new 40 breeder stock?

[fishman13]

Already got a lot of red cherry shrimp and I am tired of them.
So looking for a cichlid that breeds and forms colonies that will work well with valisneria,brushmouths, and pygme catfish. Any thoughts and if you have the cichlids I am looking for and you are whanting to part with them maybe we could work something out? Thanks

 

[Frank Cowherd]

Well, lots of possibilities.

If you start with small angelfish, they will not bother the pygmys when they grow up and they will likely breed. German blue rams are another cichlid that would do so without tearing up your plants. And black banded sunfish, although not really a cichlid, would do well as would some of the other dwarf sunfish. Also there is a very large variety of apistogrammas that could work particularly if your tank is on the acidic side of neutral. All the others I mentioned will do well in acid or neutral or slightly basic.

 

[fishman13]

how many breeding pairs of rams can i keep in the 40 breeder?

 

[fishman13]

do you have 6 juvenile angles that you would be willing to part with?

 

[Frank Cowherd]

The number of pairs of German blue rams in a 40 breeder depends on how it is set up. Growing them out with no intention of spawning them I have kept over 15 pairs in a single tank. They still managed to spawn a few times but none of the eggs survived. Reasonably, in a well planted tank with a few open spaces, you could keep three pairs. Dividing the tank into three spaces with rocks and plants would be the way to do it. As long as the water quality is maintained while the fish are being fed well, spawning is almost a certainty. Raising some of the fry in the same tank, really depends on how dense the plantings are and how many hiding places there are.