Over-crowding?

[sharkybubba]

hey guys,

was wondering if anyone knew how many is too many fish as a rule of thumb?

(i have a 2ft, 60 litre tank if anyone wants to use my tank as an example!) :wink:

[wombat1100]

Its all dependent on the quantity and quality of filtration and water circulation/changes from what i can tell, I have had alot of fish in tanks before, some may say too many but I always have a canister filter at least twice as big as needed and although others don't like air in their tanks i always have lots of bubbles circulating the water so as there is a constant change of surface contact with the natural air.

[bert]

I agree with wombat about the filtration, but it also depend on the types of fish you wanted to keep!

[joz]

My thought are more regarding the stress levels on your fish.
Water quality can be controlled by filtration and maintenance but stress is something else.

Must say a busy tank can be entertaining,but I prefer fish having their own space with lots of plants and architecture with rocks and wood.

[ebonairre]

My thought are more regarding the stress levels on your fish.
Water quality can be controlled by filtration and maintenance but stress is something else.

Must say a busy tank can be entertaining,but I prefer fish having their own space with lots of plants and architecture with rocks and wood.[/b]

I agree - if you plant right, with different heights and holes/rocks, etc, everyone has their own areas. For instance, my catfish has his submarine that sits on the gravel with two or three holes underneath that he likes to hide under. He's happy doing the cleaning in other parts of the tank but that's his home. The danios live mainly in the water up the top, where theres a space created by ornaments and planting. It's also the place of highest flow where the trickle filter falls into - they prefer the faster flowing water. The Barbs tend to live in the middle level section of the tanks, the platies like to hover in and around the tall plant leaves/fronds. And the sole Paradise fish just does as he pleases. The barbs had pecking order issues when first introduced to the tank but kept it to their own species. All in all, there's a fairly natural spread of fish and no one seems 'stressed'.

Basically, what you need to look as far as species go is how well they live in a community tank and also, how well the males and females of the same species get on together with more than one male/female in the same tank. I have a fairly simple setup at the moment but if you're looking for a setup with a wide variety of species, you are best doing a bit of research into who gets on with who, if they like living in a school (I've got ten danios) or are happy to live with just one or two of their own species or even if they're happy being the only one of their species in the tank.

I also agree with Wombat on the filtration - I have a top trickle filter that does a fantastic job keeping the tank clean and also, as mentioned above, gives a fairly strong current flow around the tank, with plenty of bubbles to circulate oxygen (also, with the filter process taking place outside of the tank, there is a much greater access to the oxygen present in the atmosphere). Like Wombat said, the quality of your filtering system/water changing will dictate how many fish you can keep. The more fish, the more waste. A lot of the ready made tanks these days have fantastic trickle filters built into the lids (I love this setup, as being a health worker doing shift work, it's very easy for me to maintain my tank) but others prefer different types of canister filters/gravel filters. It just depends on what you prefer really.


Enough babbling from me :) let us know how you get on!

Anna

[wombat1100]

Great reply Anna , I have to agree with you on all counts, the biggest thing is research as you said when setting up a community tank, but when it comes to keeping specific breeds like cichlids for instance you must make sure they get along and ALL have access to their own hidey holes,otherwise the result is carnage!
So then that also dictates the amount of fish u can keep in you aquarium.
Dazz

[sharkybubba]

thanks everyone for your reply, as most of you know my tank is well and truly set up with what feels like tonnes of fish but reading that i feel assured that im still in the 'safety zone'!

[bettamuse]

As above I think Anna has got it spot on.

Personally I also look for fish that use different levels of the tank. Always look at a community tank as having 3 layers. Top, middle and bottom, then try to get fish that will use all three. Also look for fish that like similar water parameters.

Top layer,
Halfbeaks, croaking and sparkling gouramis. Hatchet fish.

Middle,
For a slow moving tank.: Neon's , cardinal , rummy nose tetras, Rathberny blood fins (the best coloured blood fin in my opinion) Most tetras, pencil fish.

For a fast moving tank: Danios (any kind) I prefer the redfin zebra, Black ruby bards, Silvertip tetras, cherry barbs.

Bottom,
Rams, Appistograma, kribensis, loaches, cories ,Rainbow sharks,

Then there is the all surfaces type fish that don't actually take up any of the water column but fall into the bottom dwellers,
These are, Otto's , bristlenose , whiptail cat, twig cats, and some of the smaller plecos like L168.



If you plan the tank out well it can look very busy but not be overstocked.

Cheers.
BM