# 3 gallon fish stocking question...?



## lowfi (Apr 18, 2007)

I am going to stock a 3 gallon nano tank. Just wondering what I should put in it. I was thinking about rasboras but there are many different types. I want something that will stay small..~1" and relatively hardy. Any suggestions on little fish would be sweet. I do not want any guppies though...breed like crazy. 
Thanks
sean


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## Homer_Simpson (Apr 2, 2007)

lowfi said:


> I am going to stock a 3 gallon nano tank. Just wondering what I should put in it. I was thinking about rasboras but there are many different types. I want something that will stay small..~1" and relatively hardy. Any suggestions on little fish would be sweet. I do not want any guppies though...breed like crazy.
> Thanks
> sean


Personally, I prefer Bettas, Peppered Cory Catfish(I have had one survive in a 2.5 gallon bowl for 9 years going strong and still alive), Dwarf Aquatic frog(had on in a 2.5 gallon tank for 8 years before it died) or white cloud minnows(as they are hardy as hell). I would probably stay away from neon tetras and cardinal tetras and even otos, normally they are not that hardy and would likely prove to be even less hardy in a 3 gallon tank. I just set up a 3 gallon low tech nano at work and I plan to transfer my 9 year old peppered cory into it and add a white cloud minnow and that's it. I thought of putting in a African Dwarf frog, but they shed old skin as they grow new skin and with plants and other fish, not to mention snails in there, it could lead to huge problems especially since water changes will be infrequent at best.

Here is a good list posted by Alpha Cat at plantedtank 
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/planted-nano-tanks/31095-nanofish-list-v1-0-a.html

- Barboides gracilis
- Barbus sylvaticus
- Boraras merah
- Boraras micros
- Dario dario
- Microrasbora kubotai
- Microrasbora nana
- Bumblebee Goby (Brachygobius sp.)
- Clown Killi, aka Banded Killi, aka Rocket Panchax (Epiplatys annulatus)
- Crossbanded Dwarf Danio (Microrasbora erythromicron)
- Dwarf Cory (Corydoras hastatus)
- Dwarf Mosquitofish, aka Het, aka Least Killi (Heterandria formosa)
- Dwarf Rasbora, aka Pygmy Spotted Rasbora (Boraras maculatus)
- Ember Tetra (Hyphessobrycon amandae)
- Endler's Livebearer (Poecilia wingei)
- Exclamation Point Rasbora (Boraras urophthalmoides)
- Glow Light Danio (Danio choprae)
- Glow Light Tetra (Hemigrammus erythrozonus)
- Green Neon Tetra (Paracheirodon simulans)
- Guppy (Poecilia reticulata)
- Jae barb (Barbus jae)
- Lipstick Barb (Puntius sealei)
- Mosquito Rasbora (Boraras brigittae)
- Neon Rasbora (Sundadanio axelrodi)
- Neon Tetra (Paracheirodon innesi)
- Oto, aka Dwarf Sucker Fish (Otocinclus affinis)
- Pristella Tetra (Pristella maxillaris)
- Pygmy Cory (Corydoras pygmaeus)
- Siamese Fighting Fish, aka Betta (Betta splendens)
- Vietnamese Minnow, aka Dwarf Cardinal (Tanichthys micagemmae)
- White Cloud Mountain Minnow (Tanichthys albonubes)


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## trenac (Jul 16, 2004)

Take a look at these nano fish from Frank's Aquarium


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## goalcreas (Nov 20, 2006)

+1 for Franks Aquarium.
I have the Phoenix rasboras, they stay very small, are bright red and one of my favorite rasbora's.
I got mine from Franks. You gould easily get away with 6 or maybe even 12 of them in that tank.


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## turbomkt (Mar 31, 2004)

The Boraras and Microrasboras are great choices. A number of us in SoCal have them in tanks. 25 Boraras maculata make a planted 10g look understocked.


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## lowfi (Apr 18, 2007)

thanks everyone that is awesome...
now i just need to find some that are lookers


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## lowfi (Apr 18, 2007)

what are you supposed to feed corys? algae wafers?


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## trenac (Jul 16, 2004)

They will eat on algae wafers, but a better choice is sinking wafers for bottom feeders. They will also eat any other fish food that falls to the bottom.


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## Cliff Mayes (Jan 29, 2007)

Cories are predators.

Any tank inhabitant will eat whatever is there. They do not have a choice. Most livings will not starve if they can avoid it. There is no question that the Sinking Wafers are better for Cories.

Cories rooting around for live Blackworms is a sight. The body language tells you they are very intent on eating live food.

Most aquarium food is a lot like people food...it's mostly wheat and corn with some flavoring. Most experienced hobbyists feed a variety and usually include some frozen stuff and live plants or critters if they can as well as the cheap and convenient dry or flake foods.

Sorry for jumping in here but Cory treatment is one of my pet peeves and feeding is one of the great myths that leads to mis-treatment. I needed to add my two cents to Trenacs good advice.

Happy Thanksgiving all.


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## Homer_Simpson (Apr 2, 2007)

lowfi said:


> what are you supposed to feed corys? algae wafers?


For the 9 years I have had my peppered cory, I have fed him Hikari brand sinking wafers every second day. He is alive, well, and really active, so that tells me that he is healthy and the wafers cannot be all that bad for him, or he would have kicked the bucket a long time ago.


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## Cliff Mayes (Jan 29, 2007)

The same company that makes Algae Wafers also makes Sinking Wafers. If it is any indication of intended use, the photo on the Algae Wafer bag shows a Pleco type fish while the Sinking wafer shows a Cory. The Guaranteed Analysis on both shows 32% protein. The Ingredient list shows Fish Meal as the number one ingredient with a different list of stuff after that. Additional ingredients on the lists show what are probably protein materials much further down the list.

All this stuff is made to make money so is always suspect, or should be, by the buyer. The logical assumption would be that if the same company is marketing two products with pics of creatures having different nutritional needs, the products would be different...bad assumption. Maybe there isn't a difference.

I use both, plus other stuff, and the Pleco (Ansistrus) types also get Zuccini. The fish all seem to live a long time and are very healthy. The Cories spawn, I think, as there always seem to be a lot of them and some look small.

Anybody have any info on what is in these foods.


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