Stocking 55 Gallon

[CommunityTanks]

I will be setting up a 55 gallon soon and have a question about the stocking.

I currently have two platies, two balloon belly mollies, three danios, and four zebra danios that I will include in the tank.

Here is a proposed list (all is good according to ##150###)

5-6 Black Skirt Tetras

3 Ballon Belly Mollies

5-6 Zebra Danios

3 Dwarf or Honey Gouramis (maybe)

3-4 Bronze Cory's

2 German Blue Rams

1 Angelfish

I would also be interested in Cherry Barbs but I think my tank stocking is pretty busy enough right now.

What do you think?

 

[fluttermoth]

The black skirt tetras can be very nippy; if your wanting to risk an angel in there (and you sohuld only consider angels if your tank is 18" or more deep, as they can get very tall) you'd want to up those to 10 or 12; the danios and cories should also be in larger groups that your suggesting; six at the absolute minimum, but a dozen is better.

 

[CommunityTanks]

My black skirts I have right now are not too aggressive towards my other fish. If I were to up the number of Danios to 8 and Cories to 6 would I still have room for the other fish?

Do you think the tank is too busy?

 

[fluttermoth]

The black skirts might not be nippy to the fish you have now, but they could very well be towards something as slow moving as an angel.

Yes, you'd be fine if you up the shoals; you do have a fair bit of space to play with.

Personally, I'd have more of less species, but that's how I stock (I think it looks better and the fish are 'happier' and act more naturally in larger shoals; don't forget in the wild these fish live in shoals of hundreds or even thousands); other people like less fish of lots of different species.

 

[CommunityTanks]

Yeah, I might scrap one of the schooling species. But I do want a fair bit of variety.

 

[fluttermoth]

Fair enough! My mum's the same

 

[CommunityTanks]

Fair enough! My mum's the same

I like less variety in smaller tanks, but more in larger. Go figure.

Anyways, thanks for the help.