Endlers

[HeatherW]

Hi!

I'm wanting something for my 3 gallon tank on my bookshelf. Would Endlers fare alright?
The tank has a heater and a small charcoal and floss filter.

How many could I get? Would 2 male and 4 female be too many?
What about gender ratio, does it matter or can I go all male?

Lastly, I keep platies. They need a good deal of vegetable in their diet.
Is this true of endlers too? To the same extent?
My swordtails like vegetable more than my platies. Where on the "liking veg. matter" scale would Endlers sit?

Thanks,
Heather

 

[eddied316]

6 fish in a 6 gallon is, i'm afraid too many.

And have you thought about if and when your fish become pregnant?

They will add about another 30 or so fish.

You should AT LEAST get a 10 gallon for 6 fish. (their only like $9 - $10.

 

[vancouver]

You could probably keep 3 endlers in a 3g.. it's probably not the greatest tank size, but it's possible.. Keep up with your water changes though.

 

[HeatherW]

I decided to just get a Betta for my 3 gallon, easier to manage.

I'll get endlers when I set up a new 10g or 20g tank.

Oh, and by the way, a 10g tank itself may be $10, but the fish would need canopy, light, heater, filter, possibly gravel and plants. Works out to $50-$100 not $10.

Thanks,
Heather

 

[Annastasia]

A Betta is probably a better choice for your current tank. But when you get a larger tank, I'd definitely go for Endlers. They are great little fish, and they look gorgeous against plants. To answer your other questions (for if and when you get them):

You can keep all males. They are very peaceful little fish. It's recommended to have 5+ to cut down on aggression, but I have never seen a hint of it in them.

Endlers don't NEED a ton of veggies, but it certainly won't hurt them! I feed mine veggies about twice a week, and they are absolutely thriving.

 

[HeatherW]

Thanks so much Annastasia!

One last thing:

Once I trade in some of my platy fry and have room in my 20g, could I put endlers in with platies and mollies?

Heather

 

[Annastasia]

Mmmm....I think it's risky with the Mollies. They can sometimes be aggressive, and Endlers are so tiny. I personally wouldn't risk it. Sorry. I'd suggest you divide the tank, but that doesn't leave the Mollies much room, and then you may have salt in the water. Do you keep salt with your Mollies?

 

[HeatherW]

Hey,

I just got my mollies, haven't kept them since I was a kid.

I know salt makes them healthier, but I also read somewhere that it depends on the environment they were raised in. My LFS has their own fish farms and could tell me that their mollies are not raised with salt.

I do put 2 teaspoons in a 20 gallon for the platies though, hardly enough to make it brackish though.

So yes, there is salt in my tank but likely not enough. I have a pleco in there too and they are not salt feinds.

Could you recommend an amount that would keep the mollies and pleco happiest?

Heather

 

[Annastasia]

What kind of salt are you putting in, aquarium or marine?

That's a tough mix, with the Mollies and Plecos. Mollies usually do better in brackish, even if they have been raised in fresh, but the Pleco won't especially like salt. Mollies will sometimes do well if you have hard, alkaline water. Do you know what kind of water you have, and what the readings are?

 

[HeatherW]

The water here is soft, so I use a product called perfect PH to bring it to 7.5.

The salt is marine salt.

I also have these drops called "Molly Bright" by Jungle. Haven't used yet, any good?

Heather

 

[catxx]

endlers are hardwater fish, i'm not sure how well they'll do in softer water.

 

[vancouver]

I tried mollies with guppies in a small tank.. the only ones that worked well were balloon mollies.. the larger mollies did not like my guppies.

Just thought I'd share my experience.. I wouldn't keep mollies and guppies together unless you have a tank 33g or larger.