Fish Suggestions Please

[StandbySetting]

Oh really? Hmmmm
My PH is 7.4 and temp is kept at 26
Also have gravel but the corys seem to do fine in it.
And I always varie my fishes diet and provide a good sourse of protein.

The Bolivian Ram would be better species to go for as it is less demanding, and there are some fantastic specimens to be found, obviously the wild caught specimens are going to be of the best quality, but buying tank bred is always better, Bolivian Rams tend to do better at lower temperatures and at a more neutral PH - which your parameters match, as long as the gravel is smooth and isn't rough it should be fine.

The bolivian ram is a nice fish but no where near as striking as the german blue ram.
And now im thinkin about it, I was really after a middle dweller not a bottom dweller.
Maybe i should just continue my search for something else.
Thanx for your great advice tho

Any other suggestions?

Any Cyprinid or Characin, generally shoaling fish tend to dwell in the middle areas of the tank. I keep the Threadfin Rainbow fish, they're quite striking, their eyes are electric blue and their bodies posses a light yellow hue, google them, they're nice fish, readily available and do well in trios and small shoals.

 

[tenohfive]

I've been wanting to get some Galaxy Rasboras. They wont get bigger than one inch and are very colorful. Also, glofish are very friendly and mine stay exclusively at the top.

Galaxy Rasbora's will more than likely be eaten by the Angel fish once they reach their optimum size.

Whilst not strictly speaking a middle dweller have you thought of something like a German Blue Ram or Bolivian Ram pair?

PERFECT!
German blue ram. Thats exactly the kinda fish im looking for. Nice one thank you! I believe my search is over.

However, before I get too excited..... Lol
Will they get on with my fish and how big do they get?

What are your water conditions please? Blue Rams are demanding fish, preferably your setup should comply with the following parameters:
Acidic PH, Temperature of 28-32oC, it keeps their metabolism at what it should be, and a sandy substrate is generally ideal as Rams are earth eaters, their genus - Mikrogeophagus literally translates to mini earth eater. Their diet should be rich in protein and should be varied.
Rams are likely to pick on Corydoras species also as they inhabit similar areas of the tank.

I've kept a few pairs of Rams and never once seen them take any issue with Corys.

They need sand and they do need good water quality, but temp and pH I've found them to more flexible with - I've kept them in pH 8, temp 24 degrees and had happy healthy rams. But that was with 30% water changes every 3-4 days. I've found the water quality to be the biggest single limiting factors with GBR's.

Bolivians are a good alternative however and are generally easier to keep.

 

[MBOU]

Ask your LFS where they get their blue rams from!!

Because all this faffing about 'hblue rams are hard to keep' is rubbish, if they are wild caught or czech or german bred... maybe (germans produce several strains of the blue ram! some hardier than others).

I am keeping rams (in a shop) on a ph of closer to 8.5+ tapwater and they are fantastic... they are dutch blue rams but tank bred in harder water...

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That said, rams are bottom dwelling but do explore the tank, aggressive and nippy to long finned fish (attacked my young angels when they got too close)

Dont reckon they are a great choice personally... nice fish in their own right if you are building a tank around them and them alone...

 

[tenohfive]

Because all this faffing about 'hblue rams are hard to keep' is rubbish, if they are wild caught or czech or german bred... maybe (germans produce several strains of the blue ram! some hardier than others).

I've kept a few pairs from a few sources and found that when decreasing water change frequency their stress levels have risen and they've lost some of their colour. I've never noticed them as being especially sickly but in order to keep them happy and well coloured I've always gone down the 'plenty of water changes' route.

 

[MBOU]

Sure they need good water quality...

But surely thats an aim for all fish...not rams... them needing good water quality doesnt really justify them being classed as a 'hard' fish to keep...

 

[tenohfive]

Sure they need good water quality...

But surely thats an aim for all fish...not rams... them needing good water quality doesnt really justify them being classed as a 'hard' fish to keep...

With Rams it's always more noticeable if the water quality isn't good - with other fish you won't necessarily notice much different. I agree though, they aren't a particularly difficult fish to keep - they just require more effort to get the best out of them IMO.