# Easiest nano fish



## theDCpump (Jul 22, 2016)

Corydoras pygmaeus and habrosus.

Small stiphodon gobies in an established planted tank with noobie species plants is a very easy task.

Bump: The habrosus cory will be out more acting like a cory too.
We have 3.
'Still searching for more.


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## Nordic (Nov 11, 2003)

12 Gallon is too small to allow a decent school of tetras.
I also like the idea of pygmy cories.


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## theDCpump (Jul 22, 2016)

Nordic said:


> 12 Gallon is too small to allow a decent school of tetras.
> I also like the idea of pygmy cories.


I agree.

kind of!
Well, kind of...

-how do i Know this? hehe
That's 35+ plus inches long.


I would not say they are happy, but a 12gallon long will home tetras well until they grow up, depending on a school size.


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## TFC (Jan 27, 2017)

Why not try nano gourami's. I have sparkling and Chocolate . Neither get over an 1-1 1/2 "


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## nikohak (Oct 21, 2016)

TFC said:


> Why not try nano gourami's. I have sparkling and Chocolate . Neither get over an 1-1 1/2 "


 According to my research notes: "Need to be taught to eat dry food / Picky eater, Water quite warm 25C+, Not hardy". Otherwise they seem really nice.


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## Linmay (Feb 6, 2017)

I'd second sparkling gouramis, they have lots of personality and mine at least ate dry food straight off, I think chocolate gourami is trickier but I don't keep them


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## Grah the great (Jul 3, 2013)

Chocolate gouramies need soft, acid, preferably tannin stained, WARM water (I talked to someone who has spawned them at 94 degrees! They need 80 or higher) and often live or frozen foods (chocolate gouramies are more willing to take prepared foods if kept with non-picky schooling fish); further, chocolates get closer to 2-2.5 inches (not huge by any standard, but seemingly a touch bigger than what you're shooting for). Much easier are Heterandria formosa...not at all colorful, but they are EXTREMELY hardy, not even slightly shy, and breed easily. The desert goby is another very hardy, easy to breed, bold fish that you can keep a pair or small group in a tank of this size without a heater...just make sure they have a good lid (they JUMP!). Currently I have Nothobranchius guentheri killifishes in a standard 10 gallon (the dominant male is just short of 2 inches), and they have given me no troubles (just hatched some of their eggs Thursday night...these things are among the easiest fish to breed in existence as long as you remember they are annuals whose eggs need to incubate in damp peat for a couple months. I regularly see them futilely spawning in the tank's gravel). 

EDIT: Before you suggest it, don't go for licorice gouramies, Parosphromenus...while they are far from fragile in my own personal experiences (right now these 'tropical' fish are at 64 degrees and aren't the slightest bit perturbed, they've never given me disease troubles and even the fry aren't flinched by water changes) and are superb for 5 gallon and larger tanks, they need very soft, acidic, tannin stained water (PH of 3 isn't too low for these fish! Mine are in the mid/high 4's, 0 KH and GH and TDS of 20-25ppm), live foods, and since all are endangered in the wild they really should be kept alone for breeding (which they do erratically).


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## maustin2346 (Jan 9, 2017)

Why not try a school of white clouds, or danios? If you put a small power head on one side you could have a pretty good school of white clouds they love swimming in current and they are cold-water fish, you can keep them with some nerite snails and ghost shrimp and they would be fine. And before anyone criticizes the inverts in cold water, nerites are tidal snails that experience cold water often a night in their native habitat and with the ghost shrimp I've been keeping them in cold water for a while with no adverse effects, they even still have a nice healthy appetite

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## nikohak (Oct 21, 2016)

Thanks for all the tips.

Least killifish has many of the specs I am looking for, but I somehow find it too boring. The desert goby is not boring at all, but I would just pity the poor fellows that move so weirdly .

I actually considered also white clouds, but at least sources I've seen, say that minimum tank size is closer to 15-20 gallons? My tank is only 18,5" wide. I've heard about Vietnamese white cloud that is smaller, but space requirements is said to be the same as for regular white clouds? They seem to be avid swimmers, so I think they would have more issues with small tank than pygmy corys for example. I do have a oversized filter that at max settings would cycle maybe 15x the tank volume per hour, so that could take care of the current for sure.

CPDs are at my list. They look nicer than pygmy corys IMO, but I like how corys behave more. But is one or the other easier to keep? Some seem to say that they have problems with pygmy corys and some have none. I have not figured out what makes the difference. Could it be that they are stressed in many aquariums due to bigger fish? And would a species only tank make a big difference?


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## maustin2346 (Jan 9, 2017)

Again with the space issue that's why I suggested a powerhead like the ones to make a current in the tank, they can use a smaller tank as long is it's long like yours you just need a constant current to keep them really happy. To be honest I have 6 zebra danios and 6 white clouds in my 20 gallon long and the danios give the white clouds enough active play all around the tank that they kind of just follow them and end up swimming enough or so I think, they don't even really get from on side to another because the danios will change direction back to the other side and the white clouds just follow. I do have 2 pretty big ones the size of my danios so that might also help because the bigger ones want to stick with my big danios and the small white clouds want to stick with the big ones, works out really nice in my tank

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Also I have no objection against CPD as they are amazing beautiful creatures, I'm just speaking from personal experience which with CPD I have none of(hope to get some in the future)

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## sfshrimp (May 24, 2016)

nikohak said:


> Thanks for all the tips.
> 
> Least killifish has many of the specs I am looking for, but I somehow find it too boring. The desert goby is not boring at all, but I would just pity the poor fellows that move so weirdly .
> 
> ...


I have this same tank.
Have 5x rummy tetras, 3x lamplight tetra, 2x ember, 4x neon tetras, 1x guppy, 3x oto.

All fine, all shoal together.


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## RWaters (Nov 12, 2003)

I have to agree about the Chocolate gourami. If you're looking for an easy fish, stay away from them. I had some in a heavily planted tank for almost a year and thought I was in the clear. All four went within days of each other. I still miss them.










Stick with pygmy cories. You can also consider micro rasboras such as Boraras brigittae or Emerald Dwarf Rasboras. Scarlett Badis is also a nice small fish.


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## ustabefast (Jan 24, 2017)

You can go with any of the three speciesbut It sounds like you have a fairly tall tank, is it an Eclipse 12 gallon?
If that is the case I might cross off the CPD's since they tend to hang out in the lower part of the tank and the upper half would be basically empty.
I second the idea of considering micro-rasboras or micro-danios. In small tanks I prefer lots of smaller schooling fish rather than a small group of larger fish.

Bump:


RWaters said:


> I have to agree about the Chocolate gourami. If you're looking for an easy fish, stay away from them. I had some in a heavily planted tank for almost a year and thought I was in the clear. All four went within days of each other. I still miss them.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


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## TFC (Jan 27, 2017)

I have had a 10 G set up with Sparkling and Chocolate gourami's for 6 months now, only adding the driftwood for tannins and lower ph, i do use an acid buffer every few water changes to keep ph low from my tap. They are awesome fish, you are right they are micro feeders, so i powder up flakes to feed, mine are very happy with very very little attention. I'ts by far my fav community. I have 3 chocolate, 3 sparkling grouami, chili raspbora,and green neons, two hasp cory cats. I hope you reconsider nano grouami. 
good luck

Bump:


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## nikohak (Oct 21, 2016)

ustabefast said:


> It sounds like you have a fairly tall tank, is it an Eclipse 12 gallon?
> If that is the case I might cross off the CPD's since they tend to hang out in the lower part of the tank and the upper half would be basically empty.
> I second the idea of considering micro-rasboras or micro-danios. In small tanks I prefer lots of smaller schooling fish rather than a small group of larger fish.


It is a custom built tank, but yes it is very tall just like Eclipse 12. I had to make it fit a specific place so it is a very oddly shaped. I have built sort of like terraces to it, so at back the bottom is about half way up the tank. Therefore I think that some of the bottom/mid-level fish will stay higher than usually. I'll post pics soon.

But I'm not sure what you meant by ruling out CPD and considering micro-danios instead? Aren't they the same thing? Or did you meant to say that pygmy corys stay mostly at bottom/mid section?

I also think that a bigger group of small fish is easier to keep and easier to eye, when it comes to nano tanks. It also makes the tank look, well, not so small I guess.


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## ucancan (Feb 12, 2017)

Pygmy Cory school of 6 will be good. Problem is you don't have too many leafy plants to block the CPD from being too aggressive with one another. What is perceived as a dance with the CPD is actually aggressive territorial behavior. You need plants to help blind them and to allow them to "hide" when people are around. They are very sensitive and timid in a bare rock SCAPE. 

Amber tetra is the same and will not display full vibrant color in a bare rock SCAPE. 

Pygmy Cory is fun and generally not as shy that tends to school and it's fun to watch them move around the tank in groups. If your tank is fully cycled they'll be fun. They move in all levels of tank. If you have stem plants it's fun to see them eat the algae off the leaves in groups. 

If you intend to dump the fish in while cycling, I recommend Pygmy Cory as they breath from the air and not in the water so the quality of the almomnia, nitrites, and nitrates will be of a lesser concern. 

HTH. 


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## Nordic (Nov 11, 2003)

With corys, try for a school of 10 at least. I started bringing in corys from my pond on Friday, it is so awesome seeing how they behave in a large school. 
Realy giving my other fish a run for their money when it comes to entertainment value.

Ammonia burns, nitrates stunt, no reason to expose any fish to that.


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## ustabefast (Jan 24, 2017)

But I'm not sure what you meant by ruling out CPD and considering micro-danios instead? Aren't they the same thing? Or did you meant to say that pygmy corys stay mostly at bottom/mid section?

I also think that a bigger group of small fish is easier to keep and easier to eye, when it comes to nano tanks. It also makes the tank look, well, not so small I guess.[/QUOTE]

You're correct of course. CPD's are microdanios themselves. I just noticed that they are less likely to come up to the mid or upper waters than other micros I have kept.
I do like the pygmy cories and the more the better. I'd go with a dozen or even more.


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## nikohak (Oct 21, 2016)

ucancan said:


> ...in a bare rock SCAPE.


I might have expressed my self bit loosely. I am planning on having quite a lot of plants. Anubias, Java moss, Vallisneria nana, Hydrocotyle tripartita...

But anyway, I am about to go with the pygmy corys.
Some say that they should be put only into an well established tank. I'm planning on doing fishless cycle using Tetra Safestart. Would it be good idea if I let the tank run for a couple of months before cycling and fishes?


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## Nordic (Nov 11, 2003)

Don't waste the money on safe start, it only makes a few days' difference if any.


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## myrrhiam (Oct 14, 2016)

I've kept all three species:
CPDs are very shy and like a densely planted tank.
I would disagree that this tank is too small for Ember Tetras, they only grow to .78 inches...max... A school of 10-12 would be fine in there. Embers are bold, bright, and fun to watch.
Pygmy cories are awesome, and are very cool to watch in a larger group (at least 10). but they are not as bright/showy as the embers.
I think a 12 long would happily house any of these three, and from my experience they are all pretty easy to keep as long as your water parameters are good


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## ichthyogeek (Jul 9, 2014)

Can we get a picture of the actual tank? I won't dare say what should be added until I see the layout of the tank since different fish have different needs. Here is my experience with CPD's and Pygmy corydoras.

Pygmy Corydoras: kept in a 10 gallon tank for a year. Origin: presumably wild caught. Keep in a heavily planted tank? No. pH: Somewhere around 6.0-7.0. Experience: I bought 6 C. pygmaeus for my heavily planted 10 gallon tank three years ago during senior year of high school. They were the first fish inhabitants in the tank, being added to a relatively thriving shrimp colony. I rarely if ever saw them. They loved spending time under the large leaves of my Crypt undulata forest...all the way in the back where I could never see them. I never saw them eat prepared foods, and instead had to feed them blackworms when I could get them. Luckily there was already a population of blackworms in the tank. However, I only saw super action when I added 3 more to bring the total population to 9 corys.

CPD's: keeping in a 2.5 gallon tank since MLK day this year. Origin: presumably wild caught. Keep in a medium planted tank? Sure. pH: somewhere around neutral(7.0) to alkaline(8.0). Experience: I bought my trio of CPD's on MLK jr. day, and they've been doing wonderfully in my 2.5. They eat flake once they realize there's no other food being offered, and are lively once they realize nothing's going to eat them. Activity increases after 90% water changes biweekly. Displays are cool, mating behavior has been observed.Much more easy to look at than pygmies.


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## nikohak (Oct 21, 2016)

Most sources say that for pygmy corys, there should be at least 10 of them for them to be not so shy. And someone said that if you always drop the food right at the open, they might start hanging out there more.

Rocks and driftwoods are in place and plants have been ordered. And here is a sketch of what I *hope* to accomplish in the long run:


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## Grah the great (Jul 3, 2013)

Ember tetras need soft, acidic water, sadly...


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## Nordic (Nov 11, 2003)

They would display very well in that tank though. You need dark colours and spaces like that for the orange to pop.


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## nikohak (Oct 21, 2016)

Grah the great said:


> Ember tetras need soft, acidic water, sadly...


I've gathered following notes on embers:

Might not like fast water flow - Hyphessobrycon amandae ? Ember Tetra ? Seriously Fish
http://www.aquariumdomain.com/adSocial/index.php/ember-tetra/

Estimations of minimum temperature range between 20-24C, so most likely 23 should be ok.

pH 6-7? Some have them in pH 8.3: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/21-fish/1077113-would-ember-tetras-fine-my-setup.html and pH 7.6-7.8: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/21-fish/156237-ember-tetras.html but here someone says the colors are dull in his tank at pH 7.6: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/21-fish/154126-ember-tetras-nano-fish.html


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## myrrhiam (Oct 14, 2016)

nikohak said:


> pH 6-7? Some have them in pH 8.3: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/21-fish/1077113-would-ember-tetras-fine-my-setup.html and pH 7.6-7.8: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/21-fish/156237-ember-tetras.html but here someone says the colors are dull in his tank at pH 7.6: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/21-fish/154126-ember-tetras-nano-fish.html



My water is around pH 7.2, my school of ember tetras is brightly coloured and babies pop up every now and then so guess they are happy 
You can always add a few miniature catappa leaves or oak leaves to bring the pH down as well..added bonus being the fry like to pick at the decomposing leaves.


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## Nordic (Nov 11, 2003)

Embers display well in a dark tank with dark background, but pale in a bright tank (unless you are clever and put some front lighting on the tank). Most fish falls into one of the two categories. Displays well in bright or dark/front-lit tank.


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## BROMLaar (Sep 11, 2016)

I have a school about 25 ember tetras in my 20 gallon long planted tank and there never swimming around together, just hiding in the back of the tank in the plants and I have no idea why


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## deanc8159 (Oct 18, 2015)

BROMLaar said:


> I have a school about 25 ember tetras in my 20 gallon long planted tank and there never swimming around together, just hiding in the back of the tank in the plants and I have no idea why
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk




I had a similar issue with my small shoal 
I'm not sure if it was the bright lights they didn't like. But I did a few water changes and added something different to the tank (dwarf puffer)
Also trimmed the plants they were hiding in and now they group together and only usually split up at feeding time 



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## BROMLaar (Sep 11, 2016)

Interesting, I'm thinking it's because of the bright light because I've heard that the like darker black water tanks.


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## trinity ghost (Feb 5, 2017)

Guoramis are territorial. I figure this would be a problem in such a small tank. How big do nano gouramis get??


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## nikohak (Oct 21, 2016)

I talked with the owner of a reputable LFS, and at least he said that embers are quite hardy and pygmy corys are at least one step more difficult to maintain.


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## Grah the great (Jul 3, 2013)

trinity ghost said:


> Guoramis are territorial. I figure this would be a problem in such a small tank. How big do nano gouramis get??


Depends on the gourami. The smallest of them all, 3/4 inch parasphaerichthys lineatus, is very amicable to group living even in a standard 2.5 gallon tank, but sadly that fish - while otherwise quite hardy - is a finicky eater and really needs small live or frozen foods. Small wild bettas and any of the sphaerichthys chocolate gouramies can usually live in groups comfortably in 24 inch long tanks, and 10 gallons is ample for groups of coccina complex bettas and licorice gouramies. No clue about sparkling gouramies, but I'd be confused if a 24 inch tank wasn't sufficient for a group. The key is to provide enough cover to keep the fish (chiefly the males) from getting on each other's nerves.


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## C10H12N2O (Nov 13, 2014)

I have both embers and pygmy cories - both awesome nano fish.

I think embers are underappreciated (you can find me vouching for them in several other threads here, haha). Good for smaller tanks and really stand out despite the small size. Mine are brilliantly colored and spawn for me, even in the liquid rock that is Phoenix tap water. Never had any problems with them.

The pygmy cories are maybe a little trickier. I had one or two false starts with them for no reason I could tell. Now I have a thriving school of about a dozen and I'm planning on adding more - they're really small! Adorable little fish, swim in all regions of the tank, really fun to watch. 

Can't wait to see the tank come together, sounds like it'll be cool.


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## Jerad Wilson (Jun 23, 2016)

How about green neons?


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## trinity ghost (Feb 5, 2017)

Grah the great said:


> Depends on the gourami. The smallest of them all, 3/4 inch parasphaerichthys lineatus, is very amicable to group living even in a standard 2.5 gallon tank, but sadly that fish - while otherwise quite hardy - is a finicky eater and really needs small live or frozen foods. Small wild bettas and any of the sphaerichthys chocolate gouramies can usually live in groups comfortably in 24 inch long tanks, and 10 gallons is ample for groups of coccina complex bettas and licorice gouramies. No clue about sparkling gouramies, but I'd be confused if a 24 inch tank wasn't sufficient for a group. The key is to provide enough cover to keep the fish (chiefly the males) from getting on each other's nerves.



Thanks for the info! I've never owned nano gouramis. only dwarf and regular. I've been looking more into them upon reading this and think I might have to set up another tank to get a few!


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