Help me decide which fish would go best together?

Question

I have a 30 gallon tank which currently houses 3 zebra danios. I also have one male betta currently in a bowl as I was told by the pet store to not add him to the tank until there are more than just the busy danios in there. Tomorrow I am getting some cory cats (which I want to end up with 6 of). Here are the other fish I really like. Please tell me which would go best with the fish I already have/am about to purchase.

-Red glofish danios (are these bad?...some say no big deal and some have said genetically altered fish are "mean" to have)

-Tetras (either neon or cardinal)

-Cherry barbs

-Rasbora

-Glass Shrimp

-Red Cherry Shrimp

Also, I was told to end up with at least 6 danios because they like to school....will the zebra danios school with ANY other danios or do they have to be zebra?

Thanks!

Answer 1

The male Betta will be fine as long as you have a larger number of Danios. I suggest having at least 6 Danios. Typically different types of Danios will swim together accept the larger Giant Danios.The colored Danios will be fine but the color fades with time.

You could get 6 Cory Catfish for your tank. They will be fine with the Danios and Betta. I suggest, Peppered, Panda or Bronze Corydoras.

Some Good Tetras are Lemon Tetras or Black Phantom Tetras. You will need to get a group of 6 or more of those if you get any.

Rasboras will be fine also. Harlequin and Scissor-Tail Rasboras are my favorites. Rasboras also like to live in groups so you would need 6 or more of them.

I personally wouldn't get Barbs or any Shrimp. I never really cared for Barbs and Shrimp could end up being fish snacks.

So I would personally go with 3 more Danios, a group of 6 Cory Catfish and 6 - 8 of the Tetras or Harlequin Rasboras.

Answer 2

Betta are good with harlequin rasboras, cory cats, and the peaceful cherry barbs, but be cautious about the danios - they love to chase each other around and some are known to nip at fins (especially long ones). They should be fine with the betta but keep a close eye the first couple of days..

Many tetras get antsy and stressed around other fast moving fish such as the danios, so keep an eye on them too.

However, both neon and cardinal tetras will try to eat the cherry shrimp, and both types of shrimp are very tempting to a hungry/aggressive betta. Ghost shrimp are also known to eat any smaller/sink shrimp.

I personally see no big deal in the glofish as the alteration does not change the fish in any way except in color. They are just altered zebra danios.

Also, zebra danios will school with other types of danios (but giant danios tend to keep to themselves).

Hope that wasn't too confusing; good luck! =)

Answer 3

I dunno if the glofish are illegal in the US. BUT, according to their *manufacurers*, it is illegal to breed them yourself. There has been a lot of controversy about that fish. FYI there are fluorescent rats made from the same technolgy as glofish. The fluorescent gene comes from some type of jellyfish. I would suggest to add glofish, rasboras and cherry barbs as these fish are all cyprinids.

You will get a nice school of fish.

Answer 4

They will all go good together. I don't know if I would put the betta in there though. He'll probably attack the smaller Zebra Danios.

Answer 5

These sound like very good choices. My only concern would be the barbs because in general they are fin nippers. I know that Cherry Barbs are peaceful, but with such long fin as the bettas have I would be careful. Maybe instead of the barbs look into a small school of rainbowfish. You could also just see how it works out and if you notice your betta getting stressed or his fins being nipped put him in his own tank (a 2.5 gallon with heater and filter...not the bowl).

Glofish is every aquarist own personal choice. Personally I see nothing wrong with them however, some people morally do not agree with the process these fish go through to get their colors. It is your choice however you need to know that the procedure was not particually harmful and the fish you buy today are just the offspring of the few originals and have not had any work done directly to them. Again this is your choice to decide where you stand on the issue and if having glofish you feel is morally right or not!

Also with the shrimp they are great but there is no garuntee they won't get eaten. With the fish you are choosing you shouldn't have a problem but you never know. If you don't want something that has a chance of getting eaten you could look into getting a freshwater lobster or crab of some sort but you will need to monitor fin nipping. Or a African Dwarf Frog would be a good addition (as long as it isn't a tall tank)

what you have sounds great I was just trying to give you some other ideas and things to think about ! : )  Good Luck!

Answer 6

1. Genetically modified fish are illegal

2. All members of the danio family will school with one another