I am thinking about getting some angels once I get my 45 or 55 gallon tank how many could I get for a 45g and a 55g? Also is it true that it is best to get them at their smallest age so they can get used to living with other fish and can my common pleco go with them?
Just A Question About Angelfish
- Thread starter Durbkat
- Start date
It depends on what fish you plan on putting in with the angels, and what you plan to do when you get a pair with the angels. You could go with 4 or 5 in the, 45, 5 or 6 in the 55. Common plecs do fine with my angels, just make sure they are well fed, I've heard stories of them getting a taste for angel slime coat.
It doesn't matter if you get them smaller or larger, once they start to mature & pair up, they will not get along with any fish that look like an angel. Sometimes it's an uneasy truce, other times it's all out combat, it all depends on the fish or pair. They all have different personalities. Sometimes they hate all other fish, other times they will single out one fish.
Tolak
It doesn't matter if you get them smaller or larger, once they start to mature & pair up, they will not get along with any fish that look like an angel. Sometimes it's an uneasy truce, other times it's all out combat, it all depends on the fish or pair. They all have different personalities. Sometimes they hate all other fish, other times they will single out one fish.
Tolak
Pair up means a male & female choose each other for breeding purposes. Once this happens, they become very territorial, all other angels are the target of aggression. Sometimes their territory is a small corner of the tank, other times it is the whole tank plus area outside the tank. Sometimes they will just chase other angels, other times there are fatalities. Angelsfish are cichlids, and do have the aggression associated with new world cichlids, especially while spawning.
I keep plecs with pairs, they leave catfish alone. Cats don't look like angels, and for the most part occupy the perimeter of the tank, keeping out of the way of the angels.
Tolak
I keep plecs with pairs, they leave catfish alone. Cats don't look like angels, and for the most part occupy the perimeter of the tank, keeping out of the way of the angels.
Tolak
fish_keeper2
I am Nemo!!
just get one angel fish or an angel only tank. its very hard to tell male and female apart, you can only tell during breeding.
What would I do? Go for the 55. Get 6 small angels from a reliable breeder or lfs. Tell them before hand you are trying to get a pair as a centerpiece for your tank. Tell them you will be returning all but two of them when they are larger. You may make a few dollars returning potential breeder size angels.
You now have a compatable pair, and a common plec in a 55. Start looking around for a nice group of corys, and 3 or 6 livebearers of a complementary or contrasting color. You have a couple of centerpiece fish who will take care of the inevitable livebearer fry. You have some smaller colorful livebearers to set off the larger pair of angels. You have a plec to take care of algae, and some corys to help keep the bottom clean.
Tolak
You now have a compatable pair, and a common plec in a 55. Start looking around for a nice group of corys, and 3 or 6 livebearers of a complementary or contrasting color. You have a couple of centerpiece fish who will take care of the inevitable livebearer fry. You have some smaller colorful livebearers to set off the larger pair of angels. You have a plec to take care of algae, and some corys to help keep the bottom clean.
Tolak
You mean I couldn't get 5 or 6 angelfish if I got a 55g then put my pleco in there and don't do anything as far as changing the stock of the tank?
You could try, but there are no guarantees of them remaining peaceful as they mature. Be prepared to either get rid of some before they get too beat up, or add a lot more angels to spread the aggression.
For full grown adult angels, you should have 10 gallons per fish, 5 gallons per fish for potential breeders. Angels begin to pair up somewhere around 8 to 10 months of age, they are usually anywhere from half dollar to dollar body size. A fully grown angel can reach 3" to 4" body size.
You could go as high as 10 angels in a 55, if you overfilter & do more than the average water changes. In a situation like that, 50% to 70% weekly water change would work. With that amount of angels, any aggression from pairing would be spread around so many fish that the likelyhood of one getting singled out & pounded on is remote.
I did that with an extremely aggressive pair of marbles. They must have been too closely related, or one was infertile, couldn't get a spawn to hatch successfully. If they were in a tank with 4 to 6 other angels, they would beat on everyone. I ended up putting them in this tank before I gave them to a buddy of mine;
It's a 55, try counting the angels. Count the filters. That tank gets 60% water changed 3 times weekly. If I took 3 of the larger ones & put them in a 29, there would probably be a battle.
Angels either need to be kept as pairs when mature, or in a pretty large group.
Tolak
For full grown adult angels, you should have 10 gallons per fish, 5 gallons per fish for potential breeders. Angels begin to pair up somewhere around 8 to 10 months of age, they are usually anywhere from half dollar to dollar body size. A fully grown angel can reach 3" to 4" body size.
You could go as high as 10 angels in a 55, if you overfilter & do more than the average water changes. In a situation like that, 50% to 70% weekly water change would work. With that amount of angels, any aggression from pairing would be spread around so many fish that the likelyhood of one getting singled out & pounded on is remote.
I did that with an extremely aggressive pair of marbles. They must have been too closely related, or one was infertile, couldn't get a spawn to hatch successfully. If they were in a tank with 4 to 6 other angels, they would beat on everyone. I ended up putting them in this tank before I gave them to a buddy of mine;
It's a 55, try counting the angels. Count the filters. That tank gets 60% water changed 3 times weekly. If I took 3 of the larger ones & put them in a 29, there would probably be a battle.
Angels either need to be kept as pairs when mature, or in a pretty large group.
Tolak
So say if I got a 55g and I put 8 angels would that work if I overfiltered and did several vacum cleanings? Or would that be to few and they fight? How many angels are in that tank, is there any aggression, and will that tank get crowded with all those angels in there?
You don't know until you try it. They all have different personalities. I have 7 angels in a 65, among them is a pair of blacks & a pair of zebras. They aren't real aggressive pairs, so it doesn't get too out of hand. I also have plenty of other tanks if it does.
Tolak
Tolak
Well I just wanted to know because I wouldn't have another tank to put them in, the only tank I have that could fit them in there is my long 20g and its to short for a angel and my lps would take them but they would toss them once I left. Well I guess I'll have to give it a try. Thanks Tolak you were very helpful and thanks for putting up with my stupid newbe questions. 
fish_keeper2
I am Nemo!!
if you wanted to you could get 1 very beautiful angel and use it as your "center piece fish" and get lots of schooling fish such as 11 neons and 11 glo lite and 11 harliquins plus your common plec. that may be a bit too much fish but is just an idea im throwing out............or maybe one really BIG school of neons 
AndyTaylor
Fishaholic
Just to confuse matters.......I bought 2 very juvenile marble angels when i bought my first tank 4 months ago (it wasn't really a tank...just a 10L hex thing that I bought on bad advice from an lfs who also sold me the angels!) They were tiny when I got them, bodies of 1 inch diameter or less. They've since been moved to a 70L and they're now in my 170L fully planted community tank, 1 is 2 inches in diameter, the other is at least 3. They have never shown any agression towards each other or any of their tankmates, except my shoal of neons, which they grew up with but were seperated from for a month. When i re-introduced the neons to the 170L they killed them all in 12 hours while i was a work!
Now, they may be a pair, i can't tell. They haven't shown any mating behaviour that i've seen but they do follow each other around the tank and are rarely more than a few inches apart.
Doesn't prove anything except that all fish are different......you could get lucky if you just buy 2 really young ones.
Andy
Now, they may be a pair, i can't tell. They haven't shown any mating behaviour that i've seen but they do follow each other around the tank and are rarely more than a few inches apart.
Doesn't prove anything except that all fish are different......you could get lucky if you just buy 2 really young ones.
Andy
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