# 65 gallon stocking idea... what would you choose?



## gherlevi (Dec 16, 2004)

So, I've got a 65 gallon tank empty that my wife suggested we set up in the basement!

I've had this tank empty because I upgraded to a 125. This 65 gallon tank is only 3 ft. long, so it's footprint is a bit limited. However, it is pretty tall, with 2 more in. height than the 125.

So...

Help me think outside of the box. What would you stock in this thing? Malawi, Tang, South American, breeding setup, non-breeding... let's hear it! Only thing I'd nix is mbuna, as I've got that covered already.

Thanks in advance!


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## mithesaint (Oct 31, 2006)

All male peacock tank.


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## gherlevi (Dec 16, 2004)

that's not a bad idea...

My other thought was a peacock breeding tank.

Any tips for keeping an all-male peacock tank with each male displaying? I tried a hap/peacock mix before, and most males "low on the totem pole" were pretty drab.

Is it possible to have two breeding groups in the same 65 gallon tank (being careful to avoid hybridization, of course)?

Pretty good idea! Any others?


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## gherlevi (Dec 16, 2004)

whoops. double post.


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## mithesaint (Oct 31, 2006)

Well, I've never done it, so I can't give you too much useful advice. I'm pretty sure there's an article in the library about it, but haven't read it in awhile.

I'd think that you'd need a bunch of different species to pull it off, so that each fish is the only one of their species, and thus the dominant male. Could be wrong though.


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## gherlevi (Dec 16, 2004)

OK, let me try to narrow this down a bit. Here's some different ideas I'm thinking about... tell me if any are impractical given a 3 ft. long tank. If you check out my signature, you have an idea of what I've had success with so far. I know the Malawi's some tangs, and very little about new world cichlids.

What do you think about...

1. a peacock or small hap breeder setup. Pros--definitely doable. Cons--been there, done that.
2. a tropheus species tank. Pros--fun challenge. Cons--footprint too small?
3. an angelfish and/or severum or festivum setup. Pros--new challenge. Cons--too slow/boring?
4. some other new world tankmate TBD?

Please share your thoughts or other ideas!


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## hollyfish2000 (Aug 23, 2007)

A tall tank calls out for being a planted angel tank. Plants add a nice challenge and frankly are more difficult than fish and give you room to "play around" with the tank even when the fish are established. You could get a group of 5 or 6 angels and let them pair off. I believe if planted and landscaped properly, you can do two breeding pairs. I find my two planted angel tanks to be very beautiful. I also have schools of tetras, cories and BNs in mine.


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## gherlevi (Dec 16, 2004)

Thanks Hollyfish for the response!

That's certainly something I'm considering. A few questions:

1. what about festivum with the angels?
2. What substrate for a planted tank?
3. Any types of plants you'd recommend for a newbie to a planted tank?

I've never tried live plants, and so this would definitely be a first!


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## hollyfish2000 (Aug 23, 2007)

I don't know about the festivum as I've not kept them. One other thought in addition to a pair of angels is a group of Bolivian Rams. They are pretty boisterous and full of personality.

I use Eco-Complete (for planted tanks, not the African cichlid version) mixed with regular gravel as a substrate. It is attractive, easy to plant and provides nutrients for the plants so that you don't have to fertilize the water column as much. It is a bit pricey.

Some nice, easy plants: anubias, java fern, vals, swords, wisteria, onion plants (crinium), and crypts. The first two are particularly easy as you don't actually plant them, but tie them down to rocks or wood. Anubias can be expensive, but if you go online and buy large anubias, they are instant tank-fillers and I've found them very easy to keep. Vals are another favorite of mine. They spread through runners along the substrate and grow to and run along the top. They are particularly nice with angels, which can swim between the fronds. I do like swords, too, and angels will lay eggs on the leaves.

I love the challenge of planted tanks. You will definitely need a bristlenose pleco for algae control in a planted tank. The biggest challenge, once you get everything established and growing, is balancing the light, C02 and nutrients in such a way as to minimize black beard and hair algae. But that's another post . . .


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## gherlevi (Dec 16, 2004)

Thanks so much for the suggestions. Much appreciated!


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## niccomau (Oct 14, 2008)

an all male peacock tank would be really nice. Lots of different colors, and nice size fish. Most of the all male tanks I've seen are really neat as the peacocks seem to swim in the middle area of the tank, almost schooling together :thumb: Depends on what you want out of a tank really.


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## gherlevi (Dec 16, 2004)

Niccomau...

Any tips on keeping the males in an all-male vibrant and colorful? My past experience led me to believe that the result is more likely one vibrant alpha male, a fairly colorful beta male, and some drab peons. If there's a remedy to this, I'd be willing to give it a shot.


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## lotsofish (Feb 28, 2008)

I'd have to agree on angels because they look great in a tall tank. You can put in a few Bolivian Rams or Apistos and make sure to get a half dozen cory cats for their great entertainment value.


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## niccomau (Oct 14, 2008)

I don't have a big enough tank...yet...to take a crack at an all male tank. But I did start a thread out of curiousity. http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=182814&highlight= You might want to ask one of the people that replied or just ask on the thread itself. There's also purty pictures  I think for some types of fish, being the dominant male in the tank is required for coloration. Like C. afra.

"I'd think that you'd need a bunch of different species to pull it off, so that each fish is the only one of their species, and thus the dominant male."

I'm inclined to agree with Mithesaint (i've heard this more than once haunting the forums)


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## moi_eater (Jul 11, 2004)

gherlevi said:


> Any tips on keeping the males in an all-male vibrant and colorful? My past experience led me to believe that the result is more likely one vibrant alpha male, a fairly colorful beta male, and some drab peons. If there's a remedy to this, I'd be willing to give it a shot.


The only male in my tank (see sig) not showing full color is the P. taeniolatus, most likely because he has similar colors to the "alpha" male N. fuscotaeniatus. All the other males show full color and I don't have a lot of different species. I believe the trick is to try to keep species with different coloration.


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## gherlevi (Dec 16, 2004)

I like your thinking moi_eater...

Is your all-male setup the 125 though? I think the extra space might help. In a 65 gallon, 3 ft long, I worry that one or two will dominate and suppress the others. Space makes a lot more possible!


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## moi_eater (Jul 11, 2004)

It's mostly male, not all male  (stocking in sig), which you think would cause the males with females to show more aggression towards the others, but the most aggression in my tank is between the peacocks. Though the aggression they show isn't enough to do any major damage.

It's true that space makes a lot more possible, but if you have enough differently colored fish to keep the aggression spread around, they should all color up nicely. You could start off with a large group of younger males that are just coloring up, and remove any that show too much aggression as they grow up.

Otherwise the suggestions of a planted tank would be a nice change of pace/scenery from African Rift Lake cichlids. I just setup a 55g planted for my wife. I just gotta try to convince her to let me put in some dwarf cichlids after she gets her schools of tetras and little catfish in.


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## gherlevi (Dec 16, 2004)

moi_eater, your stock list looks very cool. I was fairly committed to setting up my 125 with mbuna... mostly because a botched attempt with mbuna was my first tank, and I wanted to atone for my past mistakes!!

Big difference that 4 years of fishkeeping and research makes...

I'm not ruling out peacocks... but I might try the other route and try a breeding group. Actually, all these ideas are leading to choosing:

1. One peacock group and one mild-mannered Vic group.
2. A tropheus species tank.
3. A planted angelfish and ram tank, as described in this post.

question for the planted tank: do I need any equipment other than strong, capable lighting in the right spectrum? I'd focus on only the most hardy plant types, as I'm a total plant noobie.

...and thanks to all the previous posters... I really appreciate the time and the ideas.


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## niccomau (Oct 14, 2008)

there are lots of hardier plants species that require less than 2 watts per gallon of light. I used to keep a high light tank, but got tired of trimming and pruining back the fast growers. So now I stick with Java Fern/Moss, Crypts, Anubias, Vals- and I don't really have to add ferts to the tank. You can use flourish tabs or mix in some flourite (or laterite) for any root feeding plants. If you want more info on plants here's one of my favorite websites http://www.plantgeek.net There is a plant guide that will give you a list of plant species according to requirements. Lowlight and Difficulty are two good categories to start with. And if you do go with the planted idea, Angels with rams are a great idea. I love German Blue Rams, but Bolivian Rams are cute as well.


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## hollyfish2000 (Aug 23, 2007)

Other equipment -- a timer for the lights.

I personally also like pressurized C02 but I have 3 WPG, which is a higher wattage that works better with C02. I don't have experience with lower light although all the plants that I mentioned as being easy are all in my two planted tanks. One thing, though -- you do have a tall tank, so light is going to have a harder time getting all the way to the bottom (my planted tanks are also tall tanks) so that might change the light requirements a bit.

Don't be afraid to jump right into plants! The best thing to do is really heavily plant the tank from the get-go so that you have plants outcompeting the algae from day one.


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