Subtropical hillstream tank suggestions?
Posted: Fri Mar 31, 2017 4:12 pm
(Sorry if this is the wrong place - figured its not only about loaches, so general freshwater may be better?)
I am about to set up a 55g hillstream setup for my 3 "Highway Catfish", Tachysurus trilineatus. The tank will have dark substrate and rocks with a modified river tank manifold creating the directional current. I am trying to figure out what other fish could potentially live alongside them. I had some ideas of hillstream species that would be interesting, but didn't realize they preferred warmer water. I am new to hillstream tanks, so for some reason I guess I kind of just assumed they were all lower temperatures. Glad I caught that.
T. trilineatus comes from the Pearl River in China, and has a temperature range of 60 - 73 F. I just leave their tank unheated, and it usually runs at about 68 - 70 F (I currently live in Florida). Tankmates don't need to be biotope specific, as the tank won't exactly look like the Pearl River, but I'm having the best luck finding options in that temperature range that actually originate from the same place.
So far the compatible fish I've found are white cloud mountain minnows and panda loaches, both from the Pearl River. I also found zodiac loaches, which look really neat.
I'm not sure how the cats will do with small, potentially edible fish or with similar size/shape fish that occupy the same area of the tank. I will ask on Planet Catfish about that. But unless I find an option I like better, if they won't get eaten I'll probably get some WCMMs.
Fish I'd been looking at that I found out weren't compatible include cobalt blue stiphodon gobies and similar spp., schistura spp. loaches, and panda garras. I love loaches, I'm just a little more of a catfish person, so the floor space in my tanks is generally taken up by my cats. So I've never gotten to keep any. I pretty much like any kind of loach except the "butterfly" hillstream varieties. I especially like species with long snouts and/or bodies. In general, I also tend to be more drawn to fish with high contrast color/patterns.
Does anyone have any suggestions for other fish options that would appreciate a subtropical hillstream setup?
(Also any plants that do well in hillstream setups? My T. trilineatus like to rest in the fake plants in their current QT/holding tank, so I'd like to give them some live ones in their permanent home.)
I am about to set up a 55g hillstream setup for my 3 "Highway Catfish", Tachysurus trilineatus. The tank will have dark substrate and rocks with a modified river tank manifold creating the directional current. I am trying to figure out what other fish could potentially live alongside them. I had some ideas of hillstream species that would be interesting, but didn't realize they preferred warmer water. I am new to hillstream tanks, so for some reason I guess I kind of just assumed they were all lower temperatures. Glad I caught that.
T. trilineatus comes from the Pearl River in China, and has a temperature range of 60 - 73 F. I just leave their tank unheated, and it usually runs at about 68 - 70 F (I currently live in Florida). Tankmates don't need to be biotope specific, as the tank won't exactly look like the Pearl River, but I'm having the best luck finding options in that temperature range that actually originate from the same place.
So far the compatible fish I've found are white cloud mountain minnows and panda loaches, both from the Pearl River. I also found zodiac loaches, which look really neat.
I'm not sure how the cats will do with small, potentially edible fish or with similar size/shape fish that occupy the same area of the tank. I will ask on Planet Catfish about that. But unless I find an option I like better, if they won't get eaten I'll probably get some WCMMs.
Fish I'd been looking at that I found out weren't compatible include cobalt blue stiphodon gobies and similar spp., schistura spp. loaches, and panda garras. I love loaches, I'm just a little more of a catfish person, so the floor space in my tanks is generally taken up by my cats. So I've never gotten to keep any. I pretty much like any kind of loach except the "butterfly" hillstream varieties. I especially like species with long snouts and/or bodies. In general, I also tend to be more drawn to fish with high contrast color/patterns.
Does anyone have any suggestions for other fish options that would appreciate a subtropical hillstream setup?
(Also any plants that do well in hillstream setups? My T. trilineatus like to rest in the fake plants in their current QT/holding tank, so I'd like to give them some live ones in their permanent home.)