Many Questions

[PinkCow]

First of all, yes I'm new, and if this post should be in the welcome forum then please feel free to move it. However, it involves questions about freshwater fish, so I thought this would be the best place to post it.

I have a lot of questions right now, as I'm planning a fish-purchasing excursion in a day or so. Any answers are greatly appreciated!


1. To begin with, I live in a dorm room. This unfortunately severely limits the space I have to keep fish, and definately means saltwater is out of the question. Until I manage to get an apartment, which will probably be another year, I'm stuck, and the largest size tank I can fit right now would be a 2.5 to 3.5 gallon. So I was wondering... what kinds of fish would be suited to a small environment like that? Besides bettas? Are there any, or should I just get another betta for my second tank (I have one already)? I'd really like to branch out and get another type, but I don't know what would be the best.

2. I'm really interested in cory catfish, especially the panda kind. I'd love to know how many gallons I'd need for a proper size group of them. I've heard one gallon of water per inch of fish, but I wasn't sure if that was right or not.

3. I really wish I could find space for a good 5 gallon tank, because this would open up a lot more possibilities to me. Are there any that get taller instead of wider, or is this bad for the fish?

4. Finally, the weirdest question I have. This is going to sound really odd. But I was at Wal-mart a few weeks ago and saw a really adorable type of fish in one of their tanks that I thought I would look into. However, for the life of me I cannot remember what kind of fish it was. They were mostly black, with a little bit of white, and their eyes sort of looked like they were going ^^ all the time. I know that's not much to go on, but if anyone knows what I'm talking about or could direct me to a fish database of sorts, it would be great.


Thank you so much in advance for any answers, and I'm sorry for all the questions!

 

[rich311k]

Welcome to AA!!!!

I really can't think of a normally available fish beside a betta that would do well in that size tank. If you want to get cories you really need to see if you could squeeze a ten gallon somewhere. I remember when I was in school I managed a 20 gallon long. Dont if my roommate appreciated it but he dealt with it.

Good luck!!

 

[joannde]

Hi and Welcome !!!!

I'd go with another betta also - I STARTED with a 29G community tank and once I got my first betta I was HOOKED. I now have 5 ! Can't have enough betta's in my opinion LOL.

I have no idea what fish it might have been that you saw but here's a good fishdatabase that you can search by color:

http://fishprofiles.com/profiles/identifier.aspx#fishfinder

 

[Tong]

1. Okay, I stole this list from plantedTank.net and honestly, I've never heard of half these fish. A few small fish not on the list include: dwarf puffer, Dainty Cory, and least killifish. There are more but I can't think of anything else right now.

- Barboides gracilis
- Barbus sylvaticus
- Boraras merah
- Boraras micros
- Dario dario
- Microrasbora kubotai
- Microrasbora nana
- Bumblebee Goby (Brachygobius sp.)
- Clown Killi, aka Banded Killi, aka Rocket Panchax (Epiplatys annulatus)
- Crossbanded Dwarf Danio (Microrasbora erythromicron)
- Dwarf Cory (Corydoras hastatus)
- Dwarf Mosquitofish, aka Het, aka Least Killi (Heterandria formosa)
- Dwarf Rasbora, aka Pygmy Spotted Rasbora (Boraras maculatus)
- Ember Tetra (Hyphessobrycon amandae)
- Endler's Livebearer (Poecilia wingei)
- Exclamation Point Rasbora (Boraras urophthalmoides)
- Glow Light Danio (Danio choprae)
- Glow Light Tetra (Hemigrammus erythrozonus)
- Green Neon Tetra (Paracheirodon simulans)
- Guppy (Poecilia reticulata)
- Jae barb (Barbus jae)
- Lipstick Barb (Puntius sealei)
- Mosquito Rasbora (Boraras brigittae)
- Neon Rasbora (Sundadanio axelrodi)
- Neon Tetra (Paracheirodon innesi)
- Oto, aka Dwarf Sucker Fish (Otocinclus affinis)
- Pristella Tetra (Pristella maxillaris)
- Pygmy Cory (Corydoras pygmaeus)
- Siamese Fighting Fish, aka Betta (Betta splendens)
- Vietnamese Minnow, aka Dwarf Cardinal (Tanichthys micagemmae)
- White Cloud Mountain Minnow (Tanichthys albonubes)

2. You could probably keep 3 or 4 pygmy cories in a 2.5 gallon as they barely get past an inch long. Inch per gallon rule breaks down for small tanks. A little better is the surface area rule, 1 inch of fish per 12 square inches.

3. Although there are smaller tall tanks, these are pretty rare. I've never seen them in a store. And they wouldn't really help you as surface area is more a limiting factor than water volume IMO.

4. No idea. FishProfiles.com is a good site to do preliminary research though.

 

[Mosaic]

Welcome! You're in the right place
1. You can find the room for a bigger tank if you didn't have all that furniture What about invertebrates? Shrimp and snails are underrated, but they're truely fascinating, and I think a few could be comfy in a small tank. If you have a male betta already (you can never really have too many. They're addictive), maybe you could get a few female bettas. Something a little different, but with the same ease of care.
2. People here usually recommend a group of 5 or more cories. You'd need at least 10 g, but even then I think it would be cramped.
3. You wouldn't really be able to hold more fish in a tall tank. What's most important is the amount of water surace area, since thats where the gas exchange takes place and how oxygen gets in the water. Plus, more swimming room for the fish. So wider is always better than taller.
4. A little more detail would be nice. You could try fishbase.org, but I find it more useful when you know a least a little of what you're looking for.

BTW, I know as a college student you may not have a lot of other options for buying fish, but know that if you get fish from Walmart, it's buyer beware. They are not exactly known for their high standards of fishkeeping over there.

 

[Codefox]

I may be wrong but a shrimp or two may be great for a tank like this and could make a nice unique display.

Are you sure you couldn't fit a 5g though? The dimensions are very close to the 2.5g. I feel your pain...I just graduated a year ago and my first 3 years of college I was in a dorm and couldn't have an aquarium. Even once I got an apartment, my roommates didn't want a big aquarium so I was still stuck with a 5g.

 

[cappieBridget]

was it a dalmation Molly? HERE'S AN ALL BLACK ONE http://fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/561.htm

 

[JustOneMore20]

You have been given some great info above. I also think that a male betta or a few shrimp would be the way to go. Even if you got a 5g, I still think choose either one of those.

I have to disagree with some of the fish on the plantedtank.net list. I don't think cories should be kept in anything less than a 10g...not even the small cories. They are pretty active, so a 5 or 2.5g wouldn't give them enough room. I don't think tetras should be kept in anything under 10g either. They are schooling and a 5g doesn't provide enough room for 6 or more tetras.

I also don't think that dwarf puffers should be kept in anything smaller than a 10g. The rule is 3g per puffer which means you could only have 1 in a 5g. When kept alone, they don't do as well. They are social fish and may refuse to eat if kept alone. Their tank should be planted to break up sight lines and should be kept at a ratio of 1 male to 2 females (in a 10g or larger).

Try to find you a crowntail betta. They are so beautiful!

 

[Codefox]

I would definately recommend trying a planted tank for something this small. The lighting would be easy to provide as would the CO2.

 

[Blazeherd2306]

I may be wrong but a shrimp or two may be great for a tank like this and could make a nice unique display.

Are you sure you couldn't fit a 5g though? The dimensions are very close to the 2.5g. I feel your pain...I just graduated a year ago and my first 3 years of college I was in a dorm and couldn't have an aquarium. Even once I got an apartment, my roommates didn't want a big aquarium so I was still stuck with a 5g.

Good suggestion.

Ghost shrimps, cherry shrimps, amano shrimps would be good choices for a tank that small.

I'd suggest you get a betta and few shrimp.