adding bristlenose to warm acidic biotope catfish tank

[gibbylover2]

hi there,
have just set up a 40g tank as a starting tank for 2 gibbies, a gold nugget pleco (will later get 6 foot plus tank) and as gold nuggets like the temp warm, will go for 27-28 degrees celsius (80 - 82 degrees F). am wondering whether to eventually add my 2 bristlenoses and yellow black eyed ansictrus, do these catfish like the water a bit colder? my new 40g tank has natural dark river sand, driftwood and river rock caves, no plants. the tank the bristlenose are currently in is a 75g community, which will be turned into a proper planted setup, although could put a couple of rock caves there as well. if i put them into the 40g, its kind of total catfish tank (may have a couple of mid-top water fish just for interes). I have 3 large clown loaches in the community tank, and i thought if i took out the bristlenoses, i have more room for more schooling fish with the plants.

also what would be appropriate small fish for the 40g, with the temp and (probably) acidic pH with the driftwood? would like it to be about 6.5 ph for the catfish, so its close to their natural environment (blackwater biotope). are killies OK with this? what top level fish live in the blackwater rivers in the amazon etc?

have set up tank just last night with 50% water/mulm from already very established large tank. currently couple guppies to help get the filter going. though would be alright to add catfish in one week coz using mature water (also added piece of ceramic filter media from established tank to new tanks filter). will check parameters etc before adding fish.

[MatsP]

Bristlenoses (in general) like cooler water than your new setup, about 20-24'C is the recommended temperature for "Common bristlenose". Other varieties of the Ancistrus genera have different requirement, but it sounds to me like the 75g tank is the most suitable place for your bristlenoses. Look at the different Ancistrus species in the Cat-eLog to find out which one you've got and what temp it needs.

If you have a planted tank, you may want to stick a piece of wood or some cracked pots in there for "caves". If done correctly, it looks nice and makes the bristlenose happy to live there...

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Mats