FishKeeping. Speaking of which, if you're in the UK you should get that mag it can be a godsend sometimes!).

 

[Satsumas]

It does seem like i would have problems with a RTBS then!

Dwarf cichlids or a gourami seem the option at the moment, but i am leaning towards the dwarf cichlid idea. My brother has GBR's so i wouldn't want them.

This sounds perfect for some Apistos, i plan to have a heavily planted tank, eco complete/sand substrate and bogwood for planting and hiding spaces...
"Apistogramma baenschi are a relatively easy fish to spawn. Both the mother and the farther make very good parents. Pairs can be kept in 24" aquariums and trios in aquariums larger that 30". The aquarium should be well planted with a sand substrate. Ample hiding spaces should also be provide using bogwood and slate."

I did have some cockatoo dwarf's but me and the woman in the LFS got it wrong when i was looking for another female and within 2 weeks the only female was bullied to death and the 2 male's pecked and effectively killed each other. That was quite sad and it put me off keeping them but i do like them and i would like to try again.
Apistogramma baenschi or "Inca's" look good and i would want a trio, but i think i'll give cockatoo dwarf's another go! At my LFS they keep mcmaster's, dwarf cockatoo's and agassizi's. I just hope the label's are correct!

http://www.dwarfcichlid.co.uk/ I got some info from there, it looks a pretty good site, if you haven;t found it already.

Yeah i have registered with practical fishkeeping and i recieve e-mails from time to time, it's pretty interesting and there are a variety of different topics and subjects that they cover. I haven't seen it in any local shops but i'll keep my eyes peeled, i might buy one online if i can.

So it looks like i'll be considering some dwarf cichlids then! i would like to keep 3 to try and keep any aggression equal. What about 4 in a ratio of 1 male to 3 female's? Or should 3 be ok? my brother's GBR's are in a ratio of 1 male to 2 female's but they were a pair for about 7 months with no problems. It's just that my previous dwarf cockatoo's actually got the female by the gill and the damage to her was beyond repair and she died within the next 3 days. I really don't want it to happen again!

Thanks for the help and suggestions everyone!

 

[jackdp]

To be honest i have been in 2 minds over what to do with this 20gal. Dwarf puffers i had been considering quite a lot but the only thing that puts me off is the need for snails in their diet. I find putting a snail in a tank where it's gonna be eaten alive is pretty cruel. I don't mind feeding bloodworms or smaller insects but snail's are pretty big and i quite like them.

Dwarf Puffers don't require snails in their diet...not like other larger puffers. Larger puffers require the snails to help keep the beaks from growing to long, they grind on the snail shells. Either way, I have small nuisance trumpet snails in the 15gal with my DP's and it is great watching them stalk the snails. Otherwise a diet of bloodworms and brine shrimp would do fine.

 

[coldmachineUK]

I'd be careful come spawning time if you opt for only one pair. Apistos can get pretty rough around then. As I say, best kept in groups of 10+ (see November 2006 issue of PFK for a really handy article on keeping apistos).

I'm sure there are other dwarfs out there that can be kept in pairs ok tho One option, I dont know much about them though, is perhaps a pair of keyhole cichlids.

 

[Satsumas]

Oh right, yeah i read that DP require snails in their diet but that was on a DP website so it may not be 100% accurate. They may be a little biased towards the snail ideas as they are a clear DP fave.I do like them and i think it would be interesting to have a species tank and watch their behaviour but equally i am keen to try out different fish.

I did keep a pair of apistos which then became a trio of 2 male's to one female. I blame the shop assistant more than me for getting the sexing wrong, they are supposed to know more but then again i know that they more often than not don't.
I lost all of them due to agression and that did put me off but i would like to try again.
I would intend on keeping 2 female's to one male, but i'm not so confident that is a big enough group or ratio to keep them relaxed and limit the aggression.

I'll look into keyhole cichlids.
Thanks.