What kind of fish can go in a planted tank??

[molotov256]

Hey there... I've been thinking about switching my 55gal to a planted tank, but I don't know if my fish would end up eating the plants. I've heard a bunch of different answers about this...

I have 2 gouramis (that should be okay)
5 Columbian Catfish (that should be okay I think)
2 African Cichlids (???)

I'd like to get a crayfish too, but i bet that wouldn't work so well with live plants... if the cichlids and crayfish won't mess with the plants, I'll probably give it a go. Do you think that would be a problem?

[rubysoho]

my lfs has a crayfish in their plant tank and he seems very happy. unfortunatly they can't put small fish in there though or else they get eaten. not sure about the catfish or any cichlids though... maybe you can weight the plants so that if they do get rooted up, they will at least stay somewhat in place, but then if either of those fish like to eat the roots, then it won't matter I guess...

[TankGirl]

Many Africans will eat plants, no question, especially mbuna. What kind of cichlids are they? If you are not sure, describe them and maybe we can tell.

I had a crayfish type in with oscars and he terrorized them, so you could try it and see. I'm not a fan of them in with fish, personally.

The other issue with plants is lighting. If you are talking about a standard issue hood that came with the tank, then we can assume it is a low light situation. Java fern and anubias should work, and might be distasteful enough even for fish that tend to eat plants.

[malkore]

I had to remove all my gourami's because they liked to graze on plants.