Fish That Can Live In An Unheated Tank ?

[eschaton]

A room temperature tank isn't really "coldwater" per-se. It's much more like a subtropical tank. I've had heater failures before where my tank has gotten as low as 62 degrees with no fatalities. Offhand, the following would be fine in an unheated tank:

barbs: gold, rosy, denison
essentially any danio
Most corys, other than sterbai, IIRC
otocinclus
hillstream loaches
Most commonly-kept freshwater shrimp
least killifish
Florida flagfish

 

[three-fingers]

It appeared that you don't know All of livebearing species.....all livebearers do well between 69 to 75 degrees which is your average room temp, why you made it into big deal? You just don't know the species. If so name one species that don't do well at room temp...come on tell me what's one that don't do well at 69-75 degrees. Fish48 is expert on livebearers, trust me.

Most halfbeaks? Various Amazonian rays? Loads of others...I don't know all the livebearers, do you? I could find some on the web, but that's not the point...

I've made it into a big deal (too big a deal now probs ) because it is a silly statement - as I've said 'livebearing fish' covers a very wide range of fish, from all sorts of habitats, and if your going to recommend keeping them all at lower temperatures you may as well recommend all tropical fish. There's nothing that makes livebearers better at living in lower temperatures, the common mollies, platies, guppies are found in cooler areas so they are fine - but loads of species are truly tropical. It's a very sweeping statement to make.

 

[Butch]

Oh brother, you made it in big deal...you don't know all livebearers in aquarium. Im sure all livebearers do well between 69 to 75.

Nice try three-fingers.

 

[three-fingers]

And I'm sure they don't, if they did...it wouldn't make any sense. So good luck with that .

 

[Butch]

And I'm sure they don't, if they did...it wouldn't make any sense. So good luck with that .

Im sure that the livebearers do well in unheated aquariums, it helps them live longer time. Remember its not COLDWATER tank.

 

[tyyrlym]

Oh, guppies. Beautiful fish. Just make sure you acclimatize them for about 5 minutes or they'll stress out. (Stress Coat conditioner, too)

Five minutes is not acclimatizing, it's pretty much just dumping them straight in.

 

[three-fingers]

Im sure that the livebearers do well in unheated aquariums, it helps them live longer time. Remember its not COLDWATER tank.

Indeed, it's more akin to a subtropical tank, but they do get called 'coldwater' tanks simply due to lack of heater.

By "the livebearers" do you now just mean the common guppies, platies and mollies, or do you still mean "all livebearers".

Because, as I've tried to say, "all livebearers" is an extremely diverse grouping of fish.
How does the ability to give birth to live young affect the temperature preference of a species of fish?
Why is any better to keep tropical livebearers at cooler temperatures than tropical tetras or cichlids - or any egg layers for that matter?

Why not just recommend keeping all aquarium fish at this temperature range without a heater?

 

[Butch]

Im sure that the livebearers do well in unheated aquariums, it helps them live longer time. Remember its not COLDWATER tank.

Indeed, it's more akin to a subtropical tank, but they do get called 'coldwater' tanks simply due to lack of heater.

By "the livebearers" do you now just mean the common guppies, platies and mollies, or do you still mean "all livebearers".

Because, as I've tried to say, "all livebearers" is an extremely diverse grouping of fish.
How does the ability to give birth to live young affect the temperature preference of a species of fish?
Why is any better to keep tropical livebearers at cooler temperatures than tropical tetras or cichlids - or any egg layers for that matter?

Why not just recommend keeping all aquarium fish at this temperature range without a heater?

Yup I mean ALL livebearers that we kept in aquarium trade will do well in unheated tanks, have you own all species of livebearers? I bet you don't....

 

[three-fingers]

Do you?

How does the ability to give birth to live young affect the temperature preference of a species of fish?
Why is any better to keep tropical livebearers at cooler temperatures than tropical tetras or cichlids - or any egg layers for that matter?

Why not just recommend keeping all aquarium fish at this temperature range without a heater?

 

[Butch]

The cooling temp is just slow the eggs delevoping and growth rates in livebearers. Goodeids do well in cool water despited the goodeids being desert fishes but their native habitat waters are much cold than you think. Anableps and halfbeaks spend their time near surface waters which the surface temps often change surface water temps very easy and quickly get cold. Livebearing eelpouts/brotulas come from deep water oceans.

Cooling temps helps the males of livebearers slow their energy into breedings, instead got burned out quickly in high temps, resulted short life.

 

[three-fingers]

I still find it weird you continue to generalise such a diverse group of fish...

Anableps and halfbeaks live near the surface...yes, so do loads of tropical non-livebearers, I don't see how that makes it advisable to keep them at lower average temperatures than they get in the wild for all their life. Loads of tropical fish can easily survive temperature fluctuations, as seen when glacial melt waters flow into rivers, or there's particularly heavy cold rain. Does this mean they can thrive or even just survive at these temperatures year round? Nope...

And I don't see how the existence of livebearing deep-sea fish helps your case in the slightest.

The practice of cooling the temperature to stop males breeding so fast doesn't add anything at all either - that happens with most if not all fish, that's just the metabolism slowing, nothing at all livebearer specific.

In the end, if keeping tropical fish at lower temperatures than usual seems to work for you, then great, enjoy your fish keeping.
But it doesn't make sense to me, and I will continue to advise against keeping tropical fish at lower temperatures .

 

[Butch]

And I still find you a stubborn weirdo that won't give up about keeping livebearers in unheated tanks. How many times I tell you its 69 to 75 degrees which all livebearers do well? Now lets cut it about it and let it go, you can't do anything about it...sorry dude but you are not hardcore livebearer breeder which I am.

 

[three-fingers]

Okies. I really have nothing to add to what I've already said .

 

[Butch]

Okies. I really have nothing to add to.

I believe that all livebearers do fine in unheated tanks as long as its in the house. You may well played but you need get in livebearers hobby more often.

 

[Eclecticoldsod]

Play nicely, children. Generalizations are always risky. The bigger the field, the more risky they become, and the term 'livebearers' is a pretty big field.
My preference is for giving a temperature range (preferably in degrees F, but C if you must) which are not open to interpretation. Cold water or room temp are far too subjective. If you live in Orlando or Memphis, and I live in Ascot or Edinburgh, we are talking two very different languages. I was chipping ice off my garden pond this morning..!