Pleco for a 7 gallon bowfront?

westwood8183 · Post by **westwood8183** » 21 Feb 2004, 02:22

Hi everyone, I was wondering if anyone had any ideas for a pleco which could live in a 7 gallon bowfront tank for life. I have read through quite a few species profiles but haven't really seen anything that would stay smaller than about 4", which still seems large for this size tank. Is there a pleco which would stay small enough? The tank is going to be stocked with possibly a small school of neon tetras or something similar, and I would really like a good looking bottom dweller to finish off the tank. Any advice or input would be greatly appreciated.

Post by **Silurus** » 21 Feb 2004, 02:37

How about Parotocinclus? They're fairly attractively patterned and stay small (about 3" or less).

CatBrat · Post by **CatBrat** » 21 Feb 2004, 05:59

You could also try a small school of an otocinclus sp. of some sort. They are o.k. looking and also fun to watch.

Cheers, CatBrat.

Crazie.Eddie · Post by **Crazie.Eddie** » 21 Feb 2004, 08:32

7 gallon is rather small to keep a small school. The normal stocking guide is to keep 1" of fish per 1 gallon, and those only reference fish that are about 3-4". Bigger fish should go with a 1" per 5 gallons. Therefore, in your tank, you should ONLY keep about 7" of fish.

Minor changes in tank parameters (ammonia, nitrates/nitrites, pH, etc.) affect a small tank drastically compared to a larger tank.

Please keep in mind, tetras are sensitive to ammonia or even sudden changes in water parameters, so it's best to ONLY add tetras after the tank has been well established (about 2-3 months).

Perky · Post by **Perky** » 21 Feb 2004, 12:24

I would have a Lobster and a school of quick tetras or some hatchets or other top to middle dwelling fish. I think it would work. Any input on this idea?

nonamethefish · Post by **nonamethefish** » 22 Feb 2004, 16:27

If you tried that combo, your collection of fish would merge into one well supplied stomach(the crayfish).

Perky · Post by **Perky** » 23 Feb 2004, 07:34

No it wouldn't because I have a Lobster and a Butterflyfish with no problems.

westwood8183 · Post by **westwood8183** » 23 Feb 2004, 22:47

Thanks for the ideas everyone. I do have some otos in another tank so I was sort of looking for something a little different for this one. What would you think of having just a small pleco (one that only gets about 4") and just a betta? Do you think they would be compatible? Or would I still be overstocked? This tank has been setup for several months housing 2 divided bettas so it is cycled.

Crazie.Eddie · Post by **Crazie.Eddie** » 24 Feb 2004, 09:38

I would have a Lobster and a school of quick tetras or some hatchets or other top to middle dwelling fish.

I think they would be a nice make a nice meal for the lobster too. Tetras aren't that quick, my angelfish, got a hold of one. Besides, I believe lobsters are nocturnal and tetras either sleep on the bottom or close to the bottom.

What would you think of having just a small pl*co (one that only gets about 4") and just a betta? Do you think they would be compatible? Or would I still be overstocked?

What type of filtration are you running? I believe plecos prefer some sort of current, while betas want still waters or very, very little current. Yes, you will be overstocked. How about a bigger tank, since it looks like you're fascination for fishes is increasing?

Perky · Post by **Perky** » 24 Feb 2004, 18:07

I am not on about Tetra's. That was a idea. Was not sure on that. I know you can keep Hatchets and butterflyfish with them though. I am going to. As long as the lobster can't reach the butterflyfish or hatchets they will be fine.
PS. I am only buying a Butterflyfish because otherwise the butterflyfish would have a nice easy meal.

Crazie.Eddie · Post by **Crazie.Eddie** » 24 Feb 2004, 18:34

African Butterfly are cool. I have one myself. Just be carefull, they are excellent jumpers. They can jump straight up from a standstill. Mine seems to do fine with fish flakes, dried bloodworms, and even a guppy fry or very young guppy. I have known of some only wanting to eat live fish or crickets, fortunately for mine, it never acquired a taste for crickets. I don't want to keep going to the store to buy crickets. I raise my own guppies so feeding it guppy fry or young guppies is no problem.

westwood8183 · Post by **westwood8183** » 25 Feb 2004, 00:30

Hmmm...I guess I may end up with some otos for this tank as well. Perhaps I could find the zebra variety in my area instead of the normal ones.

I already have a 55, two 20s, the 7 gallon bowfront, and 8 bettas. I was using the 7 for two bettas, but I have since rearranged the tank situation so the 7 gallon is empty.