Stock Help

[FishLoverGirl]

Will 5 longfin serape tetra, 5 black phantom tetra, 6 zebra danios, 3 platies, 1 Julie cories, 2 peppered cories, 1 swordtail, 2 guppies, and 3 otocinclus be okay in a 60 gallon tank?

 

[Byron]

In a word--no.  Now to explain, and as I don't know your level of knowledge, pardon me if I state what may already be known to you.
 
Tetra, danio, cories and otocinclus are shoaling fish, which means they live together in very large groups.  The groups can be much smaller in an aquarium than they ever would be in nature, but at this point we come to differences between species.  And, when the aquarium size allows, it is absolutely always better to have more than fewer of any shoaling fish (there are a few exceptions, but not with the fish mentioned here).  I'll take the catfish types first.
 
Otos seem to manage with fewer, and while I would aim for five minimum, I have had success with three.  However, leave these to last in stocking, as they always settle in better in an established tank.  Established is different from cycled, and means a tank that has been running with fish (and plants, assuming these) for a couple months at minimum.
 
Cories shold have five-six of a species minimum, but with more than one species you can jiggle this a bit.  But in your case, with just the two species, and given the tank size, a group of 9-12 cory would be much better.  You can have 3-5 of each species, or more of each species.
 
Now to the tetra and danio.  Danio at six is fine, though as you have the space I would add a couple more, say 8-9 total.  The Black Phantom do better with more, and perhaps 5 male and 4-5 female would be nice here.  The Serpae is trouble.  This is a known fin nipper, and can best be kept safely in groups of 10 or more.  However, sedate fish should not be included in their aquarium, so having these will (or may) limit or prevent other fish.  I personally would avoid Serpae, and if you like their colouration consider one of the related but much friendlier species such as the Rosy, Roberti, etc.  These will also shoal with the Black Phantom, since they are biologically very closely related.
 
The livebearers have no shoaling issues, but here you are best to have males only; females will be hounded by males (if present), and continually producing dozens of fry.  Swordtails get large, but you have the space.  Though once you have decided on the shoaling fish numbers, you may need to reconsider everything.
 
Hope this helps.
 
Byron.

 

[FishLoverGirl]

If I got rid of the serpae tetras and got 3 more black phantoms, 2 more zebra danios, 2 more cories and 1 more otocinclus would that be okay?

 

[Gvilleguy]

Fishlovergirl - Byron's advice seems right on, so I won't add to that. But I would say that you will also notice much more interesting behavior when you maintain larger shoals of just a few types rather than trying to get 1 - 2 of many different types. Good luck with everything.

 

[fluttermoth]

I concur too

Fishlovergirl; you have plenty of space, in a 60 gallon tank, to have eight or ten of all your shoaling species. Don't forget that, in the wild, all these fish live in groups of many hundreds, or even thousands, so six or eight really are bare minimum numbers for them to be 'happy' (although that is a difficult thing to define in fish) and exhibit their natural behaviours.

 

[Byron]

If I got rid of the serpae tetras and got 3 more black phantoms, 2 more zebra danios, 2 more cories and 1 more otocinclus would that be okay?

 
As other members have said, increasing each species by even more will make quite a difference.  I really would not go below 10-12 for the Black Phantom, and the cories (whether species or mixed).

 

[FishLoverGirl]

The only thing I would be really worried about is overstocking the tank

 

[Byron]

The only thing I would be really worried about is overstocking the tank

 
As I suggested in post #2, with the increased numbers, and without the Serpae, it would help to perhaps re-think things.  If you could post your revised plan, we could see if there may be issues.
 
Having said that, the effect of numbers of fish on the bioload (what we mean by overstocking, etc) is affected by other factors that many aquarists do not realize are part of this issue.  With shoaling fish for example, having more can have less impact than fewer.  This is because shoaling fish are "happier" with more of the species present, and this means they are under less stress, more "relaxed" if you like, and thus impact less on the biology.  Obviously one can't push this too far, and live plants, water changes, and not overfeeding are all factors as well.  As is the behaviour of the fish species; "peaceful" fish in a community of peaceful fish also impact less on the biology that would be the case if fish that are more "aggressive" are present--this is where the Serpae come in again.  Ten Serpae will impact more on the biology than will ten black phantom, all else being equal, yet these two fish are pretty much the same in size.
 
This is why working out a stocking for any given tank is a challenge; one has to consider water parameters, fish behaviour, the requirements of each species (if they need wood, or sand, or lots of hiding places, or strong current or little current, etc) as part of the equation.  And I haven't even mentioned mere numbers here, which is the last factor to consider after all the rest have been worked out.
 
Byron.

 

[FishLoverGirl]

how about 8 black phantom tetras, 8 zebra danios, 3 Julie cories, 3 peppered cories, 4 platies, and 1 swordtail?

 

[Gvilleguy]

I think the cories would prefer their own kind. Not sure you would see them as happy in a mixed group versus just picking 6 of one kind or the other. Google it. Most threads I found say that they will tolerate each other but not be very social. But I have not tried this myself. I only ever had peppered cories.

 

[Byron]

I am not going to continue to belabour this, but I do honestly suggest more cories.  At least a dozen.  This will make a great difference to them.  So with the two species, six of each.  Other numbers are fine, though I would up the black phantom to 10 with male/female ration about even.