Mixing Rams with Apistogrammas?

[Stix_oz]

G'Day all, i'm currently letting the population of my 4ft 70G tank settle in as i added a couple more fish this weekend. I currently have

10 Congo tetras (6 male 4 female)
3 Bristlenose catfish (very small)
1 Sailfin Pleco
3 Longfin Corys
2 female blue rams (Can't find a male yet)
3 Bolivian (Butterfly) Rams (Can't sex yet but have seen 2 of them "face off" a few times"

The Rams are very small all under an inch.

I have 2 good filters setup which really turn the water over and the tank is light/moderatly planted (Well be moderate in a month when some plants grow more).

PH 7.0 - 7.1
Soft/Very soft water
Temp 25-26 C

I'm thinking of adding a pair or 3 (2 females) Apistogrammas, probably Cockatoo Dwarf Cichlids, will these go Ok with my Rams?

I also want to add a small school of Cardinal tetras, do you think this would work ok?

I'm very new at this and would appreciate any fish selection advice or advice in general.

thanks in advance

Stix

 

[bs6749]

A trio of apistos will be fine in that tank. You could also do a large school instead of a small one of cardnials. You could easily get away with 25+ of them in that tank.

You will be about at your limit for bottom dwellers after adding a trio of apistos IMO. I wouldn't add anything more than 3 more cories as they like to be in groups unless you take out the sailfin pleco. I'm not a fan of large plecos in aquariums, they just weren't meant to be there IMO.

 

[haykay]

good thing you have bristlenose plecos as they top out around 5 inches.. I think they may be just fine.. however if they all pair off you may have a bit of aggressional issues but the parenting will be much improved due to the threat of other fish!

 

[Stix_oz]

Cheers guys, i will be setting up some other large tanks in the next 6 months or so and the pleco/bristlenose will have new homes as they grow. A full grown sailfin pleco will be very out of place in this tank.

Any suggestions for a good school of apistos to try and keep?

Will the Cardinals be safe with the Rams?

Cheers guys

Stix

 

[bs6749]

If the BN plecos are the ancistrus ones then you will be fine with 3 in a 75 gallon tank. It's recommended to have 1 per 20 gallons for algae control.

Cardinals are perfectly fine with rams and apistos. The only fish that you wouldn't want to add with cardinals would be aggressive fish that would obviously go after them, and angels and discus as they will eat them as well. This may not be so "obvious" but angels and discus feed on them in the wild.

As far as what kind of apistos to get I wouldn't get more than a trio (1m 2f) of a species. You could get 2 different species but apistos won't school. They like to be isolated in caves and need hiding spaces like that to feel safe. You may want to consider a reverse trio if you aren't interested in breeding them as the males are generally more colorful and have more elaborate finnage.

 

[haykay]

I second that statement that they wont school.

 

[brutus]

i had 3 rams he killed the other 2 and he dont like no one near him when he eats lol but is the wifes fav fish

 

[Stix_oz]

Cheers guys, i actually found a shop today with some really nice apistos pity most them had white spot

Any recommendations for good things to use for hiding places?

 

[bs6749]

Where are you located? Check Aquabid for some nice apistos. ApistoDave has some decent stuff but he's wacky.

Clay pots used to plant flowers are the best artificial caves IMO. Get at least 2 of them in your tank depending on how many apistos you go with. Look for the smaller clay pots...I think the 3" ones. Lay themon their side and put it right into the substrate so that there is some sand/gravel in the pot but not too much so the fish won't go in there to hide.

 

[Stix_oz]

Cheers, i bought 2 clay pots today a bit bigger than 3" but they should do.

I live on the Gold Coast, Australia, there is a pretty good variety of species within my area but very poor quality of fish as well.

I still haven't decided what species of spistos to go with yet, they are all such beautiful looking fish.