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Acaras and Rams Suitable Tankmates?

Mike Wise

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5 Year Member
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Denver, Colorado, U.S.A.
I doubt your acaras will claim the entire 75 as their breeding territory, but you never know for sure. A good fully mature pair of Blue Acaras can have 200-500 eggs/spawn so be prepared to cull the fry.
 

Vyvid

New Member
Messages
14
Here's where I'm at with my tank. There's a lot more I want to do with it but it's a start. I will be topping that Eco-complete with black sand. Stock will look like:

2 E Blue Acara (pair)
1 female convict (if she gets unruly I'll rehome)
1 orange shoulder severum (heros sp. Rotkeil)
6 blackskirt tetras
7 lemon tetras (will move if become snacks)
6 Sterbai cories
1 albino bristlenose pleco

Have everything in there now except the severum which I will possibly get Friday.

Any recommendations with setup/stock/decor are appreciated. Still thinking I may convert my ram tank to an apisto tank (I'd have to find a really good home for the Rams first)
image.jpg


Short video of my Acaras and Convict. The convict occasionally will give a little chase like in this video but nothing beyond that. I imagine when the acaras breed the tables will turn.

 

gerald

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Messages
1,491
Location
Wake Forest NC, USA
Some other mid-size tetras you might consider (a bit larger than lemons): Bleeding heart, Diamond, Colombian red-blue, Red-eye, Congo, Headstanders, Anostomus, ...
 

Vyvid

New Member
Messages
14
Okay I believe once I added some spiderwood my Acaras began preparing to spawn. They were in the corner near a rock wiggling and cleaning and moving things like crazy and began chasing everything away (not like crazy, just sort of charging cories and other "visitors" away)

Unfortunately, the convict wasn't having that and I had to take her back (I knew it was a gamble).

While I was there I fell in love with 2 discus that I never intended to get but felt sorry for because they were huddled together hiding in a corner at the pet shop. (I googled their care, feeding, parameters etc while in the store and I've spent the next day or so reading). It's day 3 and they and the 2 Angels (I removed the blackskirts) I picked up all seem to be meshing well. They all kinda slowly swim together and check each other out with no conflict.

I know I'm a sucker for picking them up based on feeling bad for them, but im very happy with how things seem to be turning out.

Can you guys tell me what color strain these are? I know they probably are "poor quality" discus and I'm fine with that. They seem tons happier than they were and seem to be good tankmates for my Acara

The discus were listed as "red turquoise" and "Royal blue" and the Angels as "platinum"
(Looks more gold to me with yellow on its head up to its dorsal) and "blue diamond"

image.jpg
^^ "Royal blue"

image.jpg

^^ "red turquoise"

image.jpg

Platinum (does show in pic but a lot of yellow)
image.jpg
One with the stripes was listed "blue diamond"
 

Fikret Celik

Member
5 Year Member
Messages
115
Location
Turkey
I have my Acaras. My Acaras tank mates Otocinclus Affinis, Hyphessoprycon Amandae, Paracheirodon Innesi ve Hemigrammus Erythrozonus. I never had a problem.
 

wethumbs

Active Member
5 Year Member
Messages
476
Is never a good idea to buy discus hiding in a corner. Judging from the eye size (to head height), both of them are stunted and will never grow to a normal size discus. As for the color strains, you have them properly labeled.
 

gerald

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5 Year Member
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1,491
Location
Wake Forest NC, USA
They may not win a trophy at a discus show, but stunted discus (or any other fish) can still be happy healthy beautiful fish that live a normal lifespan and will produce normal fry that can grow to full size. Stunted females will have fewer eggs per spawn, but otherwise stunting will not affect their offspring. If you want discus for a tank smaller than 30 gal, "runts" that a show-breeder would cull may be just what you want, and cheap too.
 

Linus_Cello

Active Member
5 Year Member
Messages
276
Location
Washington DC
What temperature is your tank? Discus do much better in warmer temps; above 80 (so Rams would be good campanions). The other fish would do better at temps below 80 (like angels).
 

RichardK

New Member
Messages
5
The striped Angelfish is a Blue Zebra Pearlscale. That might be the same as diamond. I don't know what diamond means in the name.

About the Acaras and keeping them with Rams: This has worked fine for me in a 55 gallon tank. This is a rowdy community tank. the Acaras spawn, but can't protect their eggs. So, I pulled eggs once to raise the fry in a separate tank. In your tank the parents might have a chance to raise the fry.

At 80 F, the Rams will be okay, but are unlikely to spawn. They would want a higher temperature for that. Angels are very happy right at 80 F and might spawn for you in that tank. Sterbai Corys are a good choice for a tank at 80 F. Many other Corys would be stressed at that temp, but Sterbais do okay.
 

OrchidNinja

New Member
Messages
1
Location
Coquitlam, BC Canada
haha I actually have no idea why I said Quartz. I've always thought it was some kind of gneiss (my post about it on another forum)

can you tell me what these rocks my daughters found for me are?? View attachment 4609View attachment 4610 View attachment 4611
That last round one looks very iridescent at certain angles.


Beautiful! That definitely looks like labradorite to me. It's actually a pretty nice semi-precious stone☺️
 

Russ Hennessey

Member
5 Year Member
Messages
37
Well darn! Maybe down the line I'll swap my rams for some apistos then.

I'm getting my 75 set up tomorrow as follows:

AquaTop CF500 UV filter
Tahitian Moon Sand substrate
Undecided lighting (prob finnex planted plus)
A few hearty plants
Big granite rocks I pulled from a river near a quarry and sanitized.

Stock will currently be:
2 Elec. Blue Acara
15 Cardinal tetras
8 Lemon Tetras
6 Sterbai Cories (I know Acaras may get aggressive with eggs and cories may eat eggs)
1 Pleco (undecided on what kind)

What do you guys think about adding a Heros sp. Rotkeil (red shoulder severum) to this tank?

I know eventually it may see the cardinals as a snack, at which time I would remove and replace with something else.

Thanks guys!

Hi Vyvid
I think the swap is a good idea.... i was exactly where you were about 6 months ago with some beautiful rams and apistos in a SA biotope tank and did some research on the natural habitat for GBR's and the temperature is so high that i felt it best to move the rams to their own tank...then i ultimately sold them because the apisto addiction is a strong one lol.... and all my tanks are now filled with the little bugga's. Good luck on stocking the 75 and a good idea if keeping apistos is to get dither fish that prefer the mid or upper water column. this will keep the apistos happy and out on display! Good luck!!
 

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