Rainbow Fish

[joshjames]

i have looked at them and really like the boesemans rainbow fish
i would like to know if they would be ok with the likes of
clown loaches
not aggressive cichlids
tetras
catfish
and what are some of there basic requirements

 

[minxfishy]

Boesmani rainbows grow to around 6", they are peaceful and need to be in groups of 6+, the males are more colourful and show their best colouration when kept with some females to display to.

They require good water quality, obviously no ammonia or nitrItes, as low nitrAtes as possible and its usually best to do 2x weekly water changes. They like a good current in the tank as well.

You can keep them with a variety of other fish, those listed as fine and also can be kept with other species of rainbowfish.

Minimum size tank and this is just my opinion not fact, is a 55g as they do like a good amount of swimming space.

They need a good quality flake food and will also relish some live or frozen food, bloodworm, brineshrimp, daphnia, prawn etc, be careful with pellet foods though as they have a narrow throat and large pellets can get stuck in their thoat as they are feisty eaters.

 

[joshjames]

so in a 75 gallon tank i could keep about 6 or more with what i hav also listed
can i have 3 or 1 species and 3 of another or does a group all have to be the same
how many males and females

 

[minxfishy]

You can if you want to mix them up, but they tend to fair better with more of their own kind, they can interbred which isnt something you want to do. But eggs can easily be removed, although in a tank with other fish they would more likely be eaten anyway.

You could mix them with melanotaenia lacturis (lake kutabu/turquoise) or melanotaenia trifasciata (banded rainbow) or even Melanotaenia praecox (dwarf neon rainbow)

Temp 24-28, ph 6.6-.8 ph (these vary slightly between species)

3males to 2 female is a good ratio for them.

Edit for spelling - doh

 

[joshjames]

k i think i will get 5 of the boesemans
3 male 2 female
y more males
i always thought that the females needed to be more

 

[minxfishy]

That one I cant answer, maybe the females are pickier

 

[drobbyb]

k i think i will get 5 of the boesemans
3 male 2 female
y more males
i always thought that the females needed to be more

Ideally they do. If you are only doing 5, get all males. Six or more if you want to keep females.


On a side note, rainbows really never stop growing. In the wild, boesemani rainbows rarely exceed 4 inches while in captivity they reach 6. They also can live to be 10 years old.

 

[joshjames]

so how many would i need to get if i wanted females and wat would be the ratio

 

[drobbyb]

so how many would i need to get if i wanted females and wat would be the ratio

3 of each. This spreads the stress around. If you had 4 males and 1 female she could die from the harassment of the males during breeding.

 

[joshjames]

ok so i will get 6 2 male 3 female how can u tell what sex they are

 

[drobbyb]

ok so i will get 6 2 male 3 female how can u tell what sex they are

Generally females are less colorful, smaller, and slimmer. Sometimes it's hard to tell when the fish are young.