Can these be together, not normally compatible, but..

Question

i have a male guppy and opaline gourami tank in which both are very happy (no nipping etc...) and i have a smaller african dwarf frog tank with a new betta. I know that bettas(male) can only be with fish that are not colorful, not labyrinth, and dont have long fins. my guppy and gourami break all of these requirements, which is why my betta was in another tank with only frogs.

well my little sister (4 yrs old) was fascinated with my betta and supposedly thought he needed company. she put him in my gourami and guppy tank then came downstairs and proudly told me what she had done, thinking it was a brilliant idea... i ran upstairs to save my new betta, but i watched my betta, and he is so happy in his new tank!!! he doesnt bother the other fish and vise versa, and he loves all the room and all the plants (its a heavily planted tank).

Here's my questions

should i leave him??

the tank is now overcrowded with the betta, will all the live plants help with the ammonia levels? the levels were fine before...

this ones kinda off topic but... does fish waste provide enough fertilization for plants, or do i still ned o supplement my plants??

my gourami is female, full of eggs, and the same size as the betta. bettas and gouramis are both bubble blowers etc... is it possible that they will bread and ill end up with half bettas and half gourami fry??

im not expecting for them to breed... but just wondering...

Thanks!!

Answer 1

Yes, I have a female blue gourami with lots of guppies and platys.. and there is even a male betta in this tank without AnY problems.  If I had a male gourami with my betta there might have been problems tho, of course I've had aggressive female gourami's before too.  I find that one (blue) gourami (generally the most aggressive gourami) works better than having more of them in my tank, this is where I start to see the problems.

  I don't think there will be any problems with your dwarf frogs and your betta either.  Just watch them for a bit.  The dwarf frogs are not territorial so they won't compete with your betta. Only time I have had problems with my Betta in a community is when the other fish is equal or larger size and wants to be in the Betta's territory, when they tend to occupy the same spaces... then my Betta see's this as a threat. Even then it just nudges it away, nothing really ugly!

Even though people will tell you not to do something, it's good to remember that each fish does have a different personality.  BTW, my Betta does not nip at the guppies fins either, however another one might.

I don't know about the breeding of gourami's and betta's, I wouldn't think so tho, but strange things do happen sometimes!

As for your fertilizer: I still add fertilizer with my water changes, I suppose it would depend on the plant itself and how hardy it is.

Yes, the plants will absorb some of the extra ammonia, just continue to check your perameters, adding one extra fish hasn't proved to be a problem for me.  Make sure you do your water changes and still vacuum your substrate.

Happy fish keeping :)

Stacey

Answer 2

wanted 2 points i have no idea what u are talking about :)

Answer 3

my betta is with my gouramis and discus and he is happy happy happy.

Answer 4

Every betta is different as each has their own unique personality.  Some are very aggressive and some are remarkably peaceful for their species.  It's always a dangerous proposition to introduce a betta into a guppy tank because they often mistake male guppies for bettas and consider them rivals.  However, since your betta seems to be fine with your guppies and isn't flaring at them, you should be able to leave him in that tank safely.  Congratulations!  You have an uncommonly peaceful betta!  I have one that I've managed to introduce into a guppy tank as well, but it took some doing and I watched him very carefully to make sure things were fine before I left him alone in there.  All the fish seem happy with things as they are, so he's enjoying a 20 gallon with my guppies, too.

As for your betta breeding with your gourami, no, they cannot crossbreed.  They are both bubblenesters and labyrinth fish, but they are not compatible for breeding purposes.  Bettas don't produce much waste, so your tank shouldn't have a spike or minicycle because of the added bioload.  Just watch your levels and maybe do an additional waterchange if necessary.  Planted tanks can handle a little crowding better than unplanted tanks.

I can't tell you if your plants need supplements or not without knowing what kind of plants you have.  Some plants have more needs than others.  If your plants are easy growing, low maintenance, they should be fine with just basic care - low light, fish waste for ferts and no CO2.  If your plants begin to look sickly, then you might want to try adding some fertilizer and consider upping the amount of light or adding some CO2 for them.  In my case, I have easy plants and add a bit of fertilizer every now and then and my plants do ok.  I have java moss, watersprite, amazon swords, valisneria, wendtii green, wendtii red and an anubias nana (coffefolia).