Peacock Gudgeons in a 2.5.....is it possible?

[Nils]

Hello all!

I have a 2.5 Aqueon Minibow, and I know it is tiny, I held a Dwarf Puffer in it before, and I know my facts. I am doing a black sand and fine ravel substrate, and a piece of nice driftwood with lots of dark green java moss. Would I be able to keep a Peacock Gugdeon or two in there? What do they need to eat? Anything else I need to know? The tank is heated.

Nils

 

[NiaCas]

I would say no. In my experience, peacock gudgeons are quite sensitive to water parameters and those mini tanks are too hard to keep cycled and keep the water pristine. It's ok if you have, say, a betta in a tank like that because if you need to, you can do a 100% water change and the betta doesn't care, probably because their ancestors and wild cousins are accustomed to jumping from one bit of water to another. A big water change could fatally stress a peacock gudgeon though. They also like a lot of plants. I would say that to really make one happy, you would need at least a 10 gallon. That's the smallest tank that's easy to keep cycled. Even liveaquaria has the minimum size for a peacock gudgeon set at 15 gallons and they tend to underestimate sometimes imo.
In a 2.5 gallon tank, I really wouldn't keep anything but bettas, maybe african dwarf frogs, small shrimp, snails and maybe otos. POSSIBLY guppies depending on the person, but I prefer not to keep guppies in anything smaller than a 10 gallon.

 

[Nils]

Alright, thanks!
I have a 10 gallon with 5 cories, and I might add some gouramis there, or now possibly one or two peacock gudgeons! I think they r beautiful, and they are so vibrant! Would they nip at my cories at all? And I am planning on keeping dario dario and some RCS in the 2.5 now.

NILS

 

[Brookster123]

Dude....stop... one tank at a time... I'll go ahead and consider myself decent at taking care of fish.. rams.. apistos.. shrimp.. cats... i put a baby betta in a 5.5g and it's been a nightmare.. small tanks are a lot lot lot of work. Throw a delicate fish in there?? I know. . Betta... soo easy.. try raising one from 1/2".. start with the 20...

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[NiaCas]

You might want to skip the gouramis in the 10. They need a 20 or larger depending on the gourami. I have blue paradise gouramis that I moved from a 50 gallon to a 75 because they're territorial jerks lol. Kissing gouramis are the same way and I haven't had good luck with dwarf gourami behavior in anything below 30 gallons personally, but I haven't tried anything below 20. The gudgeons should be fine in there though and just 1 gourami would probably be ok, and the RCS will probably be perfectly happy in the mini tank as long as you can keep the water ok! They're pretty hardy and breed a lot ime so they should be fine lol. I've never heard of dario darios though! They look like gouramis from what I just found on google and their breeding pics look like betta breeding pics (which are in the gourami family so that makes sense). I wouldn't know anything about their care needs specifically though.

 

[aquarium_Guru]

Just get a ten gal for only 15$ and the peacocks would love it use to have some they have very beautiful colors


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[Nils]

LOL Brookster I know, I should stop, but I am too caught up with both tanks! I am probably not going to stock my 10 gallon with anything till I get at least a 20 gallon, and then maybe I will think about a Bolivian Ram or something. But until then, I am leaving the Cories alone in there. As for the 2.5, I am stocking it soon, maybe over the weekend, so that's going to be cool. Anybody know what to do with baby shrimp once they over flow the 2.5?

Nilss

 

[Nils]

What did you feed them? Did you keep them with any other bottom feeders?

 

[aquarium_Guru]

I fed them bloodworms and yes some plecos


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[Nils]

And they didn't nip at the plecos at all?\

 

[aquarium_Guru]

Not really they are territorial


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[Mattyfelts]

you are having enough issues with the 10, why try smaller. Get one under control first, based on your other thread you dont seem to know. honestly the only thing to keep in a 2.5 IMO is shrimp maybe.

 

[Wy Renegade]

Shrimp require very stable water parameters, which you are not very likely to get in a 2.5 gallon tank. They also require moss balls, caves, driftwood for the accumulation of mulm as a additional food source, a sponge filter, additives to adjust the chemical levels of the RO water which you need to be using if you plan to actually keep them, weekly water changes with properly adjusted RO water, Moss balls, a planted aquiarium, etc. As far as worrying about what to do with the overflow of babies, I really wouldn't worry about it until you find if you can actually keep the parent stock alive or not. While they breed well under ideal conditions, they don't tend to breed at all if their needs are not being met. Prior to ordering the shrimp you need to research, decide on and acquire the proper substrate, find and order food so you have it on hand, get your moss balls ordered in, plant the aquarium, acquire a light to keep your plants alive, and get your water parameters stable. Ornamental shrimp, even the "easy to keep species", are not the type of thing you just pick-up and set-up a tank for over the weekend. At least not if you want to be successful with them.

 

[Nils]

Alright thanks, and I have everything except for all the chemical stuff. The water is probably stable, and I am going to get it checked at PetCo today. If there is enough Java moss, could some babies survive the SB?

 

[NiaCas]

I've kept loads of shrimp in bigger tanks equipped with HOB and canister filters. I've never kept moss balls until about 2 weeks ago when I got my first moss ball ever because it was free. Other than that I find them too expensive. And I've never used RO water for any fish :/ just treated tap water. I've kept shrimp in tanks w/o driftwood quite successfully. I agree they need caves and I always prefer plants but I've never heard that it's mandatory for their survival. And shrimp eat pretty much anything they can find, though I prefer to just make sure all my creatures absolutely get their share so give them their own food.

I do believe in not telling beginners to just jump right in unprepared and make it sound TOO easy, and tbh I still am not a fan of mini tanks because they're just impossible to cycle and keep the water parameters good for more than a few days, but there's no need to make caring for a specific species sound much more difficult than it is and scare them off forever
Shrimp are rather easy to care for ime. I like giving them good hides, some plants (mostly because I LOVE plants!), a bit of java moss or riccia, and a good, stable tank. Other than that though, they don't really require anything else to be happy.

I definitely agree though that no tank should be set up and fish or shrimp added immediately, although with a mini tank it's not like it'll cycle properly anyway :/ which is why I don't like them. But for your 10 gallon, Nils, as long as it's set up and properly cycled before you add fish, and not overstocked then the rest is pretty easy. Add some plants, choose healthy foods, do water changes.

BTW, if you need a stocking calculator, aqadvisor is a pretty good guide for beginners. You can just google that, and pull up the calculator. It takes into account quite a lot of factors, so it's fairly reliable imo.

There are so many abbreviations in the world today, and SB can't be found in my mental database right now lol. Just a square of slate or a rock of similarish size (bit smaller is fine) covered with java moss is fine for shrimp though in a smaller tank.

 

[Nils]

Thanks bud, you gave me lots of advice!
I am not really beginner, I have had the 10 gallon for quite some time, about a year, running well with 5 healthy cories. The 2.5 was running with a dwarf puffer and a Mexican Dwarf Crayfish, and the water was pretty stable, till I had a parasite infection which killed both the crayfish and the puffer. I think I will do well with shrimp. About the Peacock Gudgeons, are they easy to breed?

Nils

 

[Haileyjade]

I have been looking into peacocks for my 20 and have been researching quite a bit. I'm going to be frank with you: I think it would be cruel to put some in a 2.5. Really, that size tank is only best for shrimp. Some would say a betta, but personally I don't do less than 5 for mine.

A 2.5 gallon tank is going to require more than weekly water changes to keep your water parameters in check. Some parasitic infections are caused by unfavorable water conditions--which, if you were not changing the water in your 2.5 before, is likely why your fish succumbed.

Every place I've read on peacocks recommend an absolute minimum of 10 with peacock gudgeons. Could they survive less? Probably. Is it humane to stuff them in a 2.5 just because you can? Not at all. One member here advised me they do best on live food. Are you prepared to offer that? As for breeding...I highly doubt they would do that for you in a 2.5 gallon aquarium. They will be cramped, which will lead to stress, and if the water is not perfect, which is difficult to do in a 2.5 for even people who have been in the hobby for years, then you will not see babies. A fish who's basic needs aren't being met is not going to produce fry.

I know this hobby is fun and addictive, but as fish keepers it is our duty to be responsible about it. We can't 'find a way' to put a species of fish in a tank it will be unhappy in just because we admire it. We need to research the fish FIRST, and if we don't have the proper set up for the fish we fall in love with, then we need to purchase it. We can't ignore a fish's basic needs to suit our own. This will result in loss of life and a far less enjoyable hobby.

Research shrimp, and if you think you can provide a pristine environment, work with those. If not, work on meeting the basic demands (water testing/changes and maintence) of your other tanks.


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[Wy Renegade]

I've kept loads of shrimp in bigger tanks equipped with HOB and canister filters. I've never kept moss balls until about 2 weeks ago when I got my first moss ball ever because it was free. Other than that I find them too expensive. And I've never used RO water for any fish :/ just treated tap water. I've kept shrimp in tanks w/o driftwood quite successfully. I agree they need caves and I always prefer plants but I've never heard that it's mandatory for their survival. And shrimp eat pretty much anything they can find, though I prefer to just make sure all my creatures absolutely get their share so give them their own food.

I do believe in not telling beginners to just jump right in unprepared and make it sound TOO easy, and tbh I still am not a fan of mini tanks because they're just impossible to cycle and keep the water parameters good for more than a few days, but there's no need to make caring for a specific species sound much more difficult than it is and scare them off forever
Shrimp are rather easy to care for ime. I like giving them good hides, some plants (mostly because I LOVE plants!), a bit of java moss or riccia, and a good, stable tank. Other than that though, they don't really require anything else to be happy.

I definitely agree though that no tank should be set up and fish or shrimp added immediately, although with a mini tank it's not like it'll cycle properly anyway :/ which is why I don't like them. But for your 10 gallon, Nils, as long as it's set up and properly cycled before you add fish, and not overstocked then the rest is pretty easy. Add some plants, choose healthy foods, do water changes.

It was never my intent to scare anyone away from keeping anything forever, however when an individual is having trouble keeping water parameters in a 10 gallon tank with cories steady, posts subsequent threads on keeping GBR, Peacock gudgeons, and ornamental shrimp all within a very short period of time and obviously without doing any real research on these experienced to advanced level species, that has a tendency to send off some warning lights for me, and I believe a bit of cautionary advice is in order. IMO making keeping something classified within the hobby as "experienced" or "advanced" level sound simple and easy is also a disservice to the individual as well as to the species in question. Maintaining populations of species in large tanks with very steady water parameters indeed may not be difficult for you, but for a beginner (and yes Nils, I'm sorry, but only having a year of experience under your belt, having issues keeping water parameters steady in a 10 gallon, the list of fish you've successfully kept and the length of time you've "successfully" kept them, not owning your own test kits, and relying on Petco to test your water parameters all mark you as a beginner, not a rank beginner granted, but still a beginner) who is 12 years old and has to create a petition on a fish forum in order to try and convince his mother to allow him to purchase a 20 gallon tank, it is likely to be. Nothing in what I stated was indicated as being mandatory, but if you research you will find that everything I indicated is recommended. Flying in the face of all conventional wisdom/recommendations and saying you can keep ornamental shrimp in treated tapwater is also making things sound a bit too simple IMO. Just because it worked for you with your water doesn't mean it will work for everyone else with their water. A little research will show that reconstituted RO water is the general recommendation for keeping ornamental shrimp successfully, and stating that one has never kept fish in anything besides treated tap water also doesn't show much of a depth of understanding of water chemistry or its relative importance in keeping experienced or advanced species.

I know this hobby is fun and addictive, but as fish keepers it is our duty to be responsible about it. We can't 'find a way' to put a species of fish in a tank it will be unhappy in just because we admire it. We need to research the fish FIRST, and if we don't have the proper set up for the fish we fall in love with, then we need to purchase it. We can't ignore a fish's basic needs to suit our own. This will result in loss of life and a far less enjoyable hobby.

Research shrimp, and if you think you can provide a pristine environment, work with those. If not, work on meeting the basic demands (water testing/changes and maintence) of your other tanks.

Very well said

 

[Nils]

Well sorry, I was just asking. I wouldn't keep them in a 2.5 now that I have some advice from other people. I am keeping it a shrimp tank with a Scarlet Badis. I might keep the Peacock Gudgeon with cories, who knows? And I am just going to say, I love my fish, and I would hate to have anything happen to them. So I feed them 3x a week, and I hate it when people call me a beginner.

Nils

 

[Wy Renegade]

Ah Nils, I don't think you need to be sorry at all. I think it is great that you were asking questions and I've very glad that you are able to listen to what others are telling you. I simply felt that some cautionary advice was in order. I wish you luck with the Scarlet badis and the shrimp, it will definitely be a challenging new experience for you, and I truly do hope it will be successful for you. Please understand that I'm not trying to be rude by referring to you as a beginner. You've got a year or so of experience under your belt with some easy and some moderately difficult species. The S. badis are definitely a step over to the more experienced side of things with their requirement for live food and all, so you are moving along. Just keep in mind, you've been doing this for a year, I"ve been doing this for longer than you have been alive LOL. That doesn't necessarily mean that people my age know any more than people your age, although if we've stuck with it, we've generally learned quite a bit from the school of success and failure - some good and some bad. That factor is what is referred to as "experience" and it comes with practice and time. Experienced is gained by trying new things and we all do that, we just want you to be fully aware of all the potential issues and challenges involved in what you are headed into, so you are not going into it blind.