+1 to the grass cutter catfish (Schilbe intermedius). I have one (the store only had one) in with my big cichlids. He doesn't bother anyone, and nobody bothers him. He is more than able to hold his own with 3 red devils and other large cichlids twice his size.
African Biotope Setup- Help me plan it! (image heavy)
- Thread starter Chicxulub
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I wouldn't expect those Congo tetras to last long at all; I lost 8 to one bichir. He just picked them off one by one.
I cannot wait to see pics of this! Definitely subscribing.
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I cannot wait to see pics of this! Definitely subscribing.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
I wouldn't be overly concerned with current and bichirs. I have frequently caught a few of mine swimming into circulation pumps and others just going back and forth for the ride. I haven't paid attention, though, if it is just certain species doing it. I now have all of the lower jaws and half of the upper jaws. Also some regional variants.
Yes! I completely forgot about those guys! LOL
I do like these grass cutter cats! I think I'd like to add one.
This is what I've been thinking too. Plus, they eat plants. They're too expensive to be eaten and will destroy my 'scape. I'm not sure what I'm going to do for dithers. I love the dambas that were suggested, but they are expensive on the rare occasion I can find them. :/
Good to know!
It goes BATF, African arowana, Indo-Pacific tarpon, Paratilapia polleni
Something else to note with p. afer and s. intermedius is they grow very slowly. I've had the catfish for almost 6 months and it's only grown about 2". They max out at 12", so once they get to 6" they start to bulk up.
Are you raising the aro or will you buy a subadult? Fun but risky to grow one out. It's best to get them on floating aro sticks once they are able to. I waited a bit too long and I'm having a bit of trouble getting him to eat anything other than bloodworms.
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Are you raising the aro or will you buy a subadult? Fun but risky to grow one out. It's best to get them on floating aro sticks once they are able to. I waited a bit too long and I'm having a bit of trouble getting him to eat anything other than bloodworms.
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I completely forgot about this Rob! I can't wait for you to start it! Anyways, after rereading it, I saw that I told you earlier that I'd update you on the aggression of my aba aba and so far it's still pretty peaceful. It's still around 14" maybe a little bigger and hasn't picked on anyone in the tank. It's actually being picked on by the 12" armatus and hasn't done anything to the bichirs. But after that's said, I wouldn't recommend it for your biotope. Even though it hasn't attacked any of the fish, it aggressively attacks the hose whenever I do wc's making me think that if I ever add any new fish to the tank, they would be goners. Also with all the other fish you plan on keeping, I just don't see it working out since these guys are extremely territorial but any bottom dweller I feel will be ignored, this is from my experience and from what I've read and heard from others.
Some new info now. As for mormyrus sp. I acquired a M. longirostris not long ago and it would definitely be a fun and enjoyable fish to have in there but it can go 1 way or another. It is an extremely playful fish! The first 10 min after adding it to my tank, it swam around and explored. It then started playing with some Anubia leaves by flipping them around with its "trunk" and swimming in and out of the leaves. It was definitely extremely fun to watch. Like the aba, though, they are extremely territorial. After it was done playing, it saw the gatf and started chasing it. It then saw the bichir and started pushing it around like the dolphins do with balls at seaworld. I thought this was just temporary until I came home later in the night and it was STILL doing it with the bichir so I immediately had to separate it. So if there's enough room for it to claim a territory, I don't think you'll have a problem but if some of the bichirs decide they like the same spots or if the other fish are constantly swimming there, I can see problems happening.
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Some new info now. As for mormyrus sp. I acquired a M. longirostris not long ago and it would definitely be a fun and enjoyable fish to have in there but it can go 1 way or another. It is an extremely playful fish! The first 10 min after adding it to my tank, it swam around and explored. It then started playing with some Anubia leaves by flipping them around with its "trunk" and swimming in and out of the leaves. It was definitely extremely fun to watch. Like the aba, though, they are extremely territorial. After it was done playing, it saw the gatf and started chasing it. It then saw the bichir and started pushing it around like the dolphins do with balls at seaworld. I thought this was just temporary until I came home later in the night and it was STILL doing it with the bichir so I immediately had to separate it. So if there's enough room for it to claim a territory, I don't think you'll have a problem but if some of the bichirs decide they like the same spots or if the other fish are constantly swimming there, I can see problems happening.
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How much and what does your afer eat? Mine is a bottomless pit and eats a ton. He's healing up right now because he was in BAD shape when he came in.
I'm not in a hurry to get the aro. It'll be one of the last fish I add. When I do get it, it'll be a 7-8" or so fish.
Already have.
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The giraffe cat and the the Leptobotia elongata absolutely HATE each other. I got lucky with that one shot just before they started fighting. Between the fighting and the fact that the Lepto is Asian, I'm going to find a new home for the Lepto. Billy is REALLY thin; I know, I know. I'm STILL trying to get him back on pellets. He's hitting them now, but he's still not eating them. :/
There are several more fish as well, but these three are the only ones that don't hide all the time.
Good to know about the aba aba! I don't think I'll be adding one.
I do find it curious however to read about the aggression of the M. longirostris. That is exactly the species that I was wanting, too. I imagine that an 18" or so large M. longirostris would be hard to provide sufficient space for. I'll have to ponder this one a bit more. Hmm. There are other mormyrids after all.
So much planning left to do!
