Shell dwellers.

[Pckerfreak44]

Hello everyone, it's been awhile since I've been here... I have personally been going through some tough times and took out all my remaining fish in my 30 gal, put them in my ten gal and converted the tank into a nice home for my created gecko. I have totally forgotten about fish for the past couple months until I took a trip to petsmart yesterday. All the memories of fish keeping came flooding back and I decided I need to get back into it

Anyways, I only have my ten gallon left which is currently stocked with a BN Pleco and two peppered cories. The tank has sand and several rocks for hiding, no plants. I was trying to decide what to stock in it and my mind is now set on Shellie's (N. multifasciatus). I have several questions though.
1. Where can I find them?
2. How many should I get?
3. Will they be okay with my current stock?
4. Will they be okay in a ten gallon?

Thank you in advance

 

[Samzter]

Hello everyone, it's been awhile since I've been here... I have personally been going through some tough times and took out all my remaining fish in my 30 gal, put them in my ten gal and converted the tank into a nice home for my created gecko. I have totally forgotten about fish for the past couple months until I took a trip to petsmart yesterday. All the memories of fish keeping came flooding back and I decided I need to get back into it

Anyways, I only have my ten gallon left which is currently stocked with a BN Pleco and two peppered cories. The tank has sand and several rocks for hiding, no plants. I was trying to decide what to stock in it and my mind is now set on Shellie's (N. multifasciatus). I have several questions though.
1. Where can I find them?
2. How many should I get?
3. Will they be okay with my current stock?
4. Will they be okay in a ten gallon?

Thank you in advance

Hmmm. I'd be wary of adding them with the cories. I wouldn't do it but other people might have different opinions. They can be found online. Aqua bid has them sometimes. I got 6 for my ten gallon and they're all still alive and well! I would get 2m 4f. Ideally they need 3-4 shells each.

 

[Pckerfreak44]

Thanks for the help, that was perfect. You answered all my questions

 

[Pckerfreak44]

Actually I am looking for N. multifasciatus online and I cannot find them anywhere

 

[mikem691]

Tanganyika Cichlids - Cichlids
Also aquarium adventure usually has them in schaumburg and bolingbrook.
Not sure where in Ill, you are
I got mine here but they usually dont have them. I would call
http://tropi-quatics.com/

 

[Pckerfreak44]

Tanganyika Cichlids - Cichlids Also aquarium adventure usually has them in schaumburg and bolingbrook. Not sure where in Ill, you are I got mine here but they usually dont have them. I would call http://tropi-quatics.com/

Online the shipping is like 50 dollars :/ but Schaumburg isn't too far from where I live, maybe I can check that place out. Thanks a lot

 

[mikem691]

Online the shipping is like 50 dollars :/ but Schaumburg isn't too far from where I live, maybe I can check that place out. Thanks a lot

I would just call 1st and ask if they are in stock but it is a cool place to just look at fish. They have 2 tanks that are ceiling to floor and like 15 feet long with large cichlids in them.

 

[TheCommunityCichlid]

They charge like $15 a piece at aquarium adventure. Where are you located and how far are you willing to travel? I'm in dekalb for school now but lived in crystal lake.

 

[Freakgecko91]

2:4 is not a good ratio IME. One male will bully the other. I have 2:3 and one male is shunned, I always recommend 1:4, much better and yields a good spawn size as the one male will breed with all females.

Your cories WILL be killed, multies do not take well to other species. I have mine in a 39 gallon column and even my leleupi, who is double the size of my multies, is terrified of them, although he likes to sneak in and steal fry occasionally. Your pleco will more than likely be killed in a 10 gallon as well.

Stocking size, I'd go with 5 in the ratio mentioned earlier if possible, although they are sexually monomorphic (both sexes look the same).

Shells: you want about 3-4 shells PER adult. There are a few types of shells that will work. Whales eye (not my favorite look), Mexican turbo snails (usually free if you ask saltwater stores for them after the snails have died, but a pain to clean and dead turbos WREAK! I use these), escargot shells (hard to find in stores, but available on amazon, best looking IMO), and neothauma shells (rarely available, the shells they naturally inhabit in the wild).

Substrate must be sand, small gravel may work, but they like to dig and move sand. Don't go with these if you want a perfectly scaped tank as they will redecorate.

Water conditions should be hard and high pH, and they are quite tolerant of higher nitrates, but babies are not. Frequent water changes are best for higher yields in spawns to adulthood.

These are colony fish, they live in groups. In a large enough tank, multiple males can coexist, but not in a ten. Breeding takes place within a harem and parents are quite good at reading fry. They are highly protective. Females coexist well, but will squabble over territory. The fry will be full grown in about 5-8 months, depending on water change schedule and feeding.

 

[mikem691]

2:4 is not a good ratio IME. One male will bully the other. I have 2:3 and one male is shunned, I always recommend 1:4, much better and yields a good spawn size as the one male will breed with all females.

Your cories WILL be killed, multies do not take well to other species. I have mine in a 39 gallon column and even my leleupi, who is double the size of my multies, is terrified of them, although he likes to sneak in and steal fry occasionally. Your pleco will more than likely be killed in a 10 gallon as well.

Stocking size, I'd go with 5 in the ratio mentioned earlier if possible, although they are sexually monomorphic (both sexes look the same).

Shells: you want about 3-4 shells PER adult. There are a few types of shells that will work. Whales eye (not my favorite look), Mexican turbo snails (usually free if you ask saltwater stores for them after the snails have died, but a pain to clean and dead turbos WREAK! I use these), escargot shells (hard to find in stores, but available on amazon, best looking IMO), and neothauma shells (rarely available, the shells they naturally inhabit in the wild).

Substrate must be sand, small gravel may work, but they like to dig and move sand. Don't go with these if you want a perfectly scaped tank as they will redecorate.

Water conditions should be hard and high pH, and they are quite tolerant of higher nitrates, but babies are not. Frequent water changes are best for higher yields in spawns to adulthood.

These are colony fish, they live in groups. In a large enough tank, multiple males can coexist, but not in a ten. Breeding takes place within a harem and parents are quite good at reading fry. They are highly protective. Females coexist well, but will squabble over territory. The fry will be full grown in about 5-8 months, depending on water change schedule and feeding.

This is 110% right on with multis.

 

[Pckerfreak44]

I called and they didn't have any in stock so I decided to drive out to Antioch because they have a really nice store there and I saw blue rams there and realized I missed my other ones so I'm going to get them. I knew they couldn't fit in a ten gal so I looked at their used tanks and found a 20 gal for 11 dollars! It was crazy, I saw a 55 gal for 31 bucks. But anyways I brought that home and switched the filter from my other tank in there so it's fully cycled and am currently waiting to stock. Thank you all for the help though.