Lfs Shocked By My Community Tanks Inhabitants?

[corvettekid]

The owner of my local fish store asked me what fish i had in my aquarium (i had bought 100 ghost shrimp which made him wonder what they were for). After i listed all the fish in my 120 gallon 6ft long aquarium, he was horrified. Stating that my stock shouldnt last a night let alone the 2 years it has. My question is, do i really have such a surprising stock of fish in one tank? I have two spotted climbing perch, two bgk's, one elephant nose, one dinosaur birchir, 10 ghost catfish, one dwarf gourami, 4 clown loach's, 2 large pleco's and 3 of their offspring, 3 upside down catfish, 1 red tail loach, 4 black kuhli loach's, 1 golden wonder killi that is quite large, numerous fancy guppies that breed non stop, 30 mosquito minnows, 15 platty's (started out with male and female pair, and they keep reproducing) 10 assorted cory catfish, and two bettas (a male and a femal breeding pair that are literally inseparable, if you try to separate them they will stop eating and become lethargic).

Is this really a bad group of fish to have? I've had all of them together for about two years now and i have never observed any agression or anything, my bks are about 6 inches and my climbing perch are about a 4 inch circle, definitely large enough to eat other fish in my tank, but everyone coexists quite well

 

[arielsworld17974]

It seems overstocked to me. As far as being agressive, they might develop it. If they feel stressed out due to so many fish. I don't think your minnows and guppys will last very much longer. As soon as your bigger fish get much bigger. They will eat them like snacks. I'm kind of new to the whole fish keeping. So I'll let others chime in. Correct me if I'm wrong as well

 

[betta fish]

I would love to see this tank! got a pic? quite surprising to me too 

 

[attibones]

As soon as the BGKs get big enough, you'll lose most of your stock. Plus you've got a lot of soft water fish with a lot of hard water fish. Several predatory species thrown in with prey species too. Stress can cause many fish problems. Betta and gourami shouldn't be together. There are a lot of compatibility issues in your tank. I don't recommend trying to do a similar setup in an additional tank. I would say you've been pretty lucky.

 

[corvettekid]

 

[Ch4rlie]

As soon as the BGKs get big enough, you'll lose most of your stock. Plus you've got a lot of soft water fish with a lot of hard water fish. Several predatory species thrown in with prey species too. Stress can cause many fish problems. Betta and gourami shouldn't be together. There are a lot of compatibility issues in your tank. I don't recommend trying to do a similar setup in an additional tank. I would say you've been pretty lucky.

 
+1
 
Think that has nailed it on the head imho.
 
Think its just a matter of time, not if, but when, you'll start to see some issues
 
Nice tank btw

 

[corvettekid]

Its very difficult to take pictures of the fish haha, they dont like to stay put for the camera
If i start to see any aggression or notice any fish missing ibwill definitely relocate fish to different tanks but at the moment ill leave it as is, gingers crossed i will continue to have good luck. The tank used to have tons of plants in it but a few months ago i had a battle with a very aggressive algea or fungus that litterally coveted and dissolved most of my plants

 

[Byron]

Its very difficult to take pictures of the fish haha, they dont like to stay put for the camera
If i start to see any aggression or notice any fish missing ibwill definitely relocate fish to different tanks but at the moment ill leave it as is, gingers crossed i will continue to have good luck. The tank used to have tons of plants in it but a few months ago i had a battle with a very aggressive algea or fungus that litterally coveted and dissolved most of my plants

 
I agree with other members here.  I wouldn't bother posting to just repeat things, but as you have raised a comment here that causes me a great deal of concern, I will respond.  Please take the comments constructively.
 
Leaving things "as is" because issues are not yet noticeable [I would have to be present to view the tank for a period of time to be certain, but I would surmise that there probably are issues present that are not being noticed] is not a wise decision.  Some of these fish are going to be under stress from other fish, and this always means less healthy fish, and a shorter lifespan.  In other words, you are not doing the fish any favours, quite the opposite.
 
I don't know where to start with explaining, so I'll just mention things I see.  You have fish that use an electric field (the BGK and the EN) and these should never be together.  There needs to be a lot more "cover" for the BGK, loaches and Leaffish [it is under the wood not by accident] in particular.  Floating plants should always be present in tanks with any anabantid (betta, gourami) and these help most all other fish as well.  The BGK needs very dim lighting.  Floating plants can help, but also a good sized area of very dark cover (chunks of wood at the surface) would be good.  This fish (BGK) needs a tank no less than 2 feet wide (front to back) and 6 feet length (you have the length) assuming it survives to reach maturity.  The clown loaches should have an 8-foot tank.
 
Aside from seeing physical interactions, there is the unseen aspect of what is going on here.  Fish release pheromones and allomones which are picked up and "read" as chemical signals by other fish.  These when they are "trouble" oriented cause severe stress to other fish, and this becomes acute if not corrected early.  Part of the reason you have not noticed physical aggression could be due to the effect of stress; sometimes fish react by becoming more aggressive, but sometimes the opposite occurs and they fail to act normally.
 
I would seriously consider re-homing some of the fish, to a good home or store that can handle them.  There is no such thing as everything being OK in such situations.  We are dealing with living creatures that have evolved with specific traits, requirements, behaviours, etc, and no aquarist is going to force changes without seriously compromising  the fish.  Dr. Loiselle's advice in my signature is on the mark, as is the other too.
 
Byron.

 

[corvettekid]

Ive been on Disability for 6 months now due to surgeries and stuff, so i have spent quite a bit of time watching my fish because i simply have nothing else to do, they all eat from my hand which is fun to see. The tank is half dark half light for most of the day specifically for my bgk's, i know i need more hiding places and plants, it used to be heavily planted as of a few months ago (had an algea outbreak that killed most of my plants) all my fosh are acting normal, i have had plenty of time to research my fish. I could be wrong though. Never had any illnesses or deaths, which i would assume would happen with stressed out fish. My smaller fish dont fear my perch or bgk's like they would if they were being bullied

 

[corvettekid]

I always have a large supply of ghost shrimp in the tank as well, so maybe the perch and bgk's are always too full from eating shrimp all day to try and eat my guppies and stuff?

 

[RobRocksFishTank]

The advice given already has been spot on. You can do all the research you want but it takes an experienced eye to see the subtleties of how fish show low levels of stress. Low levels over a long period are much more detrimental than high levels over a short time.
 
When you start losing your smaller fish, they still won't be "bullied". These fish are ambush feeders and will eventually take advantage of an easy meal swimming by. If they are unsuccessful, injuries will happen.
 
There are always the exception to the rule, but do you really want to count on that?

 

[squidneh]

Let me start off by saying I don't mean to sound harsh at all.
 
You asked for an opinion, and it had been given and confirmed by several members.  The beauty of this forum is that we are all very welcoming, friendly, and encouraging.  Above all, we love fish keeping.  So if you post something that concerns us (your stocking) we will advise you on how to handle the situation.  We all strive to advocate proper fish keeping.  Keeping fish that are not compatible together is not what we would consider proper or healthy for the fish, so we advise against it.  You can tell us you have no problems as many times as you would like, but it is still not how things should really be done.
 
As always what you do is up to you.  They are your fish and your responsibility.  Just try to open your mind a bit rather than being stuck on the fact that you haven't noticed any problems or coming up with reasons it works for you, because the simple answer is the fish could be happier and healthier, whether you acknowledge it or not.
 
I hope you continue to further educate yourself and happy fish keeping

 

[corvettekid]

I took everyones adviced and moved fish to different tanks, i have moved 1 bgk into my 150 gallon, my elephant nose into my 90 gallon tv stand in my bedroom, i put my bettas into my 15 gallon shrimp breeder since they never eat shrimp, i dont really care if they start to though. I have a few more fish that i have to move around but ill wait a few days, the ones i was able to catch were the easy ones that come to feed from my hand. I did notice this morning that my two spotted climbing perch are now making what looks like a bettas bubble nest underneath a floating cork log, is this normal perch behavior?
My two perch have always gone everywhere together ever since i got them, i know the spines on their gills determine if they are male or female but they never atay still long enough for.me to get a good look

 

[Byron]

 I did notice this morning that my two spotted climbing perch are now making what looks like a bettas bubble nest underneath a floating cork log, is this normal perch behavior? 
My two perch have always gone everywhere together ever since i got them, i know the spines on their gills determine if they are male or female but they never atay still long enough for.me to get a good look
 

 
From the photos earlier, I am assuming this fish is actually Ctenopoma acutirostre, which has several common names including Leopard Ctenopoma, African Spotted Leaf Fish, Spotted Climbing Perch, Leopard Bushfish and Spotted Ctenopoma.  Although closely related to the true climbing perches (Anabas species), it is not known to leave the water and traverse land, so that common name is a bit misleading.  Correct me if you do have another fish that is the climbing perch, but in your fish listing this is the only name likely to belong to the leaf fish in the photo.
 
Though difficult to sex, males have spines behind the eye (on the gill covers) and at the base of the caudal (tail) fin while these are less well developed on females; these are not easy to see however. Reports of spawnings in aquaria are very scarce, so it is difficult to track down reliable data.  Some sources do mention that this fish builds a bubblenest (which many but not all anabantids do), while others say the pair embrace in typical anabantid fashion and the eggs float the the surface among vegetation.  If you are seeing a definite bubblenest building, let's hope things continue and you will be able to report success with spawning.  If the bubblenest is just that, the male will build it at the surface, usually among floating plants, but here he would be using what is available.
 
Byron.

 

[corvettekid]

Idk what the true name of them are, thats just what the lfs called them. They look very similar if not the same as the ones i see when i google their name. I have observed them in some sort of an embrace (almost looks like my bettas when they mate) but i never saw eggs or anything come out, i assumed hey were just playing or something. Thanks for the info everyone