plant safe fish?

tiger15

Goliath Tigerfish
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Herbivorous cichlid such as severum, uaru and some Vieja species are unsafe due to their taste for vegetation. Egg layers are more trouble makers than mouth brooder because they engage in prolonged nest building in breeding that often clean out plants. But smaller egg layers are fine due to their limited power. Mbuna are actually quite safe because even though they are herbivores, they stop eating algae and plants in captivity. All large cichlid over 6 inch are unsafe for plants except plastic due to their power and hobby to destroy, which include frontosa and most CA tank busters.

A more relevant question should be what plants are safe for cichlid. All delicate texture plants are unsafe which include most mosses and many delicate stem plants. Tough texture plants such as Anubias, java fern, Buce and bolbitus are safe except for powerful tank busters.
 

duanes

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Even Herichthys like cyannoguttatus and JDs can be problematic when trying to keep plants, because in nature at least 50% of their diet is plant based (algae, and higher plants).
But I agree with tiger15, anubias, and java, ferns, and boletus do well.
For me best attached to wood but not planted in the substrate.
 
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J. H.

Potamotrygon
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Angels are supposed to be okay, but mine liked to tear the plants to shreds and throw the bits all over the tank. They are okay with moss and moneywort and swords and vals, but not hornwort or some random stuff I don't know the name of (personal experience.).
Rainbowfish and danios are great. I've never had a problem with them and plants, and never heard of anyone else who did either. Same with most tetras (not SDs), killies and livebearers.
Convicts are pure destruction machines. My father put 6 babies in my tank once, who wrecked all the plants (just tore them up) and killed a pleco before they were banished. People say that jewels are as destructive as cons, but I have seen Youtube videos of them in planted tanks.
Some gouramiis (Dwarf and licorice) are plant safe, others, (3-spot and snakeskin) are not. (never kept licorice or snakeskin.)
Most small catfish an loaches are plant safe.
Discus, 'pistos, rams, checkerboards, keyholes, crencichla, pikes, festivums, small haps, peacocks, julies, lamprologus, altolamps, shellies, cyps, kribs, lionheads, polleni, many of the victorians and acaras are all supposed to be plant safe, but so are angels, so who knows.
Even herbivorous fish like goldfish or severums can be kept in large, heavily planted tanks as long as the plants are tough, grow fast, and don't taste so good. I have found that different goldfish like different plants, and most will refuse at least a few kinds, with many of the fancier ones not eating plants altogether.
 
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Predatory101

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I have seen jds in fully planted tanks and some that will eat all plants, really it depends on the fish but there will always be some parts of the plant eaten
 

TwoHedWlf

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I've found jewels to be very calm, non destructive, non aggressive. Except when they decide to breed, then they'll take over about 95% of the tank and leave everything else huddling in a corner.
 
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candidpets

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yeah my 350 gallon pond is six foot long and one damn pair of jewels was causing hell for everyone, i cant believe that fish could not escape the jewels wrath in a tank that size or pond sorry, i have firemouth in there with a couple of jd for now
 
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