Bottom Dweller Decision

[coldcazzie]

Tank: Rio 180, playsand substrate, planted.

Occupants: about 18 silvertips, 10 black neons, 12 harlequins (these are slowly being moved to a different tank, as and when I can catch them), 2 apistos, 4 shrimp (3 amano, 1 ghost). Will be adding more black neons, hopefully about 4 pitbull plecs (if I can find them), and a pair of Anomalochromis thomasi.

For the size of the tank I can't really have a meaningful shoal of both, so I have to choose. I originally wanted habrosus cories but can't locate any locally...then I found a lfs which sells khulis, so I was leaning towards those. But just this morning I've found some wild skunk cories for sale, and now I'm back to being unsure again...!

Help!

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

Skunk Corydoras sounds intresting! At least with Corydoras they should be active and viewable in the daytime, but then Kuhlis are lovely if they are in big enough numbers to be brave and be on view.

What sort of personality do the A. thomasi have? I was under the impression they were a placid African cichlid, like Keyholes or Apistos, but then somewhere I read a recent post about someone finding them a bit pscycho!

 

[Titchie]

I would go for the kuli loaches if you can get enough in numbers.

 

[coldcazzie]

My worry with the laoches is that they'll dig around in the substrate, and I've got plant substrate and clay cat litter under the sand, which I don't particularly want digging up! Cories won't do that...

I had considered whether I could get both, and put the loaches in my bigger tank. However, with the planned later addition of pictus cats, I wouldn't want them to become a tasty and rather expensive snack...

 

[micko]

Pakistani loach!!!!!!

 

[minnnt]

Cory's get my vote.

The Thomasi that Caz is having are mine and they're pretty placid, even when spawning, but they will stand their ground. They have never shown any aggression to anything in the tank, just wag themselves at my Ellioti when he comes by and he flares back and thats it!