Semi agressive fish for 20gal long?

[Satsumas]

Hi all,

I am looking for a semi-agressive fish to go in my 20gal long.
I am currently waiting for my new filter and substrate to arrive so i am using this time to think about plants, lighting and fish.

Ideally i would like a group of cories, a semi-agressive 'loner', and a tight group of small schoolers.
I would like the school to be pretty relaxed and stress free if possible? although it doesn't seem like it is:? Saying that i suppose if there are plenty of plants and they occasionally see or are reminded that the 'bigger' semi agressive fish is fairly close then they would be relatively relaxed.

Any suggestions?

I read that the red tailed black shark would go into a 3ft long tank like mine and the same with the rainbow shark. However my brother has a rainbow and i would like something different if possible.

TIA

 

[Mosaic]

I've never kept the sharks, but I hear they get more aggressive as they get older, and a 20 may not allow the other fish enough room to get away when they're being harassed. But I'll let someone speak from experience.

A pair of kribs might be nice. They are very personable and can be a little obnoxious sometimes but they don't bother too much with the other fish unless they're watching over their babies. They would share the same space as the cories though; I don't know if that would be an issue.

 

[Satsumas]

I initially started off thinking about kribs but was warned off them.

My brother's rainbow chases his GBR's and they get away fairly easily as they loose the RS in the plants. My 20gal may be harder, although i am planning on a medium-heavily planted tank.

 

[JDogg]

hummm... 20 gallon is kind of limiting....

i would agree on a pair of dwarf cichlids, either kribs or there New World Cousins Rams and Apistos (my area of current interest and research ).

i see this is a 20 long? (if i were a 20 tall i might suggest a single Angle)

perhaps a smallish is gourami...or perhaps a rainbowfish(i have never kept them, but others have, not 100% they fit you requirements)

my 2 cents, over and out!

 

[Satsumas]

Hmm, i was originally thinking of 3-4 cories, a school of 6-8 tetra's 1 or 2 rainbow's and this semi-agressive fish.

I'm still thinking along the lines of a red tail but aren't the rainbow's less agressive?
Also how would cories cope with a red tail?

I'm not really into gourami's and i've gone off kribs and i don't like angels either.

There must be something!

 

[Ky'smommy]

Thinking about the inch per gallon rule.
i pretty sure a redtail can get 6 inches.
I had one in 10g then moved to a 30.
He is super aggressive.....
he has killed many fish.. but that was cause he was in to small of a tank. bad research on my part and i didnt know any better.
Now that he is in a bigger tank they only play fight and there are zero fish deaths in that tank.

if you wanted to go for that i would stick to a redtail, your tetra school.
cories may work. I never kept my cories with the shark.. but they may be fine..

 

[Jarred Darque]

My raindbow is semi-agrressive, has never killed anything, and gets along fine with the cories He never ventures into the upper reaches of the tank (i.e. anything above 6 inches off the substrate) and thus never comes in caontact withte guppies, the neons, or the threadfin tetras (I think that is what the last are...dont know for sure, dont care..they are food for the bichir)

 

[niks93gt]

Get a Flamoe Gourami, 8 tetras (I prefer danios), and 4-6 cories. You'll love the tank. The shark might chase the cories since they both prefer the bottom and its a small tank.

Nik

 

[Satsumas]

Hmm, i'm not so keen on gourami's. I did use to have a pair and i got quite fond of them, but me and my brother can't seem to keep them and they die on us. For that reason i am unwilling to get a one or a pair again.

 

[clubsuperduty]

Ok I have the perfect fish for you I really want one also for a 20 long it is called a Killi fish
or a golden wonder killifish


Here is a pic they get around 4 inches long max and love to snack on little tetras and such.

http://www.fishforums.net/uploads/post-22-1080443030.jpg

http://badmanstropicalfish.com/mb_pictures/debbs/debbs_Aplocheilus_lineatus.jpg

 

[Satsumas]

I don't want them to eat the smaller fish!

I'll look into them but they seem too aggresive for my tank!
Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[RoK]

What about a betta?

 

[kostasonia]

RAMs can be a choice...but it will actually ignore the corries and i do not know about the tetras...mine follow the chocolate gouramis...

 

[Satsumas]

I do like betta's but the one i had wasn't agressive towards the neons and danios at all.
In fact i was always concerned with how much food it got as it lacked any aggression to get it. The danio's and neons packed more punch!

I thought about Bolivian rams but i'm not confident of their availability to me. I haven't seen any in my LFS but they may have some that i haven't seen yet.

I just want a tight school that is kept together by the presence of a bigger, 'meaner' fish.
IMO a rainbow shark would do that but the tank may be a little small and i don't particularly want one. A red tail would also probably keep the school together but again i'm not sure it's best for a 3ft tank and also i want my cories to be at total ease.

Thanks for the help!

 

[jbarr]

Get a bichir. Senegal bichirs max out at about a foot. Massive mouths, sometimes mean, but too slow a swimmer to catch any fish?

 

[jackdp]

Have you ever considered dwarf puffers? They are aggressive and you would have to forget the timid schoolers but the puffers are so interesting you would never miss them. You could probably get at least 4 puffers in your 20 and then 3 or 4 Otocinculus catfish...just a suggestion. But we just got 3 dwarf puffers in our 15 gallon and they are a blast to watch. Happy hunting

 

[IceH2O]

ctenopoma acutirostre

perfect for a 20 gallon but I'm not sure cories are big enough to stay with them. You'd need something bigger for the bottom.

 

[clubsuperduty]

ctenopoma acutirostre

I really like those I have yet to see any at the LFS in my town but they seem like really interesting fish.

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?t=28445

 

[tropicfishman]

red tailed sharks are very nice, but they hate ther eown kinds and get kinda territorial

 

[Satsumas]

I don't really like bichir's, i would never be at ease with my tank if i had one of those in there! i'd be constantly worried that they are about to eat a fish! Also i want the bottom to be cory land.

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.

I just read the info on the ctenopoma acutirostre on the tropical tank website.
"Not an aggressive fish but it should not be kept with small community fish due to its predatory instincts."
So given the chance it would eat whatever is small enough! When i say aggression i mean slight aggression or just enough to keep a school a school!

They look a bit like the 'leaf fish' which i came accross when i was reading one of my books, they blend in with the plants and keep extremely still and wait for a stray fish to come close enough.

I'm still most keen on a red tail but i think there too aggressive.
What about Bolivian rams, would they keep the school tight?
or i may have to look at gourami's again.