Bumble Bee Gobys With Small Hermit Crabs

[Lhutch]

well if anyone remembers me i have a 46 gal planted tank(having lots of trouble with Ph) and things are dying everthing else is fine all water state are perfect i add commercial stuff to fix it and the fluxuations are what killing the fish

so i keep getting #### with planted but

Im Going to try Brackish Planted(yes expect a journal in the future)

i plan on keeping the SG 1.009,1.010 somewhere in that area just enouph to grow Java Fern,and this one other plant i forget the name

but yes algea is going to suck....

via Hermit crabs because i know they can survive brackish at around 1.009

even if they dont take care of the algea i still want them

all brackish tanks are going to have algea and im fine with that i think a good looking brackish will always have algea

plz save all the tank details for when i start the Brackish Semi Planted Journal

but my question is can i have BBG and hermits in the same tank?

How High SG can bbgs tolerate?

what im looking for in stocking this tank are crazy kool colored fish and what not

so far all i know i want rite now is about 6 hermit crabs

and then im going to need some kool other fish in the tank(ideas?) thinking maybe a jade goby-that is if i dont get the gobys

mollies are going to be in there

obviously no puffs


Really im going to try and make this tank beautiful so any suggestions are so greatly appreciated

 

[nmonks]

Don't bother trying to create a brackish planted tank with the SG at or above 1.005. Yes, it's possible, but the choice of plants is limited and you will need to expend a lot of energy (and money) creating a system with enough nutrients and light for the plants to thrive. Algae becomes a real problem because the common stuff used in such tanks -- such as Java ferns -- grow too slowly to have any allelopathic effect.

If you want a planted brackish system for livebearers and gobies, stick at SG 1.003. Then you can grow a vast variety of plants with a high probability of success. With fast-growing Hygrophila, Vallisneria, etc. algae isn't a problem at all, at least of they're maintained under good lighting conditions. A few nerites and Amano shrimps can be added to clean up any excess algae the plants don't quite deal with.

Cheers, Neale

 

[Lhutch]

thanks for the reply nmonks all help is appreciated

i relize that its going to be a challenge and its going to be diffucult and limited

but i really want to try this out

again when i start the journal(probably right after i write this) ill go more into detail

i really think i can make something look good

and im going to stick to that

nothing is final yet tho 8)

 

[nmonks]

If you seriously want to have a planted, high-salinity aquarium, then try and look into keeping mangroves, sea grasses, or macroalgae. There are only relatively few flowering plants traded that adapt to high salinities well. Cryptocoryne ciliata (~SG 1.005) and Samolus valerandi (~SG 1.020) are two that spring to mind. Note that both need intense lighting and a rich, deep substrate (not plain gravel!) to do well.

There is a low-salinity hermit crab in the trade, Clibanarius africanus. It will prosper at lower salinities (including freshwater) than Clibanarius tricolor (SG 1.010 upwards). If hermit crabs are your thing, then actively seeking a supplier of these crabs will be your best way forward. They seem to be fairly easily obtained in Germany, but I have yet to see them in England.

Cheers, Neale