HELP!! Compatibility problem!

[rangedg]

I found a Serpae Tetra floating at the top of my 55gal community tank. At first I thought it was freak accident but then I found anotherone near some plants with half the back fin torn off. I have a bunch of fish in there (neons, harlequims, hatchet, otos, corys, guppys, a dwarf gourami, shrimp and snails) but Ive narrowed down the aggressor to two possibililties: the raphael catfish, and a rainbow shark. Now that I think about it the rainbow shark somtimes chased them around but Ive seen it cleaning the glass sometimes and It doesnt seem like he has any teeth, or does he? Please I need help, I need to know which one is the aggressor so I can get him out of the tank!
thanks

 

[ewurm]

Definitely the shark. Rainbows need semi-aggressive tank mates, or they will take over the tank.

 

[grmanrocks]

im gonna throw a curve bnall and say that ot could very likely be the dwarf gourami.............
i say this cuz just about a montha go my freind purchesed one that has not killed 5 fish, not including feeders, that have all been bigger than him.

its most likly the shark tho

, im in the same boat as you right not, needing to buy a new tank to seperate my cory killing unidentified asian fish from my corys, and i like him too much to feed him to da bichirs.......................................

 

[benzjamin13]

I would think the shark more than the gourami. Those Rainbow Sharks can be vicious. My friend has a tank with a Rainbow Shark and Irridescent Shark. The Rainbow HATES the Irri with a passion and chases it whenever it gets in 5in of it.

 

[Tongue33]

I would say the sharks too... Though i don't trust ANY gourami's Seen too many of them

But if you grab any info on the rainbows you'll find they are Aggressive...

 

[WyldFya]

To all that have said sharks are too aggressive for passive community tanks, my wife has 10 in her 55 with numerous tetras (RTBS, rainbow, and white fin) and there is no aggression. This species IME is not an aggressive species unless kept alone, or in very small groups 3 or less.

If it is the only one in the tank, it is probably the cause.

 

[rangedg]

Thanks for the help guys, I hate to give up my rainbow shark to my lfs but I have other sepae tetra that just hide in the plants all the time. Im thinkin about turnin the raphael aswell, Ive got some miniature corys in there and Ive heard that hell eat them, is that true?

 

[WyldFya]

I never had problems with my raphaels eating cories. I had a few dwarf corydoras in a tank with two 8" striped raphaels. They lived in this combo for over 3 years.

 

[RadleyMiller]

Yea, I would say dwarf gouramis. They can beat each other up and tetras and gouramis are both simaliry shaped laterally compressed fish.

 

[rangedg]

I never had problems with my raphaels eating cories. I had a few dwarf corydoras in a tank with two 8" striped raphaels. They lived in this combo for over 3 years.

Your right, it hadnt eaten any of the cories, they were all acounted for. It was just that I had to strip down the tank (plants, wood, rock) to catch that dam rainbow, and I had read somewhere about not trusting raphaels with small fish bc they get big and have big mouths, so instead of having to do that again later I decided to try to save myself possible future pains and get rid of it while the tank was stripped. Sorry if mislead anybody. Also, that raphael was a glutton! He wouldnt give my corys a chance to eat! there would be 3 coridoras eating from one shrimp pellet and the raphael would appear (for the only time of the day) from underneath an ornament and swallow the whole pellet at once! I would drop some more for the cories but the raphael would keep eating them until I had to stop worried that the raphael might overeat!