Looking for new ideas

[sunley213]

I am a long term Cichlid keeper looking for a change.

I was considering a Channa or parachanna.

Currently i have 6x2x2 and 4x2x2 tanks.

What spec's would you recommend for each aquarium?

Channa pleurophthalma and Channa aurantimaculata both looking interesting

 

[-DC-]

4x2x2 could house a pair of Aurantimaculata , would also be fine for majority other channa or parachanna except for the giant species and Pleuros.

6x2x2 could house a small group of Pleuros , but it's bare min as they become large heavy bodied fish who move like rockets . As adults they will make a tank that size look small & if a fight broke out it would likly be a blood bath as there would be no place for them to escape from eachother .

 

[sunley213]

Do Pleuros do best in groups?

 

[-DC-]

My experience with them so far and from what I've found via researched is that they are a shoaling fish. However like any fish that live in a shoal there is a steady struggle for dominance. Combine that that with a powerfully built body & an impressive set of teeth and things can turn bad in a tank setting very quickly without ample space. Also in a tank setting once mature a pair forms it can't split away from the shoal to breed like they would in the wild & their instinct will be to kill the others .

They do however still have that bold channa attitude , so although the natural behaviour might be to shoal in the wild they could & would live happily as a solo fish as well.

 

[sunley213]

Food for thought.

There are many Channa and them seem so varied.

If i was after one big channa to fit in the 6x2x2 would a Channa marulioides fit?

 

[-DC-]

Oh yes there are many channa species,ranging in color and sizes from tiny 4-5" species up to massive 3+plus monsters .

Yes you could house a solo channa marulioides in the 6x2x2 , they are about as big a species as you could get in that sized tank.

 

[headbanger_jib]

The 6*2*2 could house a group of channa Pleuropthalma without any problems for quite some time.

The only time you'd see any fights would be, during summer, when the temps rise. A good way to keep the fights to a min, is to add a big boss man, a maruloides is a common peace keeper.

And the growth rate of pleuros is quite slow after they reach 11".

 

[Fishtastic]

I would put a pair of auranti in the six foot,the 4 foot i would stuck with some bleheri or assam!

Personally i would sell both tanks and get a 10 foot for a pair of micropeltes

 

[-DC-]

The 6*2*2 could house a group of channa Pleuropthalma without any problems for quite some time.

The only time you'd see any fights would be, during summer, when the temps rise. A good way to keep the fights to a min, is to add a big boss man, a maruloides is a common peace keeper.

And the growth rate of pleuros is quite slow after they reach 11".

They will fight more often then just the summers , they constantly have small spats and typically no damage is done but as space gets tighter more of those spats will escalate into full out fights.

Mine have lots of space, plants , floating and sunken driftwood etc. and they still get scrappy every couple months. Typically it'll start with some flaring for a week or so leading up to a brawl , everyone gets a few torn fins , then they fall back in line like nothing happened for a few more months. The smallest one often gets a bit more beaten up & ends up hiding for a week to let his wounds heal before rejoining the group but he's a tough little guy so far he's still ended up back at the front of the pack once recovered lol.

I would strongly recommend against mixing channa species . That's a recipe for disaster . I doubt the "bigger police fish" of any kind is wise , my Pleuros are very bold they top/bully tankmates twice there size. Anything that ignores them typically gets left alone , anything that fights back or gets too active triggers all the Pleuros to target it.

I would put a pair of auranti in the six foot,the 4 foot i would stuck with some bleheri or assam!

Personally i would sell both tanks and get a 10 foot for a pair of micropeltes

It won't do any harm to give them extra space but my experience is that the subtropical species don't require or enjoy the extra space. I upgraded my breeding pair of Auranti from a 4' to a 6' and the only advantage was extra space for fry to grow out in before separating them. The rest of the time the tank looked empty , they built a cave in the fat corner that the male rarely left. The female spent her days in the floating cover above him . A year or so later I downsized them back to the 4' because they just weren't using the space And I have other species who were better suited use the 6' tank but they seem much more content now they are back in the 4' tank . The female cruises around again and male isn't constantly hidden in his.

I keep my bleheri in 3' tanks and it's more the enough room .

A 10' tank might work for a solo micro , but I bet a pair still too each other apart when they hit breeding age /size.

 

[Fishtastic]

Sounds interesting!
How big are your auranti?

Making some plans myself to setup a tank with these!
Have some more Channa on the wishlist,but these will be first!
I thought about a 6 foot with an eheim pot.
But if they really are not using the space it might be waste..
Well guess its also about the individual,so gotta wait and see