Fish For Small Tank

[missminky]

Hi there
I've got a 30 litre tank (cube rather than rectangle) and would love to get some little fish friends. Any thoughts on what would live happily in here?
Thanks

 

[chesterscot]

maybe some white cloud mountain minnows
scot
or a betta

 

[tenohfive]

Aye, WCCM's aren't a bad idea. Some ember or neon tetra's are an option, as is a betta or some guppies (but not both.)

 

[Shrimper]

Perfect size for some dwarf shrimp

 

[OldMan47]

It sounds like a great size for a small group of heterandria formosa. I have mine in a 10 gallon and they are almost lost in it because they are so small.

 

[Brette]

Ember tetras and galaxy rasboras are great little teeny weeny fish. I have a 3 gallon at work and they have plenty of room in there. I've had them for 2 years now.

 

[LauraFrog]

If you're into something more unusual you could have dwarf puffers in there, but they are not the easiest fish to keep so unless you have some experience or are willing to do a lot of learning fast, they might not be the best.
You could have one male betta, or five or six females, in that tank.
Pygmy corydoras are always an option, they are very cute and spend more time in the middle levels of a tank than their larger counterparts.
Otocinclus catfish are also suitable.
You could have some of the dwarf rainbows, such as Iriatherina werneri (usually known as the filament rainbowfish, threadfin rainbowfish but has so many names we usually use the scientific name) or some of the blue eyes (Pseudomugil species).
Endler's livebearer males are extremely colourful, you could have up to ten or twelve in that tank with good filtration.
Paradise fish - there are success stories of people keeping multiple males or males with females but personally I wouldn't risk it. They are colourful though and they don't need heaters.
Smaller tetras are perfect - neons, glowlights, embers (ideal cause you can have a big school in there, they are tiny) or rummy noses might be okay.
Galaxy rasbora or celestial pearl danio - two names for the same species, a delightful and colourful little fish.
White cloud mountain minnows are spot on, pretty and active fish.
Dwarf platies - make sure you get the dwarf variety as a standard platy may reach three or even four inches and would not be comfortable in a small tank.
Shrimp - Some are very pretty. Can also be added in a small group along with some fish to clean the tank.
African dwarf frogs - make sure they are DWARF frogs and not CLAWED frogs which get very large and eat fish.
Harlequin rasboras - the tank is a bit on the small side for them but not too small.
If you are willing to go slightly brackish (add a small amount of salt to the water) you could keep bumblebee gobies or some of the other small goby species, and still be able to keep guppies or blue eyes with them.

 

[missminky]

Thanks for your suggestions.

I've narrowed it down to-
glowlight tetra
ember tetra
galaxy rasbora
WCMM

I'm happy to stick with one type of fish if that's what's best for them. So, any suggestions on how many I could get of each? Or a combination? I can then make decision on which to go for.

Thanks

 

[tenohfive]

Last I heard PFK magazine were advising fishkeepers only to buy galaxy rasbora's if they intend to breed them, so personally I'd rule them out.

Ember tetra's are gorgeous little fish, think I'd go with them. I've got a load in a similar sized hex tank and think they look great in it.

 

[Truck]

if it is a new tank i would say no to any tetra especially neons. i would recomend a few livebearers endlers guppies or platties. make sure there all males so they dont breed. you could get females . (i dont know weather this is true or not ) but they have been known to change their gender .
i recomend a betta. wcmm could work. danios would be a good first timer.

 

[littlest]

Can I suggest dwarf pencilfish - a very underrated fish in my opinion. I have a similar sized tank (28L) with dwarf pencilfish and I love them. I think they are perfect for a tank this size. They stay small, are easy to keep (non-aggressive, accept flake food etc), are inquisitve and active, and have interesting markings (which change at night).

the latin name is Nannostomus marginatus if you want to look them up.

 

[tenohfive]

danios would be a good first timer.

Stay clear of danio's, they need more room than a 30L cube has. I've kept some in a 2ft tank for awhile but they'll soon be outgrowing it - they aren't massive fish but they are very active and need a long tank.

Same again for rainbow fish.

 

[tenohfive]

Personally, I'd put a central clump of planting - maybe around a small piece of bogwood if you can find one in the middle of the tank- and pop a load of ember tetra's in there. I've seen that done on a much bigger scale and it looked fantastic, I've always wanted to do the same on a smaller scale.

 

[jonnyf84]

a 30 litre isn't sufficient for shoaling fish such as some mentioned here (rasboras, neons etc), your limited with this set up, especially because it is cube shaped as you dont get as much surface area, a betta and/or shrimps are suitable. The best idea given so far was the Dwarf Puffers - amazing little fish, very intelligent and interesting to watch - must be kept on their own though and need a steady supply of snails to munch on.

 

[missminky]

a 30 litre isn't sufficient for shoaling fish such as some mentioned here (rasboras, neons etc), your limited with this set up, especially because it is cube shaped as you dont get as much surface area, a betta and/or shrimps are suitable. The best idea given so far was the Dwarf Puffers - amazing little fish, very intelligent and interesting to watch - must be kept on their own though and need a steady supply of snails to munch on.

Just been looking at Dwarf Puffers - they are so sweet! One concern though, not keen on feeding them snails. May sound silly but I'm a veggie and don't like thought of giving them something living to kill. Are they necessary for them or just a treat?

When you say too small for shoaling fish, does this mean ember tetras too?

Spent money on heater, plants etc. yesterday and am starting to cycle so would be disappointed not to get anything but won't get them if it's unfair to them.