Fish: Re: [tropical fish club] Catfish

A few more comments. As Ray pointed out I was not meaning clown loaches in my suggestion for a 30 gallon tank, that would not work for very long. While they are slower growing than many others, they simply get too large and would outgrow that size of a tank rather quickly, most especially if kept in a group. Just as an example, the clown loach I added to my 90 gallon tank only a couple of months ago was about 1 inch long when I added it, and now here we are 2 - 3 months later and it is pushing over 3 inches already. It will eventually be added to my 215 gallon when it's large enough to hold it's own against the bigger fish.

The skunk botia that Ray mentioned is another that I would not suggest for a 30 gallon tank. Size wouldn't be an issue as much as aggression. These guys get pretty nasty when they mature and would leave no options for adding another fish that is suitable in a 30 gallon tank. Skunk locaches are best paired with the small and/or peaceful south & central american cichlids such as firemouths, severum, etc. They will also fight amongst themselves if they feel crowded when they mature, so a group of them in a 30 gallon alone would still likely have issues at some point. They're beautiful but aggressive fish.

The hillstream loaches can be a challenge to keep. They prefer softer water but need a faster current in their water than the average loach in order to do well. This can make it a bit difficult to find suitable tank mates for them as well, since they tend to be quite shy and need a peaceful environment.

Another loach option that wasn't mentioned yet was kuhli loaches. Easy, fun, pretty... and very mild mannered compared to many other loaches. My last kuhli loach was over 13 yrs old when she finally died of old age.

Dawn

Dawn Moneyhan
Aquatics Specialist/Nutritionist
To learn more about me go to
http://www.helium.com/users/449334

--- On Sat, 7/14/12, sevenspringss@wmconnect.com <sevenspringss@wmconnect.com> wrote:

From: sevenspringss@wmconnect.com <sevenspringss@wmconnect.com>
Subject: Re: [tropical fish club] Catfish
To: tropicalfishclub@yahoogroups.com
Date: Saturday, July 14, 2012, 8:10 AM

Alex,

Yes, the Cory, Sterbai is a great looking fish, and quite sought after.

The Emerald Cory (Brochius splendens) is another nice one, but there are a

number of nice smaller ones too. While Dawn did mention Loaches, and in

particular Botia, I'm sure she didn't mean Clown Loaches as they get to beiween

12" and 14". Besides. I'm sure she knows that Clown Loaches are no longer in

the Genus Botia but are now considered as Chromobotia, which may be why she

mentiioned "Botia" without having to expressly exclude this fish.

Some of these Loaches would be my choice too, and especially some of the

smaller ones. Unfortunately I can't think of very many that are really that

small. To name a few though -- and I'll have to include their scientific

names with them, as some share common names -- I'll start with the

Chipmonk/Dwarf (or "Chain") Loach, Botia [Yasuhikotakia] sidthimunki which gets to only

2" -- 3". Yeah, that was a mouthful <g >! Then, in order of size, there's

the Black Line Loach (B. nigrolineatus) at 3 1/4", the Speckletail Loach

(Botia caudopunctata) at 3 1/2", the Skunk Loach (B. morleti) at 3 7/8", the

Zebra (or "Candystripe") Loach (B. striata), followed by the Yo-Yo loach (B.

almorhae [was B. lohachata]) at 4 1/2" and the Burmese.Golden Zebra Loach

(B. histrionica) between 4" and 5".

I realize many hobbyists may prefer not having to use the scientific names,

but there are several Loaches called "striped," "zebra," "barred," "banded"

etc., with these common names often getting used interchangeably by

dealers for similarly looking Loaches. I don't think you'd want to find out next

year that the "small" loaches you bought tomorrow turned out to be a

different one, at 10" long.

There are some other really great looking Botias, but unfortunately some

are suited only for much larger tanks. The Polka-Dot Loach (B. "angelicus" --

more correctly, Botia kubotai) is a gorgeous looking fish, but gets to at

least 6". The Red-Tail, or "Blue" Botia (B. modesta) is a nice looking fish

which is getting more and more popular. However, it too gets to at least

the same size as the Polka-Dot Loach.

There are other small Loaches, not in the Genus Botia, but which are

closely related, and which are equally suitable for a 30 gallon tank. The

Butterfly Hillstream Loach is but one of them -- which gets to only 2" -- 3". As a

reminder, all Corys and most Loaches prefer being in groups.

Ray

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