How Many Clowns Is A Good School?

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I have always heard that the bigger a school of clown loaches get, the more aggressive they become. Have heard that they will dominate bigger species if their numbers are big enough.
 
I would do an absolute minimum of ten. You wont see as much schooling behaviour with a smaller number. But for a tank that size I'd start with 30.
 
When I have my hoard of 11, 4-6" in my 450g, they look quite small. I would recommend going with more like 20. I would think that rays would snack on the loaches though.
 
I'd for sure go with atleast 10-15. The more the better. Think of them as cory's or tetras. They love to be in large numbers to feel safer and you also get to see strange species only behavior that you wouldnt see with a small group.
 
I appreciate all the info. Well I will be working towards 15-20+ by the looks of it.

I will be trying the rays with cheaper / other fish before going in with a prized group of loaches. I think starting with smaller rays and keeping them well fed will go a long ways towards a successful mixing but I know the chance will always be there.

Are loaches fairly active at night time (noctural) or more during the day?
 
I have 17 in a 135 and they are doing great. I started with 6 and grew them for 2 years and now I have added the remainder in the last 2 months There was a notable difference when I added the second lot. They now patrol the tank instead of streaking from one hiding place to another.
 
I have 35 in my 200, the more you have the more active they are.

I started with 2 a couple years ago or so. I would have got more but the LFS only had 2 at the time. I've slowly added more and more. I recently got 15+ at once and the activity increased even more. With less than 10 they pretty much hid all the time if given ample hiding places except when feeding. Now with this many it's a constant show of loaches swarming around, I suggest 25 as a minimum if you have the space. They are very entertaining to watch and during feeding when you have a bunch all the clicking sounds they make are awesome.
 
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