# Community stocking ideas for new 110gal. long



## Solchitlins (Jul 23, 2003)

Hi there.
Looking for some suggestions for stocking my 110g. long tank.
It's 72" X 18" X 18"

I would like to try to get a decent "community" going with lots of less aggressive fish.

I'm thinking any fish shoud max out at under 5 inches?

I would like a few cool cichlids in there but also lots of pretty upper water dither fish. I also like Bolivian Rams, Cory Cats, Geo's, Maybe an Angel or 2, etc...........
Geo's get too big though..

I'm planing on using 3m colorquartz S grade sand.
I 'm running 2 ac110's and an emperor 400, for now 
and I have a huge peice of malaysian drift wood that I will probally have to split in two to get it to fit in the tank. So there will be a ton of driftwood in this tank. I might anchor a few plants on to the driftwood but not many.

Also I have a trade in the works with a breeder that has a big list of fish but not much on the sa/ca side. It would be nice to utilize some of his fish though if possible.

http://www.vaughnfisheries.com/pb/wp..._f1c915ab.html

He also said he has a large group of long tailed Ruby or Rosey Barbs I think? 
any suggestions on possibilities with the breeders list of fish.
I would like to take advantage of this trade situation if possible?

Some of the ones that sound like they might work to me are:
Aequidens Matae or Maroni key hole, Pulcher Kribensis, long tailed rosy or ruby barbs and he has a ton of differn't angels?

Any help is appreciated.
Thanks.
Greg


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## HiImSean (Apr 5, 2007)

> I would like a few cool cichlids in there but also lots of pretty upper water dither fish. I also like Bolivian Rams, Cory Cats, Geo's, Maybe an Angel or 2, etc...........
> Geo's get too big though..


sounds like a good stock list. a group of smaller geos, like red heads, would be awesome!

id go with 4-5 red heads, 3 rams, some cories and a few angles. some schooling fish like rummy nose tetras would do great. if your wanting to plants geos wouldnt be the best idea though.

post some pics when you set it up, sounds like a killer tank idea!


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## DeadFishFloating (Oct 9, 2007)

G'day *Solchitlins*,

Man your tank is screaming out Bolivian Biotope, atleast fish found in the Rio Mamore drainage system.

Cichlids:
Mickrogeophagus altispinosa x 3 pairs
Laetacara dorsigera x 2 pairs
Apistogramma trifasciata x 1 trio

Tetras:
Spotted hatchetfish - Gasteropelecus maculatus x 12+
Threestripe pencilfish - Nannostomus trifasciatus x 12+
Black phantom tetra - Hyphessobrycon megalopterus x 15+

Catfish:
Bristlenose catfish - Ancistrus sp. x 2 best algea eating catfish around.
Dwarf corydoras - Corydoras hastatus 15+
Otocinclus vittatus x 8
Whiptail Catfish - Rineloricaria beni x 2


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## Solchitlins (Jul 23, 2003)

that sounds like awesome advice Deadfishfloating, Thanks.

Wondering,
it might be hard for me to find some of those.

Can I switch out the red breast acara for yellow acaras or keyhole cichlids?
That way I can ulilize my trade deal with the breeder I have in the works?

Also can any Apistogramma do? I'm not famillar with dwarf cichlids, might be hard to find.

But this seems like a great setup.


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## DeadFishFloating (Oct 9, 2007)

G'day *Solchitlins*,

I haven't heard the trade name _Yellow Acara_ before. I can only think you mean Bujurquina vittata. I'm not familair with these guys aggression levels, but they are a fair bit larger than dorsigera. Keyholes I am familiar with, and they are probably the mellowist dwarf acara I've kept.

Mate, as I'm in Oz, I don't know your local LFS, but I have seen quite a few people on here talking about a very good LFS in Detriot (I think) that specializes in apistos.

As for any apisto, I almost always reccommend agassizii. There are quite a few wild varients, and even more line bred variants. However trifasciata are generally one of the more commonly available apistos.

Hope this helps


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## jcushing (Apr 6, 2008)

keyholes are great community cichlids, but they might try to eat dwarf cories, those are real small. mine tried to eat some real small adolfoi corys (they were babys)

if your not hung up on a biotope specific setup, 1 or 2 pairs of keyholes, bolivian rams, 6-10 cories, 8ish ottos, and maybe 20-30 rummynose tetras would make a nice setup, but you could certianly swap out the keyholes, and bolivians for apistos, and laetacaras, and rummynose for any type of tetra really. keyholes, bolivians, laetacaras, and apistos will all utilize the same part of the tank so id pick 2


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## Solchitlins (Jul 23, 2003)

well I guess I will pick either the Aequidens Metae or Keyhole to start with because I want to ultilize that trade situation.

I should pick just one of these cichlids if I still want cory cats and bolivian rams right?

Then I'll build from there.
Maybe I should go with a regular cory and not a dwarf cory?


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## RayQ (Sep 26, 2007)

Just remember that most cories won't appreciate the warmer water that most of your cichlid choices will - Sterbai may be a good choice for that. Somenting a little different could be a small group of Geo. Steindachneri (red hump geophagus) they aren't monsters but I would suggest deeper bodied tetras with them instead of say rummmy nose. They are also a little more waspy than the other choices but they have the really cool mouth brooding coupled with harem spawining. Just a little more food for thought :thumb:

Ray


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## dwarfpike (Jan 22, 2008)

I'd stay away from _Aequindens metae_ ... there are True acaras ... ie get big and are a bit rougher on tankmates than dwarf acaras or mouthbrooding acaras.

Also, if you do go the _'Geophagus' steindachneri_ route, I'd avoid the the keyholes. They just aren't emotionally equiped to handle those geos. :lol:

Check your pm, I sent a link to a somewhat LFS that is the bee's knees for cichlids. :thumb:


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## Solchitlins (Jul 23, 2003)

Ok well I'll forget about those bigger acara's then.


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## Vincent (May 7, 2004)

Bujurquina vittata is fairly peaceful. I've had 2 pairs in a 4ft tank and there's very little aggression. They would probably appreciate lower temperatures, though.


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## Solchitlins (Jul 23, 2003)

I ended up trading in some overgrown fish to the pet sore:
I picked up:

Juvi's of

3 Mascara Barbs

4 Geo's, can't remember what I got, they showed me the adults in a book. spossed to get 5 inch max and looked redish brown, from columbia and started with a "P"??

and 
1 brown bristle nose pleco
1 ambino bristle nose pleco

I didn't have money to buy anything else.

So now I'm looking to build from here.


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## dwarfpike (Jan 22, 2008)

Probably listed as _'Geophagus' pellegrini_ ... which means could be either _'Geophagus' crassilabris, 'Geophagus' pellegrini, _or _'Geophagus' steindachneri_. Steiny is most likely, the other two are very rare but not unheard of. :thumb:


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## Solchitlins (Jul 23, 2003)

I asked for 'Geophagus' steindachneri" and he said they didn't have any but these were simular in size, attitude and care.


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## dwarfpike (Jan 22, 2008)

All three are very similiar, are in their own subgroup of 'Geophagus.' Somewhat boisterous, work well with larger south americans or small central americans. Intermediate mouthbrooders, best to have a 1:3 male to female ratio. They are rough on females.


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## Solchitlins (Jul 23, 2003)

ok thanks.
they were in this book:








So did I do ok?
Is Bolivian Rams and Corry Cats out of question now?
Should I get more of these geo's in the future and weed out the extra males? 
Or maybe get another small group of red hump geo's to add?

Or should I switch gears and add just more dither type fish?
thanks

there so small right now but here's a video of them, you can see one for a breif moment at about 1:50


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## dwarfpike (Jan 22, 2008)

The bolivians might be iffy, but your tank is a good size. Those metae are back in play now, they'd work well with the geo's you got. As for how many or more, depends on what you have now of course, which you might not know until they color up.


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## DeadFishFloating (Oct 9, 2007)

Hey *Solchitlins* & *dwarfpike*,

I'll leave the geo I.D. well alone untill we get to see some photo's, but I do think *dwarfpike* is probably right. There are only a couple of choices for geos from Colombia, and I think the only geo not mentioned is Surinamensis.

As for Aequidens metae, great looking cichlid, but I do think there is some conjecture is to thier potential full size. Most profiles have them listed in the 4 to 5 inch range. However there has been plenty of discussion on the CRC site, as quite a few keepers of A. metae and A. diadema have had them reach around the 8 to 9 inch mark. Here's a link to one thread I found, Aequidens metae.


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## Solchitlins (Jul 23, 2003)

I will probally have to wait a month or so to tell.

here's a vid I took.






My guess is that baby Geo's probally look the same.

I have been reading that these geo's can be real agressive so I will probally have to come up with some new stocking plans.

There in my 75g. now while I set up the 6 foot tank.
If they are pellegrini can they go with a group of crassilabris or steindachneri?

I found some steindachneri on aquabid but the guys local to me so maybe I should get some more while there all the same size?

I went in the store with plans of Bolivian Rams but they were sold out, 
then I saw all the neat Geo's, but they all get too big for what I want so I settled with these because they don't get as large. They only had 4 but should get some more soon.

but thats cool with me. I'm happy however it turns out.


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## RayQ (Sep 26, 2007)

WOW! I would say that they are certainly a Steindachneri type - id won't really be possible w/o more mature fish and clearer photos. It's very cool that you found some, I have been looking to get a group agian for a while - just not common in my area anymore. When I was a kid working at the pet store, there was always a tank full - great breeders and tonnes of fun to watch. They can be a bit boisterous, but, mostly with each other I see that you have no live plants, a great dither with them are "silver dollar" types, or the bigger bodied tetras.

Congrats on the new fish and have fun with them!

Ray


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## dwarfpike (Jan 22, 2008)

I wouldn't mix together any combo of the 3 Stieny types ... they look enough alike to cause aggression and possible hybridization. Deffinately look like one of the 3 though. :thumb:

The metae would work in the 110 (they can get at least 9", the largest I've seen in person) as would a pair of blue acaras, or port cichlids, or a differant true acara like patricki (one of the smaller true acaras at 6"). Other options would be any of the mouthbrooding acaras (_Bujurquina vitatta_ is the most common) or the incan stonefish (_Tahuantinsuyoa macantzatza_).

If they turn out to be _'Geophagus' crassilabris_ which are from panama, you could base it around blue acaras (_'Aequindens' latifrons_ or _'Aq.' coeruleopunctatus_ (which is a cool, red finned blue acara species) as well as central americans from the same area like _Cryptoheros panamensis_ or _Cryptoheros myrnae_ along with either _Astatheros rhytisma, A. altifrons,_ or _A. calobrensis._

Even if they aren't crassilabris, they look enough alike if you like the central/south mix to still do it.


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## Solchitlins (Jul 23, 2003)

yeah, I'm sort of dissapoined I bought the Mascara Barbs and did not go with Columbian Tetras or Emperor Tetras to keep the tank atleast correct to South America. I forgot Barbs were from Asia. Can I add larger tetra with these big barbs?

I'm going to a couple LFS today to pick up some food. I'll keep an eye out for some tankmates.

So if I understand correctly, I'm looking for a couple peacefull Acara's that max out at under 6", for example, Laetacara dorsigera "red breasted acara or blue acaras?
or a couple port cichlids or incan stonefish? I think I have seen the incan stonefish at this shop before.

Also should I wait on adding anything like corry cats untill I know what type of Geo's I have for sure?

Thanks
Greg


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## dwarfpike (Jan 22, 2008)

If you are adding more geo's, you might not need cories ... but then a large group of cories always does look cool, needed or not. I haven't kept those particular barbs, so I am unfamiliar with their temperment. Odds are colombian tetras would be fine if asked to place bets though.

Any of those acaras should work out fine ... if you are interested in Colombian acaras just to match, look for _Aequidens metae, 'Aequidens' biseriatus, 'Aequidens' latrifrons, Bujurquina peregrinabunda, _or _Bujurquina mariae_.


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## Solchitlins (Jul 23, 2003)

so,
I went to 2 pretty good LFS' and couldn't find any Acara's, the girl said they used to get all differn't kinds of Aequidens but it's a shame because they don't really sell.
They had a buy 2 get one free thing going,
So I got:

3 more Mascara barbs
3 tiny Inca stone fish, she thought they were pretty rare?
and
6 Congo Tetra's that are really pretty. From Africa I just read...

ok so now I have 3 continents going so I guess it's not a South American tank any more. lol

I think when the 6 foot tank is ready if I get a couple more of the same Geo's and maybe 6 corry cats and I'm pretty stocked up.

Anything else that I should get.

total so far:
....................
3x Incan stone fish
6x mascara barbs
6x congo tetras
4 Geo Pellegrini
2 bristlenose pleco's

I should add that the first store I went to had awesome Gymnogeophagus Blue Neon and Gymnogeophagus Sp. Norte , it would be awesome if some of those could mix in?

if not then I guess I'm allready planning my next tank.


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## DeadFishFloating (Oct 9, 2007)

G'day *Solchitlins*,

Gymno's need a significant cool down period during winter. They are best not mixed with cichlids from northern SA. Though once you move the fish in your 75g to the 125g, you could look at a group of 4 or 5 in your 4 footer.


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## Solchitlins (Jul 23, 2003)

hmm.

I let the fish settle in for a few hours then I turned on the lights and started watching them.

I'm allmost certain I got ripped off.
I'm sure it was an accident, but upon closer inspection one of my 6 new Congo Tetras appears to be not a Congo at all, looks like a silver minnow of some sort.

It's the smallest of the bunch but still, the tail shape is differn't, has more of an upper cut to the adomin and is a very plain transluctent silver. I can see it's organs and the others are not like that.

Plus like I said the tail is a > where the others have 3 prong tails.

I guess I should return it, these guys were $10 a peice even if 2 out of the 6 were free from the sale, thats still alot of money for a silver minnow.

bummer.


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## dwarfpike (Jan 22, 2008)

Can you post pics? Congos do look differant when small, and won't get their color until larger and settled into a low light tank. The extensions on the tail don't grow in until larger as well. You could be right, but a pic would help.


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## Solchitlins (Jul 23, 2003)

can be seen here at 00:45


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## dwarfpike (Jan 22, 2008)

Yeah, it looks completely differant than the other congo's at 1:05 ... similiar shape but nothing else looks the same. So unless it's quite a bit smaller, probably was just something netted out accidently.


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## Solchitlins (Jul 23, 2003)

I guess it turns out its a female.
I was at pet supplies plus today and they had congo's for $1.99
Man mine are better but still $10 at LFS compaired to $1.99 at the corporate store no wonder LFS cant compete.


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