Poly's for a 75g?

[the lion who ate the sun]

Keep in mind that the growth I saw is the result of enormous effort. I keep a buffet of gut loaded ghost shrimp available, and use higher temperatures and garlic to stimulate a higher appetite. I spot fed them massivore feasts twice daily until a week before Christmas. They are only eating pellets once daily now. I was in a hurry to grow them out because they are housed with a larger WC Faranah lap that would occasionally check to see if they would fit in her mouth in the beginning. I was anxious to ensure that they would not. Still, they are fast growing Poly's as a rule.

Is there any reason why you don't want to add them to your 125? They will do fine with the stock you have listed in your sig at comparable sizes.

 

[teqvet]

Mostly I'm not as into them as she is, really. I'd get her a 180g or something but we'll likely be moving out of state in 2 years when my wife finishes her NP license and I'm already dreading breaking down the 125g. She was really disheartened about it when I spoke with her this morning, so I may still go ahead and get them anyhow.

How do these guys do with plecos?

 

[teqvet]

Here's what her tank is looking like at present. She has 2 16-19" pieces of driftwood coming in, and then we're going to likely get 2-4 packs of variety fake silk plants to color it up a bit. If we go w/ bichirs then I'm going to hunt for some clear pieces of acrylic tube or something similar.

 

[Dr.B]

With plecos it's hit or miss, but if you miss you usually miss hard. Plecos if kept fed well though shouldn't harm the polys. However if you miss a few feedings and the pleco gets adventurous and tries some of the bichir's slime coat then the bichirs will become susceptible to infections and such. I have a bristle nose in with some of my grow-outs right now and everyone is co-existing perfectly fine, but IMO as long as everyone is kept well fed you should be ok, but with plecos I would still keep a close watch on your polys to make sure the pleco doesn't turn on them and even if it does you catch it before it becomes a problem.

 

[the lion who ate the sun]

With plecos it's hit or miss, but if you miss you usually miss hard. Plecos if kept fed well though shouldn't harm the polys. However if you miss a few feedings and the pleco gets adventurous and tries some of the bichir's slime coat then the bichirs will become susceptible to infections and such. I have a bristle nose in with some of my grow-outs right now and everyone is co-existing perfectly fine, but IMO as long as everyone is kept well fed you should be ok, but with plecos I would still keep a close watch on your polys to make sure the pleco doesn't turn on them and even if it does you catch it before it becomes a problem.

+1. I had to give away my pleco for the stated reason. Mine was finicky about virtually everything on the menu except for slime coats.

Tank looks good so far. I would recommend picking up some river rocks from either a supply depot or nearby drainage ditch, treating them (scrubbing and boiling), and stacking them into interesting caves with the driftwood. I had a pretty awesome cave set up in a 40g for a while. Live plants also look great, and you can rig diy lighting that will keep them happy for less than 20$. I can tell you what you need if you are interested.



This tank has been broken down for 6+ months and now houses me and my girlfriends beastly axolotls.

 

[teqvet]

Yea, the plecos are one of my main attractions in the 125g, I'd never get rid of them. So it sounds like if I went ahead and got her bichirs, if they got too big for the 75, then she'd just have to rehome them at that point then.

 

[Dr.B]

Yea, the plecos are one of my main attractions in the 125g, I'd never get rid of them. So it sounds like if I went ahead and got her bichirs, if they got too big for the 75, then she'd just have to rehome them at that point then.

What plecos and how many?

 

[Vanica]

Stick to Senegal, palmas, and Delhezi for the 75 then. Delhezi are very active and can have pretty cool patterns and palmas also have a nice spotted pattern to them. An ornate will outgrow a 75 fairly quickly and they are one of the more aggressive bichirs.

 

[the lion who ate the sun]

Dr. B made an awesome post about poly max sizes in captivity. The thread is titled something obvious. I can bump it up. It needs a sticky. Anyway, check out that list and google images of the Poly's that stay in the sub-14" range. Pick you and your love's favorites and you will be fine. IMO ornates aren't the best poly to keep anyway. They can be mildly aggressive with their own, and are the most finicky species I have kept. It obviously varies from individual to individual, but my two ornates never come out when I show off my tank to friends/family, and one nips at my other Poly's and chases. It acts like a cichlid, almost.

 

[the lion who ate the sun]

I just bumped the post. Its titled, "how do bichirs rate in size." Doc's post is 3rd or 4th in the thread.