New Aquarium!

[Platygirl11]

YAY!
I got a new aquarium as a gift. It's 38 gal.
I currently have:
4 platys
1 dwarf gourami
2 corys (I'm not sure what kind, but they are about an inch long, light brown, bottom feeders, and look sorta like catfish)
In a 10 gal. I'm pretty sure this is overstocked.

I want to move these all into the 38 gal after I cycle it so they have a bit more room.
I also want endlers in my tank, which brings up a few questions.
1. What are the pros and cons of buying endlers online v.s. asking a lfs to pre-order them?
2. How many endlers could I have?
3. What are some reliable ways to purchase endlers in the USA?

 

[OldMan47]

In the USA, the reliable way to order endlers is to use a site like swampriveraquatics or tampafishman1. Both offer certified class N fish that are known not to be crosses with guppies. At the LFS you take your chances and cannot get class N endlers. The best you can usually say about endlers at the LFS is that they sure look like they might be endlers. Endlers are like any other wild type livebearer, unless you know something about how they were collected and their background, they are pretty much treated as mutts no matter how sincere the seller may seem. I do have class N endlers and did the right thing by registering them as soon as I got a colony established. By doing that, I can now sell them locally and provide evidence that they are class N fish. There are some beautiful fish out there that would have much more value in the long run with information like I have on my endlers.

 

[Platygirl11]

I don't really care if they are N class, so much if they look nice and will produce some fry.
Do I have to stick by the 1 male per 3 female rule for them?
Should I use my 10 gal for their fry so my platys don't eat them?

 

[OldMan47]

In your spot, with platies in the main tank, I would be tempted to set up the endlers in a tank of their own. Platies are big time fry eaters but my newborn endler fry swim right up to the adults and are usually not harassed by them at all. The ratio of breeders is not as important as it is in some other fish because the male endler is not a pushy breeder. If he can't get the female interested, a male endler will swim off looking for another female, not try to push the issue like a guppy would.

 

[Platygirl11]

So, would it be a good plan to put the females in my 10 gal when they are ready to drop? I honestly don't mind too much about them being N class, I just think endlers look pretty. That sounds a little dumb...

 

[OldMan47]

I'd move the whole endler colony to a tank of its own and just lave them there. The males and females will both pretty much leave the fry alone and the numbers will grow to fill the space available. As you can see in this picture, my tank has an algae problem but the endlers don't care at all.

 

[Platygirl11]

So I shouldn't keep them together then? Because I was also sorta planning on using the 10 gal as a birthing tank.... but I'm pretty sure I'll get some fry without a birthing tank too...
Should I be worried about them overpopulating the tank? It's only ten gal. How big do endlers get?
Also, I was looking at my lfs and they have some awesome guppies. Some look young. Are the younger or older ones tougher? Would they be OK with my current tank mates in a 38 gal?


It's funny how originally I only wanted a fish bowl....

 

[OldMan47]

I keep all of my endlers together in one tank. They do fine like that and the population explosion seems to slow down as they start to become crowded. When I remove all of the adults in a tank and sell them, the population explosion starts all over again. If you have endlers, it is best to not even own any guppies. Unless you are very careful, you can end up accidentally mixing the fish and they do cross breed. Once you have crossed them, the fry become much harder to sell because nobody seems to want a cross unless it is one of the fancy crosses that the professional breeders have developed. If I couldn't sell my adults at auction, I would have to find another way to refresh my breeding population, like euthanizing some of the mature adults. That is not a place that I would want to end up.

 

[Platygirl11]

Maybe I'll just stick with platys, and perhaps guppies. Although, if anyone knows of hybrids in danger of being euthanized, they can give me a call.