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Hamdhan777

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Apr 5, 2020
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Hi all,

Was hoping to get some thoughts on a centerpiece fish, shrimp or other fish I can get for my aquarium (unless I'd be overstocking); I've had a look at the other "centerpiece fish" forum posts, but every tank is different so wanted specific thoughts to reduce the chance of any issues.

I really want some shrimp, but scared the Gourami might eat all of them. I have a spare 3 gallon that is currently cycling (planned to be a shrimp tank anyway), so if there's a species of shrimp that could work but ends up getting nibbled on, I can just move them to the 3gal. Let me know if there's any species you'd recommend. I love the look of Crystal Reds but given their difficulty, I am leaning towards Cherry reds.

My tank:
  • 50 liter freshwater (10 Imperial gallons, 13 US Gallons) [ 60 x 30 x 30cm]
  • Planted (Have some Christmas moss and amazon frogbit in there too)
  • Substrate: A very fine gravel
  • Tank is kept between 24.5 and 25.5C.
  • Canister filter with 300g of Seachem matrix.
  • Aerated via airstone
  • Stockings: (3x Sparkling Gourami, 6x Corydoras Hastatus, 2x Chili Raspbora, few Ramshorn snails).
  • Here's a pic:

Thanks in advance! :)
 
Last edited:
To be honest, your tank is too small for a centrepiece fish. This only really works in large tanks.

However, I would recommend that you increase the numbers of chili rasboras and the corys. These two fish do much better in groups of at least 10.

You were lucky finding the hastatus, I've only ever seen them once :)



The sparkling gourami may eat baby shrimps, but with plenty hiding places enough should make it. If not, the 3 gallon is ideal as a shrimp tank.
 
Fair enough, thanks!

I definitely want to add more Corys but not Chilis, sadly. They are just not for me. I'll be looking into getting them a new home once lockdown ends, and replace them maybe with some CPDs!

Lucky indeed, the LFS nearest my house seems to always have Hastatus in stock!

Let me know if you have any recommendations on Shrimp species! I'm thinking Cherry reds as crystal reds may be too hard to keep as a first time shrimp.
 
If you don't want more chilis, then yes, rehoming them is the best option.

Red cherries are the easiest shrimps to start with. That's what I have and they breed readily in my tanks. Of course they'll only breed if you have males and females, so one tip for you - if you see any shrimps carrying eggs under their abdomen, that's obviously female. If the shop worker is willing, make sure they catch that one. Then even if you end up with all female shrimps, once the eggs hatch there is bound to be a mixture of males and females among the shrimplets ;)
 
If you don't want more chilis, then yes, rehoming them is the best option.

Red cherries are the easiest shrimps to start with. That's what I have and they breed readily in my tanks. Of course they'll only breed if you have males and females, so one tip for you - if you see any shrimps carrying eggs under their abdomen, that's obviously female. If the shop worker is willing, make sure they catch that one. Then even if you end up with all female shrimps, once the eggs hatch there is bound to be a mixture of males and females among the shrimplets ;)

Sweet, thanks! :D
 
Hello and welcome to the forum. Nice looking tank ,I agree with @essjay your tank is too small for a centerpiece fish. I started out with ghost shrimp since I was new to shrimp and they are cheap. They are also fun to watch. RCS are the next shrimp I plan on trying.
 
Hello and welcome to the forum. Nice looking tank ,I agree with @essjay your tank is too small for a centerpiece fish. I started out with ghost shrimp since I was new to shrimp and they are cheap. They are also fun to watch. RCS are the next shrimp I plan on trying.


Thank you, and thanks for the tips! :)
 

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