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i have an aquarium with 2 pangasius catfish and 2 corydoras, will a red tailed shark be a goot tank mate? do they swim in groups of 2-3?i also thinking of getting 4-7 tiger barbs for the aquarium. whitin this community will the fish harass each other?[/b]

The red tailed cats will probably eat the tiger barbs and corys if they are large enough. Maybe you can add some larger barbs like tinfoil barbs or other fish like pacus. In the Cat-eLog it says "This fish is territorial within confined spaces and is certainly capable of killing other tankmates. Best kept "home alone" unless a very large aquarium is to be provided" for the compatibility of red tail cats. Maybe you can get some more peaceful species of large catfish. A big pleco would be cool.

I just remembered seeing the mother-of-snails catfish in the Cat-eLog (Pseudodoras niger). In my opinion it is so cute! One of these would be cool.

Stay away from tiger barbs they are fin nippers. I have made that mistake already. Tinfoil barbs are a good option if you have enough room for them, but they eat alot of food which makes it hard to feed bottom dwellers. Silver dollars are another good one for a community tank,

my aquarium is a 4ftx2ft. i was doubting the possibility of keeping tin foils as many people warned me that the shark cat fish are violent and would kill them. i was also was wondering if should get chiclids:they are colourful and might stand up to the sharks

red tail sharks are territorial towards other sharks.other than that they seem to be ok

Now I am confused are you getting a redtail shark or a redtail cat because there is a difference one is a minnow the other is a catfish. If it's the minnow? large barbs will be fine. If it's a redtail cat? I would only keep large fish like pacu and other large cats.

i was going to get the red tailed shark ( black body red pectoral and caudal fins) red tailed cats are said to grow massivily.

Sorry! I read your post quickly and only noticed "red tail" and thought it said "red tail catfish" (this is planet CATFISH after all )If the tank is large enough (4 by 2 foot sounds big enough ) the sharks shouldn't bother other fish, especially if they're bigger than it. Just make sure other fish won't bother the shark. They only get 4 inches long. Tiger barbs are usually agressive if kept in small groups. If kept in larger groups, they will chase each other and not bother the other fish. In small groups they seem to get bored and bother and nip at more peaceful fish.

re the red-tail sharks, as fish fodder says they are territorial towards other red-tails (and rainbow or albino sharks) and if you want to keep more than one you must have a small group of a least half a dozen, preferably more. Any less and the dominant ones will harass the smaller sharks until there is only one left.

fwiw, I've heard anecdotal advice that a red-tail shark will keep a school of tiger barbs 'under control', so to speak. I've not tested this theory myself, but I have often seen red-tail sharks playfully stalk schools of Cyprinids, in particular Crossocheilus siamensis. They would slowly cruise behind the school then dart up to them and turn away at the last instant. The other fish didnt appear scared as such, but they were aware of the shark and tended to be less venturous when he was near them.

thanks for the information on the sharks and barbs, i'll try to get about 7 barbs and a few red-tailed sharks for the pangasius catfish. hopefully they'll make "friends"

declan wrote:i'll try to get about 7 barbs and a few red-tailed sharks for the pangasius catfish. hopefully they'll make "friends"

Redtailed Black Sharks can be quite aggresive towards one another, even in a decent-sized aquarium such as yours if you have more than one there is likely to be some trouble as they grow. Shops get away with housing them in numbers because in a high-density situation all the aggression does not get directed at any one individual, and as individuals get sold the "pecking order" is constantly in a state of flux. This of course is not an approach that is recommended for the home aquarium.
Irrespective of this, as has been outlined elsewhere, your aquarium is in no way large enough for Pangasius to be adequately housed as they grow. You really should consider taking them back where you got them and choosing fish that are suited to the size of your aquarium.
Pete

BAD MOVE! the pangasius killed every single barb then got the ich. i was told a raise in temparature would do the trick?

yeah just a little warmer around 86 and some aqurium salt.

Hmm also.. when you trew in the new fish you should of re-arranged your tank(actually quertined, but not everyone has extra tanks). And if i were you i would of just made it a species tank.. with my experience with shark catfish.. they suck and will annoy any fish to death the only fish i've seen them not bug are full grown loaches.

O_o wrote:Hmm also.. when you trew in the new fish you should of re-arranged your tank

This is definitely not necessary; it's done however by people who keep C****ds (especially those from the African Lakes), because new fish can hardly be introduced because of the fact that all territories are already taken.

O_o wrote:with my experience with shark catfish..

Again, this is not about catfish, but about the Cyprinid Epalzeorhynchus bicolor, better known as Labeo bicolor.