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FAQs on
Silver Dollars Compatibility
Related Articles: Serrasalmine Fishes, Piranhas, Characoids/Tetras &
Relatives,
FAQs on: Silver Dollars (Metynnis, Mylossoma,
Myleus...spp.) 1, Silver Dollars
2,
FAQs on:
Silver Dollar
Identification,
Silver Dollar
Behaviour,
Silver Dollar
Stocking/Selection,
Silver Dollar
Systems,
Silver Dollar Feeding,
Silver Dollar Health,
Silver Dollar Reproduction, Related
FAQs:
Serrasalmine Fishes,
Piranhas,
Pacus,
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Trouble with Red Hook Silver Dollar Cichlids...
incompatibility 8/25/14
Hello:
I have two red Hook Silver Dollar Cichlids that are in a tank with a Red
Empress.
<Red Empress variety of Peacock Cichlid? May be a clue. These fish come
from Lake Malawi and need hard, alkaline water... which your Silver
Dollars don't. While there is a middle ground for them I suppose that
might work -- around 10-12 degrees dH, pH 7.5 -- if your aquarium was
set up correctly for the Red Empress, it wouldn't be a nice place for
South American characins, and if dumped into this tank from one (e.g.,
at the retailer) where the water was soft could kill them quite quickly
if they failed to adapt. So some information on the aquarium is
essential to answer this question.>
Today they started mysteriously turning gray, swimming upside down, and
then wedging on the side of the tank in a vertical position.
Unfortunately they both died within a matter of an hours of each other.
What caused this?
<Almost certainly something wrong with the environment. When two or more
fish of the same species sicken and die at the same time or within a few
hours/days, then the environment is almost always the explanation.
Something was toxic to them. Water chemistry could be a stress factor as
mentioned, but also water quality. How big is this tank? Red Hook
Metynnis (Myloplus rubripinnis) are large fish, up to 25 cm/10 inches in
length, though 20 cm/8 inches would be considered large for aquarium
specimens.
Either way, we're talking aquaria around the 300 l/75 US gal size, with
commensurate levels of filtration. You also mention the fact you have
two Red Hook Metynnis; do remember these are as much schooling fish as
Neons, and keeping fewer than 5-6 specimens is asking for trouble.
Another factor is diet. These fish are more or less entirely herbivores
in the wild, and their diet must include some greens or at least
plant-based foods (such as Spirulina flake). Overuse of meaty foods of
the sort the Aulonocara like
will do them no good, potentially some harm.>
I did a water changed and all levels were fine so I'm confused and very
upset.
<I'm confused too because you haven't sent any sort of data. Read,
review and send along some information including aquarium size, what
sort of filter is used, and ideally water chemistry and water quality
measurements, not vague comments about them being "fine" because that's
of no help to me at all.>
Kathy
<Cheers, Neale.>
Re: Trouble with Red Hook Silver Dollar
Cichlids 8/25/14
Neale:
Thank you for your response. I will send you the requested aquarium
information when I get home from work tonight.
Kathy
<Cool. Glad to help. Neale.>
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80 gallon, 3 Koi angel fish 3 silver dollars
2/13/14
Dear crew at wet web media, I have been crawling the net searching for my
problems pictorially and advice wise, my param.s are
Nitrate 20 (In zone of a jungle 5 N 1 test strip kit according to kit safe)
<At the highest I/we suggest... See WWM re NO3, control in FW>
Nitrite 0
Soft water
Moderate alkalinity
PH neutral 6.8
Temp: 75
80 gallon
3 Koi angel fish
3 silver dollars
<Mmm, do "like" similar water conditions, but the dollars are too quick
moving for the slow angels and vice versa>
Anyhow my tank cycled for 2 weeks, yes I understand now after the fact that
it should have been longer, I do 2 20% water changes a week, my lfs is
closing and I bought 3 Koi angel fish and 3 silver dollar fish. Upon coming
home I noted one silver dollar fish with what looked like white paint brush
stroke, not lines, not grains not cottony, along back top fin, and I have
attached a photo, he eats normal seems good, before bring him home though, I
noticed that in the tank at lfs there were tiger barbs, and they must have
nipped him as he does have some missing finnage, what is this white paint
looking stuff and how should I treat it.
<Looks to be some sort of physical trauma... likely a brush with a Dollar>
Nextly I have angel fish all seem okay but one, whom has been swimming up
the side of the filter in the tank and up against the heaters, I moved it to
a quarantine tank and it just sat on the bottom, it seems paler and to have
a hallowed stomach, its missing one ventral fin, and swims pointing up a
lot.
<The new tank... and the mis mix of species>
Another of the angelfish (mind you all of these came from one huge tank at
lfs angels and dollars) it seemed like he had 2 raised scales? It was hard
to say just like orange bumps hardly noticeable and a few missing scales. I
have attached photos thank-you for all your time and consideration.
<And this... IF I had two tanks, I'd be separating. Bob Fenner>
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[1].jpg)
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Silver dollar and E. Blue Jack Dempsey? Comp.?
8/24/12
First off, I love your site. It's an invaluable tool for any fish
keeper.
Most of what I've learned over the years has either come from here or
been reinforced by your site, especially as it pertains to reef tanks.
I've read about all I can here regarding my freshwater question and
can't quite find a definitive answer.
<Let's see if I can help>
Right now I have a 29 gallon with 2 small black moors and about a 4-5
inch silver dollar that I rescued from a bad situation. I know this
arrangement is hardly ideal, but everyone gets along. It has an AC70
fully loaded and another smaller power filter with some floss just for
extra mechanical.
It's heated to around 78 for the silver dollar's benefit and the
goldfish don't mind.
<Agreed. Fancy goldfish are fine at this temp.>
NH3 is zero, NO2- is zero and NO-3 never surpasses 40
<I'd keep under 20 ppm>
or so with water changes. Everybody is happy for now. But I've always
known the arrangement wouldn't be permanent.
So I purchased a used 46 gallon bowfront in hopes of setting up a tank
for the silver dollar with more of his kind and other proper tank mates.
The problem is that of course the tank came with what I'm pretty sure is
about a 5 or 6 inch electric blue Jack Dempsey. I have him in a holding
tank until I get the tank set up properly.
<I see>
Is there any chance of these two fish living peacefully together?
<Mmm, maybe... w/ enough room to maneuver... and the Dollar being
introduced first... a few days to become familiar... they might get
along. I give the situation about a 50:50 chance>
Or is the cichlid going to have to go with other cichlids only?
<Mmm, maybe not even this/these>
I don't want to take much of a chance with the dollar's well being. I've
already nursed him back from bad shape once. The dollar is very
submissive, presumably from sharing space with the boisterous yet
well-intentioned moors. The Dempsey also seems rather unagressive, at
least to the extent that I've observed him thus far. He had shared his
tank with an Oscar until it died when the owners moved. He spends all of
his time under his little tree-cave. I suppose all of this previous
behavior can go out the window when certain species are mixed.
<And certain individuals>
I suppose another option is to simply rehome the Dempsey to someone that
knows what they're doing. I've always wanted a cichlid tank but I really
hate to have to build around one fish and not have options about tank
mates. I always pictured my cichlid tank with Mbunas.
What do you think my options are? What would you do?
<Maybe try mixing the two... with a plan to trade one or the other in...
longer term, another tank/system>
I patiently await your sage response.
-Matt
<Sage as in the herb I take it. Cheers! Bob Fenner>
silver dollar tankmates 2/23/11
Dear Crew,
Congratulations on your great job and keep up the good work! I have a
55 gal with 2 overhead filters running. The inhabitants are 6-3"
silver dollars (hypsauchen) and a 5" Featherfin catfish. Can I
still add some more fishes? If yes, what would look best? A cichlid?
Small schooling fish perhaps? What kind?
Thanks a lot
Carlos
<Hello Carlos, and thanks for the kind words. Silver Dollars in 55
gallons is a bit of a squeeze, and wouldn't ever be my
recommendation. Potential cichlid companions for Silver Dollars include
such things as Severums, Chocolate Cichlids, Festivums and Blue Acara
in soft water, while Rainbow Cichlids, Firemouths and Honduran Red
Points should work in harder, more alkaline conditions. More oddball
choices could be things like Fire Eels, Tyre-track Eels, Bichirs,
Climbing Perch and Pristolepis spp. Cheers, Neale.>
Will different silver dollar species school
together? 7/28/10
Hi Crew - I have 4 spotted Metynnis (spotted silver dollars) and wanted
to add a couple of normal silver dollars to add variety. Will they
school together?
Cheers
Tim
<They'll get along, but there's no guarantee they'll
school together. A good rule of thumb is to keep no fewer than five of
any one Silver Dollar species. Any fewer and there's always a risk
of in-fighting and dominance issues. Of course, your own mileage may
vary, and the size of the tank makes a huge difference. Cheers,
Neale.>
Damaged Silver Dollars; Gobioides broussonnetii
in the wrong tank 1/16/10
Hi I have two silver dollar fish with red anal fins.
<Likely the Red-hook Metynnis, or something similar.>
we have had them now for 3 months now and never had a problem , but
today I discovered that almost all of ones fins are missing and the
other looks like little bites are taken from them.
<Well, two things. Firstly, they can be nipped by other fish. Tiger
Barbs and Red-eye Tetras (Moenkhausia sanctaefilomenae) are on the
potential list of biters. You've actually made things worse here by
keeping these in insufficient numbers; barbs and tetras should be kept
in groups of 6+. In smaller groups even the best species can become
nasty. It's like getting a potentially lovely dog but then keeping
it cooped up indoors all the time.
With the best will in the world, that dog will become frustrated and
aggressive. Same thing here. By keeping these fish badly, you've
created the conditions for social behaviour problems. Secondly, your
Silver Dollars need to be in a bigger group as well. They are extremely
social fish, and in small groups their social behaviour goes haywire.
Yes, you've guessed it, this can manifest itself as aggression; in
other words, fin-nipping.>
I watched them for a few minutes, and saw only one other fish taking
interest in them and actually peck at them.
<Problem identified. What are you going to do to fix it?>
the fish was a bleu speckled platy and it is much smaller than the
silver dollars I'm not sure of the type of platy it is blue with
dark specs on it. are these fish known for such things,
<Some are, yes. But even "good" fish can become nippers
when bored or frustrated.>
or do you think the silver dollars have other issues. I have a 80 gal
tank and its clean the filter is a fluvial 304.i know there should be
more dollars in there but I don't think that's the problem.
<But I think it may well be, and I've been doing this for a LONG
time. So hear me out...>
and they have never showed any aggression towards each other there are
about 27 other fish in there
2 tiger barbs
<Nippy; 6+ specimens.>
3 sword tails
<Males are aggressive.>
1 Danio
<6+ specimens; can be nasty when bored.>
3 angel fish
2 blood fins
<6+ specimens>
2 red eyes
<Nippy; 6+ specimens.>
3 gold fish
<<Need to be elsewhere RMF>>
2 African butterfly
1 6 inch dragon fish
<If this fish is Gobioides broussonnetii, and I think it is,
it's a BRACKISH water fish and is doomed to die in a freshwater
aquarium. Surely you didn't buy such an unusual fish without
reading up on its needs first?
Either you did that, which was bad enough, or you ignored the advice
you'd seen about it, which is even worse! Cannot be kept with any
of these fish, except perhaps the Guppies, which will do just fine in a
brackish water aquarium at the requisite SG 1.005 (about 9 grammes
marine salt mix per litre). Note that adding a teaspoon of salt per
gallon will not help one bit; adding enough salt for this Goby will
quickly kill all the other fish in this tank, except for the
Guppies.>
1 blue platy
3 pearl gouramis
1 blue Gourami
1 fire tail guppy
all these fish are much smaller than the silver dollars except the
dragon but its totally non aggressive.
<Indeed. Gobioides broussonnetii is a lovely fish. It's a shame
it's so often bought by people who insist on not researching its
needs prior to purchase or decide for whatever reason not to keep it
the way it should be kept.>
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
<Up the numbers of the fish being kept, removing surplus fish as
required to make space. Transfer the Gobioides broussonnetii to a
brackish water aquarium.>
please and thank you in advance
<Happy to help. Cheers, Neale.>
Silver dollars not eating
5/13/09
Hello,
<Service to you!>
I have a problem with silver dollars not eating. In three weeks they
have only eaten once, as far as I can tell.
<Unusual...>
I have a 90 gallon tank with an 8 inch Oscar, 6 inch cichlid of some
kind,
<Oh! These might well be psychologically malaffecting your
Dollars>
who are both doing well, and 3 silver dollars. Yes, I know I should
probably have at least 6 silver dollars, but I do not.
<Three are fine here>
There is an established pecking order, with Oscar on top and dollars on
the bottom.
<Yes>
The dollars do get pushed around but are not really attacked or bitten,
just chased a bit.
<Mmmm>
I have not turned a light on over the tank at all since they have been
here. I do water changes weekly, and I change the filter components as
specified. The filter is overhanging, said to be good up to 110
gallons.
<You really could use more... Much more here>
I raised the temperature a couple degrees recently, only because one
web page mentioned it may help (although I didn't really believe it
would) - the temp is usually at 75 but now up to 79, using one
heater.
<I'd use two here... and hide from the cichlids>
I have had the dollars for 3 weeks and they have only eaten once. They
have ample opportunity to eat, as I distract the other fish while
attempting to feed the dollars (Oscar loves to hang out with me). I
have tried floating flakes and pellets, like they were fed in the pet
store, as well as sinking cubes of thawed omnivore food ( a mix of
brine shrimp, plankton, veggies), beef hearts, krill, and even hand
picked and chopped earthworms. They simply ignore the food as it floats
in front of their face and sits on the bottom near them. I plan on
getting a floating live plant, in the hopes they will munch on that. My
guess is the Oscar will tear it apart but who knows. I cannot feed them
at the surface as they seem to be more scared of me than the other
fish. They are usually swimming about when I get home from school, but
hide in the corner when I am in the room. They looked healthy when I
bought them, seemed to adjust well, ate for the first time a few days
after I put them in the tank, but have not eaten since. They still look
relatively healthy, but show signs of deterioration. One seems more
pink-ish now than silver, and kind of seems to have his head caving
in.
<A very bad sign... of starvation>
I would love to keep them, but they seem to hate their life. Any ideas
on how I can entice them to eat?
Meghan Moran
Masters Graduate Student
Crop Science, University of Guelph
<More a matter of incompatibility than feeding here. These S.
American Characoids need to be placed elsewhere... Apart from the
"terrifying" cichlids... Another co-factor might be water
quality... They do prefer even warmer water... and soft, acidic
conditions as well... But do move them to another system in any case,
and soon. Bob Fenner>
Re: silver dollars not eating 5/13/09
Thanks. I got that done...borrowed a tank, set it up, had the water
checked, got the go ahead to transfer the dollars.
<Ah, good>
Sad state of affairs indeed. I hope they recover, then I suppose
I'll have to find someone to take them. Thanks for your time
Meghan Moran
<Thank you for this follow-up, and caring, being human to make this
prompt change. BobF>
Re: silver dollars not eating 5/15/09
Thanks. Your response made me feel a bit better. I feel guilty and I
feel terrible for the fish. The first day in quarantine and they
didn't eat. Any special way to entice them or particularly tasty
treat that would be irresistible?
<Yes... palatable plant material... something like
Egeria/Elodea/"Anacharis" and warm water (low 80's
F)>
Now I also noticed the Oscar has Ich, must have just set in/become
visible.
My problem is the quarantine tank is in use! Would being in a
Rubbermaid bin or other such plastic container stress the Oscar out if
he can't see out of it?
<... See WWM re... I'd just raise the temp. where the fish
is>
I don't know what to do, I don't have a third tank. How long
does it take to treat the Ich?
<... See...>
I'm sure that length of time can vary.. I just feel awful about
this whole thing, I want them to be healthy.
Meghan Moran
<I want you to use WWM. B>
Re: silver dollars not eating 5/15/09
You're right, usually I check all the articles first. Thanks for
your time :)
Meghan Moran
<Ah, good. BobF>
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Cichlid in need of help
Parrot Cichlid Getting Intimidated By Silver Dollar
4/14/09
Hello, My name is Suzanne. I have a cichlid that's in need of
help. He's bright orange (solid color, no spots), about 4
inches long- I don't know what type he is.
< He is called a parrot cichlid. This is not a true species
but a cross.>
We've had him for approximately 3 years and he's never
been sick.. until now. Our cichlid has lived alone in well- taken
care of 46 gallon tank for the last 2;5 years. About a week ago,
we introduced two silver dollar fish, which the people at the
aquarium store recommended. The cichlid and the silver dollars
were fine for the first few days. A bit of fighting.. The cichlid
jabbed the silver dollars in the eye. Our cichlid got a torn fin.
I've been putting "Melafix" into the water to speed
up the healing process. But the real problem started about 3 days
ago. One morning I woke up and the cichlid was lying upright
(meaning not upside down or sideways, just upright, except not
swimming) in a shell that was recently placed in the tank. He has
been lying in that shell and hardly ever leaving it ever since
then. When I approach the tank, he comes out, swims,
and looks fine overall. His color has not changed, he has an
appetite, there are no strange spots (except a very miniscule
black spot on his head). When he swims, at times he seems
absolutely fine.
Other times, it looks like he's putting a tremendous amount
of energy into swimming, but he doesn't seem to move very
far. It even looks like he's twitching sometimes. Very
spastic. Other times when he leaves the shell (which is rare), he
hangs out on the floor of the tank and eventually, starts looking
unsteady, and veers onto his side momentarily. Inevitably, he
returns to the shell and stays there.
I'm not sure, but he looks like he's breathing heavy.
It's hard to tell. The silver dollars seem absolutely fine.
They're swimming around and look very healthy. They're
not bothering the cichlid anymore at all. They pretty much leave
him alone when he comes..
maybe approaching him a bit, but it doesn't seem particularly
aggressive.
We checked the water levels. The pH, nitrite and ammonia levels
were fine. The nitrate levels were slightly elevated. We changed
1/3 of the water, cleaned the filter (but didn't clean/change
the little cylindrical pieces in the filter, or the pellets- to
not over-clean), suctioned the gravel, and changed the air pump
so that now the bubbles it generates are considerably stronger
than before. The water temperature is at approximately 89
degrees.
< Way too warm. Lower to 78-80 F>
He looks completely catatonic, although again, there don't
seem to be any other obvious signs in terms of his color,
appetite or otherwise that indicate illness. Is it behavioral?
That seems crazy.. but it crossed my mind
that perhaps he feels really aggressive towards the other fish
and is avoiding them. Or could it be his fin that's bothering
him? Or is he really sick? Any advice/suggestions/resources would
be a tremendous
help. Thanks so much. Suzanne
< Thanks for the photos. They were very helpful. The silver
dollars have ganged up on your parrot cichlid. He is now very
stressed and may have an internal bacterial infection. This
cichlid cross does not defend himself very well and is easily
picked on by other fish. If the silver dollars are removed he may
swim normally. If the silver dollars are removed and he's
still has a swimming problem then there probably is an internal
infection.
You fish will not get better with the silver dollars in there.
Once they are removed treat with a combination of Nitrofuranace
and Metronidazole. This may cause some ammonia spikes because the
antibiotics may affect the biological filtration.-Chuck>
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Re: cichlid in need of help
Cichlid Intimidated By School Of Silver Dollars
4/18/09
Hi Chuck, I just wanted to thank you for your advice. I removed
the silver dollars right away and bought the recommended
medicines in case there was a need for them. The Silver dollars
have been out of the tank for
less than 24 hours, and our parrot cichlid has already begun to
swim around and is looking much more active. I'm not sure
yet, but I think it might have been just what you suggested-
severe intimidation. I'm
keeping an eye and seeing how things progress before I introduce
the medicine. Thanks very much again! (By the way, I typed the
wrong temperature of the tank when I wrote to you initially. The
temperature
was in fact around 78 degrees.. thankfully not 89 degrees!)
All the best, Suzanne
<Glad everything worked out ok and no medication was
needed.-Chuck>
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Re: Silver Dollars I really want to put aquatic plants in my
55gal but I have 2 Silver Dollars that ate the previous plants I have
tried. Do you have any suggestions on a particular species that may not
taste good to them?. <Some of the tough Anubias species might do
here... and the less palatable Java Moss, Hornwort/Coontail
(Ceratophyllum) might be worth trying... otherwise, you might consider
building a divider blocking access to the plants (keeping the Silver
Dollars separated). Bob Fenner>
Silver Dollars I recently converted a 60 gallon
tank from salt to fresh. It is currently in the process of
cycling. <Sounds good!> My ultimate goal is to have a
school of silver dollars, accompanied by a couple schools of smaller
fish such as neon tetras. <Ultimately, the silver
dollars will grow large enough to happily gobble up
Neons.... Though they are primarily vegetarians by nature,
lunches-with-fins are still lunches-with-fins.> My question is this,
assuming I have 8 small 1" fish in this tank, what is the largest
school of silver dollars that my tank could support.
<Well, considering that silver dollars top out around 5-6 inches
(depending upon what species you get), I would consider than any of
those 1" fish would be at risk of being eaten. But,
assuming that they don't, and everyone lives peacefully, and
you're not talking about 1" waste factories (baby goldfish,
baby Oscars, etc.), I would think three or four adult silver dollars
would be comfy in a 60 gallon tank. While small, you could
try more, but you'd have to watch for aggression and thin them down
as they grow - and they do grow pretty swiftly.> Thank you for your
help. Dane Sure thing. Wishing you
well, -Sabrina>
Silver Dollar Compatibility Good day ladies and Gents, I have
two Silver Dollars (Metynnis hypsauchen) that have outgrown my tank.
They've been together in my tank for two years now. A friend of
mine has a 75 Gallon with a mated pair of the same fish, and he said he
would gladly take them. I looked through the FAQ's and did not see
an answer to my question so I feel safe in asking it.. :) I was just
wondering if they're would any aggression between the pairs, and if
the tank is large enough? Thank you as usual! Heather <In all
likelihood these four will not only get along, but be much happier in a
larger grouping... this is how they live in the wild. Bob
Fenner>
Hatchetfish, Silver Dollars, Discus, Compatibility -
05/19/2006 Can one keep Hatchet Fish, Silver Dollar, and a few
Discus fish in a 55 gallon tank? <I would not mix silver dollars and
discus. Discus are typically shy and timid, silver dollars
are boisterous and perhaps too fast/aggressive. The discus
would likely not get enough to eat in this mix, and would get pretty
stressed out.> What do I need for setup if possible?
<Research, mostly. http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwsetupindex.htm
> pH? Ammonia? Nitrate? <
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwestcycling.htm
, http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwph,alk.htm
> No plants if possible. Thanks -Mark
<Wishing you well, -Sabrina>
Fishy Mystery From A Forum Reader - 03/08/2006 I got your
email address off the WetWeb website. I have a question and am not a
member. <Feel free to join the forums; it's free and fun!> I
have 3 silver dollars, I have a 47 gallon tank with a few platies,
mollies and tetras. I had a 5 inch rainbow shark and he disappeared as
do some of my platies and mollies from time to time. I think when my
fish die the other fish eating the body, as sometimes when I clean my
tank I'll find something that looks like a skull or fish skin. The
man at the fish store said silver dollars are aggressive, I've
never read anything bad on the internet about silver dollars. What do
you think? <About what, the silver dollars? Or the
mysterious disappearances? Silver dollars CAN be
aggressive. I very much doubt, though, that they'd be
able to take out a sizeable critter like your rainbow shark
minnow. They tend to be a little harsher on plants than
fish, but smaller guys like little platies and tetras may get
munched. As for the dying fish, yeah, it is VERY common for
active, healthy fish to try to eat a dead or dying tankmate, so
that's what's happening with the bodies - the mystery is, what
exactly is killing them? The answer here may be something in
terms of water quality. Please be testing ammonia, nitrite,
and nitrate; ammonia and nitrite must be ZERO at all times; nitrate
less than 20ppm. If this is not the case, correct it by
doing water changes until the levels are right. Make sure
you use a chlorine/Chloramine neutralizer and match the temperature and
pH to that of the tank. Wishing you
well, -Sabrina>
Temperature Range - Metynnis and
Rams? Sys., comp. - 09/30/2006 Hello y'all,
<Hi. My apologies for the delay in reply; I've been
out, and your email came to us in a format that unfortunately our
Webmail system had some trouble with, and I am one of the only folks
able to respond to it.> First of all, thanks as usual for your
maintenance of a wonderfully informative site. <Thank you very much
for these kind words.> (I recently wrote my comprehensive exams for
a PhD in education, and cited this site as a great example of a
constructivist learning environment. So thanks for your contribution to
my degree as well.) <This is high praise indeed - thank you
again.> I would like to keep Metynnis hypsauchen and Microgeophagus
ramirezi together in a 150 gallon system. <Maybe possible in this
size system, given enough plants and hiding spaces.... but
do keep in mind that the rapid schooling and darting about of the
Metynnis may be stressful to the shy rams. This is something
I, personally, wouldn't try, but I imagine it can be done with
success in as large a system as this.> My plan is to keep the temp
at about 80-81° F, as this seems to be at the upper limit of
the silver dollars and the lower limit of the rams. <The rams can go
lower if you don't intend to breed. Warmer would be
preferable for them, but I'm rather concerned about the warm water
making the Metynnis even MORE quick and spazzy.> However, I'm
concerned that much of the literature about rams stresses that
they're delicate, and happier at temps around 85.
<Indeed. But I would not bring the Metynnis to this
temperature.> Should I: a) go with the "intersection" temp
of 80-81 b) keep the temp higher, on the theory that the silver dollars
are more tolerant of out-of-range temps than the rams c) not keep the
two species together? <.... I would choose
"C". But again, that's just me.> Thanks
again for your help and patience. <And you, again, for your kind
words and consideration!> Melinda Johansson <All the best to
you, -Sabrina>
Guppies tails being eaten --
07/01/07 Hi, we have a 60 litre tank with several tetras, 2 Silver
Dollars, 6 Platys (with a week-old baby in a net cage!) & one Clown
Loach. A few days ago we acquired 4 Guppies which we assumed to be male
due to their colourful tails. All was fine for the first 2 or three
days then, one morning, we found a severely traumatised little person
minus tail! We quickly separated him from the others but he died
shortly after. We noticed that one of the other Guppy's tails had
been nibbled, though not to a great degree, and kept an eye throughout
the day. However, yesterday morning, he too had died. Whatever's
happening seems to be doing so during the night. Might you be able to
advise as we find it so distressing & feel we've done something
awfully wrong. Many thanks, Don & Jenny. <Greetings. As you
perhaps realise, a 60 litre (16 US gallon) tank is too small for silver
dollars. Silver dollars potentially over 10 cm (4") in length and
are exceptionally active and fast moving. I'd hesitate to recommend
them even for a tank two or three times the size of yours. Clown
loaches are schooling fish, and should be kept in at least a trio.
Keeping a single specimen isn't very fair to the fish, and
you'll probably find it is shy and nervous. Clown loaches are even
bigger than silver dollars, and definitely need a bigger tank than
yours. For a trio, even a 200 litre tank would be too small. So
that's the analysis of your livestock over! Almost certainly the
guppies are being nipped by the tetras. Silver dollars generally
aren't nippers, so I'd cross those one of the list. But Serpae
tetras, black widow tetras, flame tetras, and a few others are
regularly implicated. So if you let me know which tetras you have, we
can try and identify the culprit. In some cases the problem is too few
members of the school, but in other cases the tetra concerned feeds on
skin and scales in the wild, so is simply doing what comes natural.
Either way, mixing tetras and fancy guppies is almost never a good
idea. Even Neons have been known to nip fins under such circumstances!
In the meantime, treat for Finrot/fungus. Cheers, Neale.>
Reply... Neale, Don & Jenny... Silver
Dollars... 7/2/07 Hi Neale, many thanks for
your reply and advice. Our Silver Dollars are about 3-4 inches and seem
quite happy. Our Clown Roach 2-3 inches & also seems happy. He/ she
is out and about quite a lot from under his log. We intend getting
another as we had 2 to start with but one vanished overnight some weeks
ago!- but haven't been able to locate a small one. We have a few
Neon tetras, 5 Leopards and 4 Blue. Our one remaining Guppy seems
unscathed and absolutely fine! Is it possible he might be responsible
for the de-finning and ultimate demise of his three amigos? As
you've probably surmised, we are novice fish enthusiasts, having
started keeping fish at the end of March. Most of our purchases (
Tetras, Platys and, more recently, our unfortunate Guppies) have been
the result of advice given by a Fish Specialist shop in Rhyl from whom
we also bought our tank & equipment. We have already decided to get
a second tank. Ta muchly, Don & Jenny <Hello Don & Jenny!
Guppies can be nippy towards one another. Males are aggressive,
especially when kept in small groups without females. Whether to the
point of killing each other I cannot say. Never heard of that. Possible
though. I have no idea what "leopard" tetras are. Never heard
of them. Do you mean Leopard Danios? Small, minnow-like fish with
spotted bodies that swim blazingly fast? Danios can be pugnacious, and
tend to be fairly high energy animals. Work best in groups of 6 or
more; any fewer and they often harass their tankmates, not out of
malice really, but simply frustration, and the need to chase things and
burn off some energy. Blue Tetras are fairly uncommon and I don't
have personal experience, but they're said to be peaceful. Neons
are not normally nippy but they have been know to bite Siamese fighting
fish, so the possibility of nipping a fancy guppy definitely exists. As
for questions of "happiness", there's two kinds of happy.
There's what works now, and then there's what works in the long
term. Your fish quite probably are happy know because they're
young. Fish are often adaptable animals and will thrive in less than
perfect conditions. But clown loaches and Silver Dollars get big and
live for 10+ years, so long term you need a plan. I'd recommend
keeping an eye out over the next 6-12 months for a bigger aquarium.
There's nothing more miserable than a big clown loach by itself
wedged into a too-small aquarium. Clown loaches are notoriously
sensitive, sometimes making suicidal jumps out of aquaria when they
feel stressed and other times getting Whitespot very easily. Clown
loaches are "allergic" to most standard medications, as I
trust your retailer told you, and you must never use things like
anti-Whitespot potion in a tank with clown loaches. Hope this helps,
Neale>
Silver Dollar Tetras 5/10/07 Hello was looking at
your site under Characins, the two silver dollars, Myleus schomburgkii
and M. rubripinnis are listed under other sites as reaching 39 cm
long. Yours were juveniles then? < Probably close to adult size.>
, anyway my question was the teeth. Do they bite your hand if you put
it in the aquarium, do they attack other fish, harm them? < They
usually attack plants. We use to call them plant piranhas. If they
think that your hand is food then they will take a nip. This usually
happens when people are trying to feed them by hand. The bites do no
damage to the best of my recollection.> I know about the common
smaller silver dollar M. hypsauchen do they also have sharp teeth but
don't use them? I'm trying to figure out if I can put these
larger silver dollars into a big aquarium with Tinfoils, balsa, one
Oscar. < Silver dollars make a fine dither fish for med to large
community tanks. Just remember that they love to eat plants and need
some plant material in their diet.-Chuck>
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