# Rainbow fish inquiry/48g community tank



## williamsonaaron (Jan 27, 2010)

I'm not an expert on rainbows as I've only had mine about 6 months but in my experience so far they have been good community fish with a few exceptions. my stocking list is

5 boesman's rainbowfish
4 yellow rainbowfish 
and 2 dwarf neon rainbowfish. 

Recently the boesmans have started to spawn they seem to try to spwn with female yellows as well as the female boesmanis this doesn't concern me becuase in this tank all fry will be eaten in no time. However i do notice that the females are looking a little beat up as is one of the male yellows. I think this is caused by aggression from the competing Male boesmanis I have two that are very similar in size and are alway flashing territorial displays and chasing each other and the Male yellows which are a bit smaller. 

I'm not saying this to "scare you off" of doing this. I love my rainbow community and would do it again I just want you to be aware that they do for a heirarchy based on the dominate male theory and that if there is contention between two males or more there will be chasing and attempted domination which can lead to some injuries. So far if I have a fish with an injury i just use maracyn as a preventative for bacterial infections and its worked out well. 

Also they are plant nibblers but you can keep this to a minimum by feeding algae wafers.

They have also gotten along with the rest of my stocking list which includes

11 cardinal tetras, 
11 glowlights
5 shy panda corries
3 otto's
7 hatchet fish


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## snakeman1989 (Jul 22, 2010)

Thanks williamsonaaron for your advice. 
I have noticed that one of the rainbows I have is slightly larger and more colorful than the other. That one constantly chases the smaller rainbow, but I have not seen any injuries so far. 

I think I will go ahead and stock a few more rainbows some time in the near future. The only ones I've seen in my area are Neon, Bosemani, and the Australian types. I did see some threadfins for sale a month ago so I'll have to find out what my options are for these guys. I do enjoy them but I can see why a lot of people with rainbows keep them in very large tanks for grouping reasons. However I do know someone who has a one eyed, 8+ year old rainbowfish in a 20gal long tank with a lot of other fish. That guy is probably a good 6 inches long and 2 inches high!

Just out of curiosity, how many full grown rainbows could fit in my 48 gallon tank?


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## Noahma (Oct 18, 2009)

I LOVE rainbowfish, The ones with a taller back are usually males, they tend to be more colorful as well. The slim ones with a low back are females, from your brief description it sounds like you might have a male and female. They are group oriented, so adding a few more will def. be beneficial to everyone. I had to make a choice when setting up my 36 gal, and decided on shrimp, so the two species of Rainbows I keep are Dwarf Neon, and Threadfin. The dwarf neon are a fun bunch to watch, always active, and rarely fight with each other. They do get in "show off" mode every morning right after lights on, and chase the females around the tank for a bit. The threadfins are well... the Monks of the tank lol. They do not pick on ANYTHING, they flare at each other and the other tank mates, but I have never seen them nip, or chase any other fish except the females when they are looking to mate. They are great fish, and worth having if the tank mates are not nippers.


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## snakeman1989 (Jul 22, 2010)

Yes, Rainbows are quite interesting fish! I will have to try and get some pictures of my Rainbows. I'd agree with Noahma that I have a male and female pair! In which case more Rainbows would definitely help the constant chasing in my tank.

Now off to find Rainbows at my LFS!


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## williamsonaaron (Jan 27, 2010)

what is the length/height of your tank. That will tell you how many can comfortably fit. My tank is 48 inches long and I have no trouble with swimming space for my brood of rainbows but as they grow into full size I think they will need more room but if that happens I guess I'll just have to upgrade my tank


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## snakeman1989 (Jul 22, 2010)

My 48 bowfront is about 36" x 18" x 20" (L x W x H). 
Upgrading in size from 48 gallons is not an option right now since I'm in college and the duplex I'm in doesn't have room for something 4 feet or longer. As much as I'd love to have a 75+ gallon tank, it isn't going to happen in the next few years. Maybe after that if I finish college I can get one.

I suppose if my rainbows were full size at about 5 or 6 inches, I'd only feel comfortable keeping about 6 total. I wasn't really planning on keeping any more than 6 right now, so maybe that's good news?

The whole "1 inch per gallon" rule has seemed like a very strange rule since I've seen people overstock their tanks and not have problems as long as maintenance is done frequently. The only time I've lost fish in my big tank was when my mom was 'taking care' of the tank. No deaths happened on my watch.


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## Diana (Jan 14, 2010)

I had some Boes in a 36" long tank (45 gallons) and they were pretty active, but swam up and down more than horizontally. 
When I moved them to a 48" long tank (still 45 gallons) they were MUCH happier, swimming the full length of the tank, and moving in a more natural horizontal way. 

So, my recommendation for any of this size Rainbows is none for a 3' long tank, but go ahead and add plenty to a 4' long tank. 

Ditto also the notes above about more females than males. The level of aggression varies with the species. _Melanotaenia praecox_ is one of the worst for males being aggressive to females. I would go with at least 3-4 females for each male. Most of the others 2:1 is probably just fine. Part of the problem is telling the males and females apart when they are young. Juveniles of most species all look like females when you see them in the stores. 
Yes, some species will interbreed. If it is your intent to breed them for sale keep them in separate tanks so you know the fry are not hybrids.


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## snakeman1989 (Jul 22, 2010)

Thanks Diana for your advice!

So from what I'm hearing I will have to upgrade to a 4 foot tank at some point. I was hoping to keep medium to smaller rainbows anyways, nothing larger than ~4 inches. I have a few weeks to wait before I add any more fish to my 48 gallon since I'm leaving for two weeks.

I was surprised at this link:
http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/rainbowfish/aquarium.php

Oh and breeding rainbows is not important to me really. I have guppies that do that all the time and I'm currently at a standstill with those beasties reproducing! (thank god!)
All I'd like to do with rainbows right now is get a small school of about 6.

I'd still like to know how 1 large rainbowfish can live for 8+ years in a 20gal. long and 6 medium sized ones in a 48gallon cannot.


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## Captivate05 (Feb 23, 2010)

I have Gurtrudae Rainbows, five males, three females. They do nip, and flare and chase each other around, but there is definitely a hierarchy amongst the males. They rarely nip much at each other anymore (once they established who's who), although they will flare if one feels brave enough to challenge a higher-ranking male. There is also a hierarchy amongst the females, with the largest girl putting the other two in their place. 

I was going to get some Threadfins for this tank, but I decided after getting the initial group of Gurtrudaes that I would just stick with them. They are absolutely funny little fish! By far the coolest freshwater fish I've had.


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## williamsonaaron (Jan 27, 2010)

snakeman1989 said:


> Thanks Diana for your advice!
> 
> I'd still like to know how 1 large rainbowfish can live for 8+ years in a 20gal. long and 6 medium sized ones in a 48gallon cannot.


 
Theres a big difference between just living and enjoying living. 1 rainbowfish won't be happy on its own and it won't be happy with a 30" or less swim lap.

I don't think anybody said 6 medium size rainbow can't live in a 48 gallon.


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## snakeman1989 (Jul 22, 2010)

So I guess I will be adding some rainbows soon. What about 2 bosemani and 2 dwarf neons? I saw some red irans at a LFS today, but the other bosemani's in the tank didn't look healthy at all. One of them was bloated and had fungus. 
That's all I've been able to find between one LFS and Petsmart recently. I'd have to check the other LFS I go to.

Worst case scenario I could order off of a place like Aquabid?


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## NJAquaBarren (Sep 16, 2009)

Check Aquabid. There are always Rainbows there. I've ordered some with good results.

36" is a little tight for the larger Rainbows. When full grown, the Bosemanis will be too large for 36". IMO.

There are many attractive smaller species - Neons (like softer water than most) M. Malluchi. Any of the Blue-Eyes. 

Also, you'll find that larger groups of same species will look better than a few numbers of many species. I'm always tempted to get all of the ones that I like, but in the end have learned that the fish and I am happier with larger groups of same species. 

great fish. Good luck.


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## snakeman1989 (Jul 22, 2010)

Ok, so dwarf neons sound like a safe bet. 
I would go with some smaller blue eyes as well but my water pH is around 8-8.4 and I've read that the smaller species prefer more acidic water. 

And apparently my aussie's will grow to around 4 inches. So that means based on everyone's recommendation that I should plan for a larger tank in the near future. Let's hope I have the space to setup a 4 foot tank!
I was almost tempted to buy a $50 75 gallon tank locally, but I dont' have any place to put it now. :icon_sad:


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## Noahma (Oct 18, 2009)

snakeman1989 said:


> Ok, so dwarf neons sound like a safe bet.
> I would go with some smaller blue eyes as well but my water pH is around 8-8.4 and I've read that the smaller species prefer more acidic water.
> 
> And apparently my aussie's will grow to around 4 inches. So that means based on everyone's recommendation that I should plan for a larger tank in the near future. Let's hope I have the space to setup a 4 foot tank!
> I was almost tempted to buy a $50 75 gallon tank locally, but I dont' have any place to put it now. :icon_sad:


The Dwarf neon's are a great choice, they are very active, and fun to watch. It looks a little like someone flicking a light switch on and off on the fish when they swim just right under the light. They are also very peaceful, mine tend to hang out and play games with the zebra danios.


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