what's the truth about these fish? - a "need help stocking" thread.

[Prometheus]

im interested in a couple of new additions for my tank (need some new variety right now... badly!) so im looking up information on them before i make any purchases, you know, cause that's just smart. well, i dont always trust articles and fish profile pages i find online so id like ya'lls feedback on what to believe and what not to believe about the following fishies. important info for ya'll to know is that the tank is a standard 29 gallon, 30"L 18"H 12"D, and iv got a few live plants in there that i do NOT want eaten. so no plant eaters. snail eaters, im fine with that, but i like my plants. also, iv got two banjo catfish in there and i need to be sure that any new fish i get will not hurt them (generally speaking, im aware that it's possible to find a fish that has an unusually aggressive personality when most fish of that species are known to peaceful, i just need to know what the general personalities are). 1. most importantly i need to be sure the fish will be fine in my 29 gallon at it's adult size, secondly, i need to know how aggressive they tend to be (gotta keep my banjo babies safe, also i plan on getting a spotted climbing perch), 3. id like to know about their level of plant friendliness, 4. and id like to know how messy they are (how often can i expect to have to do water changes). 5. i keep my tank at 78F (about 25 C) would i need to adjust that for any of them?

so here's the list: oh, and im planning on only picking maybe ONE fish out of this list to go with the spotted climbing perch im planning on getting, im fully aware that all of them in a 29 is dumb, cause that'd be way too overstocked.

1. red lionhead goldfish
2. oranda goldfish
3. rubber lip pleco
4. blood parrot
5. red and white ryukin goldfish
6. african brown knife
7. african butterfly fish
8. red dalmatian sail fin molly
9. south american leaf fish
10. bubble eye goldfish
11. sword tail platies
12. bristle nose pleco
13. pit bull pleco
14. red rainbow fish
15. neon (dwarf) rainbow fish
16. malayan halfbeak (any kind of halfbeak actually)
17. axolotl (not a fish i know, still interesting though)

and i hope ya'll know i really appreciate the positive feedback from all of you. it really goes a long way to be able to get honest advice from people, i don't really trust most people at pet stores to know much of anything worth repeating, not about fish anyway. and internet profiles can be exaggerated and misleading. i don't buy new fish very often, so making the right choice is important. thanks.

 

[aclockworkorange]

1. red lionhead goldfish all goldfish are coldwater fish, and will outgrow a 29
2. oranda goldfish no
3. rubber lip pleco good
4. blood parrot just say no to hybrids... plus they need more room
5. red and white ryukin goldfish no
6. african brown knife yes, but not with other small fish
7. african butterfly fish same as above, would be interesting together for an oddball tank
8. red dalmatian sail fin molly generally best kept in brackish water
9. south american leaf fish pretty much a species only fish, predator
10. bubble eye goldfish no
11. sword tail platies sword tails or platys? different fish... same care. I would recommend against them because they tend to come from unhealthy stock.
12. bristle nose pleco yes
13. pit bull pleco yes, but be clear with an L number exactly what species you mean
14. red rainbow fish might need a bit more room, what is adult size on this species?
15. neon (dwarf) rainbow fish fine
16. malayan halfbeak (any kind of halfbeak actually) depends on species
17. axolotl (not a fish i know, still interesting though) species only, not compatiable with fish and need coldwater

For a general community planted tank I would probably recommend some (relatively) peaceful south american species setup... something like:

-12 to 20 tetras, depending on species, these have a pretty low bioload, swim constantly, have great colors, and most species are peaceful. If you didn't want to do tetras, you could do something like barbs, rasboras, some sort of livebearer (not my favorites I'll admit, swordtails maybe since they are usually a bit healthier IME), etc.
-6-8 cory catfish, excellent fish, very peaceful, fun to watch, will breed in the right conditions readily
-bristlenose or rubberlip pleco might be an interesting addition
-I would recommend considering a pair of "centerpiece" dwarf cichlids... I prefer south american species... apistogramma, dicrossus, laetacara, you could do rams but they need higher temperatures and tend to be sensitive. You could also do something like a pair of kribs.
-Maybe some otocinclus catfish? These small little algae eaters are always good in a planted tank.
-You might also consider something like the smaller botia loaches... yoyos, polka dots, zebras, etc.

 

[Prometheus]

1. red lionhead goldfish all goldfish are coldwater fish, and will outgrow a 29
2. oranda goldfish no
3. rubber lip pleco good
4. blood parrot just say no to hybrids... plus they need more room
5. red and white ryukin goldfish no
6. african brown knife yes, but not with other small fish
7. african butterfly fish same as above, would be interesting together for an oddball tank
8. red dalmatian sail fin molly generally best kept in brackish water
9. south american leaf fish pretty much a species only fish, predator
10. bubble eye goldfish no
11. sword tail platies sword tails or platys? different fish... same care. I would recommend against them because they tend to come from unhealthy stock.
12. bristle nose pleco yes
13. pit bull pleco yes, but be clear with an L number exactly what species you mean
14. red rainbow fish might need a bit more room, what is adult size on this species?
15. neon (dwarf) rainbow fish fine
16. malayan halfbeak (any kind of halfbeak actually) depends on species
17. axolotl (not a fish i know, still interesting though) species only, not compatiable with fish and need coldwater

For a general community planted tank I would probably recommend some (relatively) peaceful south american species setup... something like:

-12 to 20 tetras, depending on species, these have a pretty low bioload, swim constantly, have great colors, and most species are peaceful. If you didn't want to do tetras, you could do something like barbs, rasboras, some sort of livebearer (not my favorites I'll admit, swordtails maybe since they are usually a bit healthier IME), etc.
-6-8 cory catfish, excellent fish, very peaceful, fun to watch, will breed in the right conditions readily
-bristlenose or rubberlip pleco might be an interesting addition
-I would recommend considering a pair of "centerpiece" dwarf cichlids... I prefer south american species... apistogramma, dicrossus, laetacara, you could do rams but they need higher temperatures and tend to be sensitive. You could also do something like a pair of kribs.
-Maybe some otocinclus catfish? These small little algae eaters are always good in a planted tank.
-You might also consider something like the smaller botia loaches... yoyos, polka dots, zebras, etc.

thank you for the excellent response!

okay,sifting through this information, list is narrowed down to:
1. rubber lip pleco
2. african brown knife (though i do have a concern regarding size)
3. african butterfly fish
4. bristle nose pleco
5. neon dwarf rainbow fish

possibly:
6. red rainbow fish (on article i found said they get to 4.7")
7. wrestiling halfbeak (Dermogenys pusillus)
8. molly, that's a bummer about brackish water, i really like that fish
9. platy, will take into serious consideration health due to breeding
10. swordtail, will take into serious consideration health due to breeding

summary:
im afraid a full grown spotted climbing perch will eat tetras, good suggestion though, i love some tetras.

iv had corys. cute fish, i want to keep them again someday but they don't match the general vision i have for this tank right at the moment.

appistograma and kribs, love the way they look, not quite what i was going for but close enough that i will research them further now that you have mentioned them.

im afraid ottos would get eaten by the perch

botias, oh botias. i could use some, i hate my malaysian trumpet snails in this tank! but at the moment i have decided to attempt to get rid of them by sifting thought the sand, baiting with food, and possibly sticking my anetome helenas back in the 29.

 

[NCStateFisher]

spotted climbing perch is another name for african leaf fish or leopard ctenpoma if im not mistaken, this guy will make a good centerpiece for your tank though they will eat anything that fits in their mouth, realistically at full sizes your banjos + this guy will probably be about stocked unless you have some really good filtration, personally I think the african brown knife could be a good choice for you, they're pretty slow growing fish and while size wise they would be a bit cramped as long as you have a nice dark cave for them they should be fine as that's where they'll spend most of their time. I have one in my 75 and he's constantly just chillin in his cave until he smells food, very cool fish though. if you didn't want to get the brown knife you could try a small school of 5 tetras/giant danios that get at least 3" for movements sake. Also on those plecos double check and make sure none of em will eat plants just in case, i trust the previous poster i just dont know if they were thinking about the plant aspect.

 

[aclockworkorange]

spotted climbing perch is another name for african leaf fish or leopard ctenpoma if im not mistaken, this guy will make a good centerpiece for your tank though they will eat anything that fits in their mouth, realistically at full sizes your banjos + this guy will probably be about stocked unless you have some really good filtration, personally I think the african brown knife could be a good choice for you, they're pretty slow growing fish and while size wise they would be a bit cramped as long as you have a nice dark cave for them they should be fine as that's where they'll spend most of their time. I have one in my 75 and he's constantly just chillin in his cave until he smells food, very cool fish though. if you didn't want to get the brown knife you could try a small school of 5 tetras/giant danios that get at least 3" for movements sake. Also on those plecos double check and make sure none of em will eat plants just in case, i trust the previous poster i just dont know if they were thinking about the plant aspect.

I was! I keep all of those species or similar ones in my planted tank.

And the OP was talking about SA leaf fish, not the african kind.

These guys.

 

[aclockworkorange]

thank you for the excellent response!

okay,sifting through this information, list is narrowed down to:
1. rubber lip pleco
2. african brown knife (though i do have a concern regarding size)
3. african butterfly fish
4. bristle nose pleco
5. neon dwarf rainbow fish

possibly:
6. red rainbow fish (on article i found said they get to 4.7")
7. wrestiling halfbeak (Dermogenys pusillus)
8. molly, that's a bummer about brackish water, i really like that fish
9. platy, will take into serious consideration health due to breeding
10. swordtail, will take into serious consideration health due to breeding

summary:
im afraid a full grown spotted climbing perch will eat tetras, good suggestion though, i love some tetras.

iv had corys. cute fish, i want to keep them again someday but they don't match the general vision i have for this tank right at the moment.

appistograma and kribs, love the way they look, not quite what i was going for but close enough that i will research them further now that you have mentioned them.

im afraid ottos would get eaten by the perch

botias, oh botias. i could use some, i hate my malaysian trumpet snails in this tank! but at the moment i have decided to attempt to get rid of them by sifting thought the sand, baiting with food, and possibly sticking my anetome helenas back in the 29.

Sorry, I only read that you had two banjo cats. That would definitely change those suggestions...

 

[Prometheus]

yep, i looked up SA leafs, they don't sound like the ideal neighbors. interesting to look at... but... way to predatory from what iv read. i also read that they like a lower pH, and while it might be that all my driftwood lowers it between the time i do water changes it comes out of my tap at a pretty high number, its been a while since i tested it but i wana say it's 8+