I have a 70 gallon aquarium right now that I would like to turn into a piranha tank or more specifically a rhom tank. But I can only afford a smaller rhom and I have heard that they are very shy sometimes and so I was thinking maybe I could put some tetras in there or other fast fish to maybe make them piranha feel more relaxed. I realize that to a smaller rhom a tetra would be a worthwhile meal so I was thinking that maybe along with the tetras I could put guppys or mollies in. Since they are slower, they would be attacked by piranhas and the tetras would be spared. And the mollies/guppies would keep reproducing at the same time. Could this possibly work or will the rhom just kill everything in the tank? I would be sure and put lots of plants and hiding spots in too.
Possible Rhom community tank?
- Thread starter pbass lover
- Start date
depends on the size of the rhom and the amount of "feeders" you have in the tank, it may last you a while. to the rhom it doesn't matter if it's a faster fish or a slower fish, rhom is an ambush predator so it'll eat whatever fish it see fit when the opportunity appears regardless its a tetra or a guppy or a molly.
your mollies/guppies won't reproduce fast enough to keep up with what the rhom would kill off unless you have a significant amount of them and with plenty hiding places. best to have multiple breeding pairs in an other tank and just keep adding fry into the rhom tank.
my 1-2" rhom would kill off 15-20 tetra in about 1-2 weeks, it won't eat the whole fish, just mostly fins but when the fins run out it'll start attacking the flesh part and sometimes fish just die from stress so be prepare to constantly net out uneaten dead fish.
your mollies/guppies won't reproduce fast enough to keep up with what the rhom would kill off unless you have a significant amount of them and with plenty hiding places. best to have multiple breeding pairs in an other tank and just keep adding fry into the rhom tank.
my 1-2" rhom would kill off 15-20 tetra in about 1-2 weeks, it won't eat the whole fish, just mostly fins but when the fins run out it'll start attacking the flesh part and sometimes fish just die from stress so be prepare to constantly net out uneaten dead fish.
A smaller Rhom would most likely end up killing all the tetras in due time. It may last a few days at most, but you will constantly have to keep re-adding tetras. ($$$)
Oh and Mollies wont reproduce fast enough, and they themselves could even threaten their own young.
Oh and Mollies wont reproduce fast enough, and they themselves could even threaten their own young.
Ok well then I guess Ill just hope I get a really bold rhom then. Does feeding them lots of live food increase aggression like in other fish?
I think all Rhoms have the potential to be bold monsters, if given the proper atmosphere and attention. Boldness can come with conditioning, once he gets used to you, he will trust you more and tend to be more bold around you.
Keep in mind that a juvie Rhom will tend to be more shy than an adult, so you also need to give it time to grow and become comfortable.
See this page for more details about their natural environment:
http://www.opefe.com/rhombeus.html
Keep in mind that a juvie Rhom will tend to be more shy than an adult, so you also need to give it time to grow and become comfortable.
See this page for more details about their natural environment:
http://www.opefe.com/rhombeus.html
you're going to be bored as hell if it's a baby rhom. My rhom is outgoing but one 3 inch fish in a 70 gal is silly. Mine 3 incher is in a 50 gal and he's only fun when I don't feed him. He'll swim endlessly in front of the tank but once he eats, he sits in a corner for the next few hours until he gets hungry again. Thinking a 50 gallon was enough for other fish to cohab, I tried 10 rosies first. They were gone by the 2nd day. All chopped in half. Buy a used 10-20 gal setup for $50 tank stand flter light off craigslist. Raise him there for a few years in your bedroom so he sees you. You'll know by then if you want to commit the 70 gal to a piranha.
yeah...i gotta agree...rhoms are pretty neat looking fish but if you go that route with a small one, i hope you have other tanks or you'll get bored and want to switch it out because of having to dedicate a decent size tank to only one fish and the slow growth rate