kuhlis in a 5.5 gal?

[SidtheMonkey]

So it's sounding like my batta might not accept other fish in his tank, since he is establishing it as his territory.

Are kuhlis too active for a 5.5 planted tank? And it's not heavily planted...that will take awhile, but it does have a small piece of bog wood and several plants.

I think I'll also have to make sure the top/back of the tank gets closed tighter.

But would a small group of 3-5 kuhlis work in the tank? And would they be able to hold their own if the betta gets aggressive? I've had kuhlis before but this is my first betta.

Thanks!

[waterfaller1]

Keep the betta alone please, add a few nice horned nerites and enjoy him. That many fish{kuhlis can grow to 4"} in that small of a tank will seriously compromise the water quality for your betta, leading to problems such as fin rot or dropsy. Kuhli loaches should have a minimum 20 gal tank.

[SidtheMonkey]

Well those snails are pretty attractive, thanks. I'll have to see if they're available around here.

Can they eat the algae off of even fine-leaved plants?

Any other invertebrate suggestions?

[bigpow]

red cherry shrimps

give it plenty of hiding space and they'll multiply in no time.

your betta will appreciate them as well (picking of the slower/older shrimps)

[SidtheMonkey]

The shrimp sound cool. How many for a 5.5 gal tank?

Do they eat algae?

[waterfaller1]

The shrimp will stay terrified in with a betta, I do not agree. Shrimp alone is the best way to see them act normal. Yes, they do eat some algae. The nerites clean my plants and glass in my cube. Some are red, gold, all kinds of cool colors. Invertz Factory sells them. The ones I have are called tricolors
http://invertzfactory.com/stocklist.htm

[SidtheMonkey]

So I made an impulse purchase today....4 ghost shrimps (they were 40 cents each on sale). They're about 3/4 inch long.

They're now acclimated to the tank and out foraging. The betta gave them scant notice.

Fingers crossed....it would be nice to have some colorful ones in there someday.

[anthonyl]

40 Cents each !!!!! bl**dy hell ! they are $10 each here in Australia....

[SidtheMonkey]

No seriously, these were 'ghost shrimp.' people use them as feeders here.

Are you thinking of some of the fancier shrimp we were discussing?

Not only that, I came home tonite and dont see any of the 4. I hope they are just hiding under the bogwood. I didnt want to move it, and I'm sure my betta couldnt eat all 4, esp without leaving lots of body parts laying around! lol

[anthonyl]

yeah ghost shrimp $10 each .... ill try and find the website again and post you a link ! im shocked they are so cheap there !

$9 each

have a look at
http://www.livefish.com.au/index.php?ma ... cPath=1_12

[SidtheMonkey]

yeah ghost shrimp $10 each .... ill try and find the website again and post you a link ! im shocked they are so cheap there !

$9 each

have a look at
http://www.livefish.com.au/index.php?ma ... cPath=1_12

Are you referring to the glass shrimp? (I've read that ghost shrimp are sometimes called that)

The shrimp I have are not algae eaters tho, like the ones in the price list. They look similar, but I'm sure they cant be the same.

[SidtheMonkey]

Small update:

One of the shrimp died...was just laying out dead, but the betta didnt feed on it at all.

The other 3 came out to feed normally.