Hey all.
I need help picking a dither fish.
I am after a fish that will not be overly aggressive, NOT nippy, is cheap, gets to six inches or so, and has a nice vibrant coloration, preferably involving red.
The fish would ideally be one who is unassuming and will actively and vigorously clean up the scraps from the shredded pellets that the big fish messily eat. This is their main function. My big fish are very messy eaters and I always have to net probably three to four pellets worth of scraps out of the tank each feeding. Even with a cleaner fish, I'd still net out the food and do proper maintenance and water changes and whatnot, it would just be nice to have someone go behind me and pick the misssed scraps out of the sand. Plus I'd like to have a little more color and maybe movement in the tank.
Here's my top picks so far. I'm even considering getting both:
Option 1- A male Firemouth.
My concern with the FM is that it would be nippy and would mess up Max's tail or Drogo's fins. Can't have that! I've gotten mixed results via google and I'm not sure if they'd actually be nippy or not. They seem to be ideally sized for the task and are strikingly beautiful.
View attachment 895498
Option 2- Red tail black shark.
My only real concern is that the RTBS wouldn't get big enough to avoid ending up inside of my juruense's belly. I don't think I've ever seen one over about 4" and they seem to be fairly slow growers. I'd really like to have one of these though, I think they're one of the most beautiful aquarium fish out there.
Are there any other good fish that would fit what I'm looking for? I look forward to your input!
I need help picking a dither fish.
I am after a fish that will not be overly aggressive, NOT nippy, is cheap, gets to six inches or so, and has a nice vibrant coloration, preferably involving red.
The fish would ideally be one who is unassuming and will actively and vigorously clean up the scraps from the shredded pellets that the big fish messily eat. This is their main function. My big fish are very messy eaters and I always have to net probably three to four pellets worth of scraps out of the tank each feeding. Even with a cleaner fish, I'd still net out the food and do proper maintenance and water changes and whatnot, it would just be nice to have someone go behind me and pick the misssed scraps out of the sand. Plus I'd like to have a little more color and maybe movement in the tank.
Here's my top picks so far. I'm even considering getting both:
Option 1- A male Firemouth.
My concern with the FM is that it would be nippy and would mess up Max's tail or Drogo's fins. Can't have that! I've gotten mixed results via google and I'm not sure if they'd actually be nippy or not. They seem to be ideally sized for the task and are strikingly beautiful.
View attachment 895498
Option 2- Red tail black shark.
My only real concern is that the RTBS wouldn't get big enough to avoid ending up inside of my juruense's belly. I don't think I've ever seen one over about 4" and they seem to be fairly slow growers. I'd really like to have one of these though, I think they're one of the most beautiful aquarium fish out there.
Are there any other good fish that would fit what I'm looking for? I look forward to your input!