# What fish is good for a 10 gallon? 15g? 20g?



## finnfinnfriend (Feb 3, 2012)

yup


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## MaisyDawgThirteen (Dec 7, 2011)

Guppies.  Get all females. Male guppies are like a less-aggressive sorority (<--- Quoting Sakura). And if you get males and females you'll have a lifetime supply of fish. If you need any help determining genders, I can help.


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## finnfinnfriend (Feb 3, 2012)

What about fish that I can keep singularly or in a pair?


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## MaisyDawgThirteen (Dec 7, 2011)

Well, bettas obviously.  You could try a dwarf gourami or a honey gourami in a 15 or 20 gallon. I don't know much about those, though.


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

Have you looked into dwarf puffers? ADORABLE. You could do 5ish in a 10 gallon. They need a somewhat densely planted tank, and pond snails.. They need to eat snail shells regularly to keep their "beaks" trimmed.


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## Micho (Aug 22, 2011)

Olympia said:


> Have you looked into dwarf puffers? ADORABLE. You could do 5ish in a 10 gallon. They need a somewhat densely planted tank, and pond snails.. They need to eat snail shells regularly to keep their "beaks" trimmed.


+1 on the Dwarf Puffers, but they need lots and lots and lots of plants or decor to break the line of sight between each puffer. They get quite aggresive with each other, so with all the live plants you'll break the line of sight. They do best in tanks that have diffused lighting so get lots of floating plants and they also do best with little to no current, so baffle your filter. What I suggest, if you're interested in these guys is that you set up one of those tanks, and do a NPT, let the tank go through a silent cycle. Also, don't try to remove any pest snails and let them overrun the tank. It'll be free food for the puffers. After the cycle is done, introduce the puffers to their new home, they'll thrive. 

Or you could try Betta Imbellis, they are wild Bettas and they can be housed together, males can be housed with males and females.  They like diffused lighting, they feel more safe and secure that way, also little to not current as well. Planted with low light plants, with lots of surface area and floating plants, they'll do well.


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

Just a note that wild betta need VERY soft water (under 6gH for most species). 
The reason I could not keep them ;(


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## Mo (Mar 15, 2012)

Here is a large list of potential fish for smaller tanks around 15-20 gallons

*small schooling fish*
Diamond Head Neon tetras (Paracheirodon Innesi Diamant)
Bloodfin Tetra (Aphyocharax anisitsi
platinum tetra (Hemigrammus vorderwinkleri) 
Hengals rasbora (Trigonostigma hengeli)
Lamb chop rasbora (Trigonostigma espei)
Harlequin Rasbora (Trigonostigma heteromorpha)
Boraras brigittae
Neon tetras (Paracheirodon innesi)
Vietnamese cardinal minnows (Tanichthys micagemmae)
Cardinal tetras (Paracheirodon axelrodi)
X ray tetras (Pristella maxillaris)
Glo light tetras (Hemigrammus erythrozonus)
Glowlight danio (Danio choprai)
Ember tetras (Hyphessobrycon amandae)
Ruby tetras (Axelrodia riesei)
Jelly Bean Tetra ( Ladigesia roloffi)
Green Neon Tetras (paracheirodon simulans)
Eyesot rasbora (Brevibora dorsiocellata)
Aspidoras pauciradiatus
Panther Danio (Danio aesculapii)
Lamp eye tetras (Moenkhausia sanctaefilomenae)
Platinum barb (Horadandia atukorali)
Spotted rasbora (boraras maculatus)
Boraras merah
Boraras nana 
white cloud mountain minnows (Tanichthys albonubes)
celestial pearl danios (Celestichthys margaritatus)
Blue Neon Rasboras (Sundadanio axelrodi)
marbled hatchet fish (Carnegiella strigata)
Bumblebee Goby (Brachygobius nunus)
Microdevario nanus
burmese bumble bee gobie (Brachygobius xanthomelas)
dwarf emerald rasbora, or zebra Rasbora (Danio erythromicron)
Boraras micros
Burma Yellow Neon Rasboras (Microdevario kubotai)
Sparrow Rasbora (Boraras uropthalmoides)
Norman's lampeye killifish (Aplocheilichthys normani)

*schooling catfish, and loaches. except for the 4th one*
pygmy cories (coryordra pygmaeus)
dwarf cories (coryordra hastatus)
dwarf caries (coryordra habrosus)
mini moth catfish (Hara Jerdoni)
Dwarf Loach (Yasuhikotakia sidthimunki)
otto catfish ( Otocinclus vestitus)

*fish that can be kept in groups of 2-4*
Guppies (Poecilia reticulata)
endlers (Poecilia wingei)
platies (Xiphophorus maculatus)
platies (Xiphophorus variatus)
golden teddies (Xenophallus umbratilis)
hetendaria formosa
Characodon lateralis
Clown killifish (Epiplatys annulatus)
Gardneri killifish (fundalopanchax gardneri)
Scheeli killifish (fundalopanchax scheeli)
Armoured stickleback (Indostomus paradoxus)

*Fish that can be kept solitary*
scarlet badis (dario dario) 
Dwarf Puffer (Tetraodon travancoricus)
Sparkling Gourami (Trichopsis pumila)
honey gourami (Trichogaster chuna)
Dwarf Gourami (Trichogaster lalius)
Betta Rutilans
Betta splendens
betta falx
betta simplex
betta imbellis
Liqorice gourami (Parosphromenus deissneri)
Spotted Blue Eyed Rainbow (pseudomugil gertrudae)
American Flagfish, or Florida Flagfish, (Jordanella floridae)
lamprologus multifasciatus

*please read*
when submitting new fish for this thread please add the proper name, common name, and the group size, as this will save me lots of stress from doing all that by myself

CREDITS
I got like 5-6 fish from this site, and the rest were from knowledge and suggestions 
www.franksaquarium.com


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## finnfinnfriend (Feb 3, 2012)

Thank you!


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## Mo (Mar 15, 2012)

Your welcome. I had made that a while back as thread


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## Bombalurina (Oct 10, 2011)

There are just so many options. What sort of combination are you looking for? Centrepiece+school? Just schoolers? Just a couple of unique fish?


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## finnfinnfriend (Feb 3, 2012)

Bombalurina said:


> There are just so many options. What sort of combination are you looking for? Centrepiece+school? Just schoolers? Just a couple of unique fish?


Just a couple of unique fish or just one single specimen


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## Bombalurina (Oct 10, 2011)

Well, that gives you some fun options.  You could have:
- a dwarf puffer tank
- A pair or trio of ADFs
- A pair or trio of killifish (I really like my fundulopanchax gardneri)
- A honey gourami
- 3-4 male Endlers Livebearers


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## MinaMinaMina (Aug 28, 2011)

FYI, not all fish in that list are advisable for tanks under 20g. Many of those fish are schooling fish, some needing larger schools that require more space. Many of those fish are very active fish, needing more swimming space than a 20g (or less) allows. 
For example, many people think that because Neon Tetra are small that they can be kept in small spaces. This is not true, they need more swimming space than one might think and should not be kept in anything smaller than a 20g tank. Or, as another example, many people list a 20g tank as the minimum for a group of Bloodfin Tetra. But after having kept them myself and seeing their full size at maturity (more than 2", almost 2.5") and seeing just how active they are, I would never recommend they be kept in another less that a 3' tank, at bare minimum. Even more, Red Eye Tetra (Lamp Eye Tetra) get almost 3" and are just as active. They should never be kept in a tank under 3', preferably a 4' tank. 
(You can click on the shaded names to read this site's recommendations on tank size.)
So... Just FYI. :-D


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## finnfinnfriend (Feb 3, 2012)

MinaMinaMina said:


> FYI, not all fish in that list are advisable for tanks under 20g. Many of those fish are schooling fish, some needing larger schools that require more space. Many of those fish are very active fish, needing more swimming space than a 20g (or less) allows.
> For example, many people think that because Neon Tetra are small that they can be kept in small spaces. This is not true, they need more swimming space than one might think and should not be kept in anything smaller than a 20g tank. Or, as another example, many people list a 20g tank as the minimum for a group of Bloodfin Tetra. But after having kept them myself and seeing their full size at maturity (more than 2", almost 2.5") and seeing just how active they are, I would never recommend they be kept in another less that a 3' tank, at bare minimum. Even more, Red Eye Tetra (Lamp Eye Tetra) get almost 3" and are just as active. They should never be kept in a tank under 3', preferably a 4' tank.
> (You can click on the shaded names to read this site's recommendations on tank size.)
> So... Just FYI. :-D


Well that's why, once I decide what species I want, I'm going to research the particular species, just like I do with every pet I get.


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## finnfinnfriend (Feb 3, 2012)

What about Long Fin Red Minor Tetra?


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## Jessicatm137 (Mar 22, 2012)

They would probably work, they are also called more commonly called the _serpae _tetra.


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

I'd keep that species only, I hear they are aggressive little buggers.


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## Jessicatm137 (Mar 22, 2012)

I agree with Olympia.


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

In a 15-20 gallon tank, I would go for one of the Pseudomugil species. There are several species to choose from and some prefer soft water, while others prefer harder water and some even brackish. 

I have honey blue-eyes and they are truly spectacular when displaying and sparring. If you want them to spawn, all you need to do is add a spawning mop or a handful of java moss, give them lots of live food (I do blackworms, grindals and BBS) and they will usually do the rest. They are egg eaters so you need to comb through daily and remove any eggs for artificial hatching.

In a tank that size I'd recommend a school of delicate, spotted or forktail blue-eyes depending on your parameters. Forktails and delicates are more suitable for harder water and higher pH, while spotted and honey blue-eyes do best in softer and lower pH water.

Here's a picture of a happy 'frisky' honey blue-eye male









You could also try a small school of Melanotaenia maccullochi might work in a 15-20 gallon tank. They don't grow very big, and the Skull Creek variety is absolutely stunning.


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## finnfinnfriend (Feb 3, 2012)

Isn't there anything that doesn't exist in nature? I kind of have a weird thing about keeping animals in their natural form...


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

What do you mean doesn't exist in nature? You could try something like a Glofish danio. They don't exist in nature. However, you'd need at least a 15-20 gallon tank for a school of those.

Fancy guppies don't 'exist' in nature and are quite pretty to look at, although I've always found them fairly stupid compared to some of my other fish.

Aquarium strain killifish don't 'exist' in nature. You could keep a pair or small group/trio of those.

Most hybrid fish that would truly not occur in the wild are cichlids, and grow much too big for any of the tank sizes you specified.

Can I ask why you don't like keeping fish in their natural form? I find the natural form of most fish a lot more attractive than something like a parrot fish.


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## finnfinnfriend (Feb 3, 2012)

I feel weird about keeping an animal in its wild form because I feel that it doesn't need my help to survive. Domesticated animals, however, would most likely not survive in the wild and so I feel that my keeping them is justified. I'm totally fine with other people keeping animals in their natural form if they do it right, I just have a hang up about it, lol.


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

You're definitely going to be limited then, as most species in the aquarium trade have stuck pretty true to form.

I don't really advocate the creation of 'balloon' type fish, but they are also something purposefully man-made. 

Most colours found in fish such as guppies, mollies and platys, are not natural. They have been selectively bred for, and would not show up in wild populations. Same with the domesticated Betta splenden. 

I think a group of fancy 'show' guppies always looks nice. Plus they are pretty easy to care for and if you have a quality male in there you can always work on creating your own line.


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## finnfinnfriend (Feb 3, 2012)

What about lyretail mollys?

Just curious...are you against goldfish then? Besides common shubunkin and comet?

By the way I consider a color variation to be unnatural so I would keep them.


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

Livebearers are probably the most manipulated fish color and form wise.


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## Bombalurina (Oct 10, 2011)

finnfinnfriend said:


> What about lyretail mollys?
> 
> Just curious...are you against goldfish then? Besides common shubunkin and comet?
> 
> By the way I consider a color variation to be unnatural so I would keep them.


I'm with LBF for this. I don't mind fantails and black moores, since they are still pretty functional, but I would never keep bubble-eyes, for instance.

If it helps your natural fish hand-up, the majority of species we get in petshops these days are totally tank bred, and, although they look the same as their wild cousins, would die if we released them back into the wild.

+1 on fancy guppies. I'd spend out on Aquabid and get 4 or so really amazing males, I think.


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

Spending a lot on guppies could pay back pretty quickly


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

I have no problem with shubunkin or comets, in fact I own three shubunkin goldfish. However, I would never own a ranchu, ryukin or pearscale as I do not find their appearance particularly attractive.

I found a really beautiful and unusual strain of guppies on AB called glass-bellied see thru. There's a picture of one if you scroll down to the end at this link

http://www.aquariumearth.com/?cat=4

You could probably get decent prices from private collectors and possibly more niche market LFS breeding a rarer strain of guppy.


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

Wowza, half moon guppy on that link is gorgeous o.o
LBF, do you know anything on breeding these guppies? Is it really controlled, each individual fish documented?


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

I dunno. I had a trio of imported blue grass guppies and sold them as they weren't fish to my taste at all haha. That about ended my experience with guppies.

The seller who created (I think) that glass-bellied strain has a lot of really nice high-quality guppies, so I'd assume you'd have pretty pure genes to start off with if you got a pair/trio.


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

I've always thought of myself as more of a betta/gourami person. They don't really appeal to me either. 
There's some really crazy swordtails on aquabid. I was shocked at them!


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

I'm a betta (wilds and splendens), killifish and rainbowfish kind of person. I will always espouse the qualities of each of these fish as I feel they have that perfect blend of colour and 'wildness' to them. 

I really need a separate room for all the fish I want to hoard. 

But back on track, I hope we've given you some valid suggestions Finnfinnfriend on what fish might fit what you're looking for.


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## MaisyDawgThirteen (Dec 7, 2011)

You could try a shrimp colony.


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## makoisland (Mar 2, 2012)

MaisyDawgThirteen said:


> And if you get males and females you'll have a lifetime supply of fish.


Truedat! We've had our 55 gal for roughly eight years (had guppies from the beginning) and only bought guppies once that I recall...


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