Some Basic Rainbow questions...

[domjd05]

Hey guys, I've been working on my 125g setup for a while now (50hrs+ workweek plus going to school 3/4 time and family tends to shorten your free time!)

I originally had planned to make this tank a discus tank, and I would still love to do so... but lately I've been eyeing some planted rainbow tanks and I think it may be the better fit for me!

So.. some questions.. are rainbows aggressive towards eachother? Can you mix different rainbow species? Or are they best kept seperated...?

Do they eat the plants?

What are some other possible tankmates?

This is a moderately planted SA style tank, with a wet/dry filtration and UV sterilization.

[Northernguy]

We have a few members that are proud of their rainbows.
I am sure they will be by soon!lol
Have you read this (notice the links at the bottom of the page)
http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/rainbowfish/

And this
http://badmanstropicalfish.com/rainbow.html
(click on the fish pic for profile).

[rich311k]

They do play with each other but do not generally hurt one another. The males will display to each other. It is actually quite the site. You can mix species, like most gregarious fish they do like to be in groups.

The will be fine with larger tetras, corys, loaches and plecos.

[EmmanuelJB]

I love my rainbow fish and would recomend them to anyone who has a tank large enough for them.
My rainbows don't fight but I only have once species. I know of a lot of people who mix species of rainbows though. I would recomend at least 5 of each species if you do decide to mix. The only time I know of rainbows being agressive is when they are spawning. But I guess you could get the occasinal agressive one.

Not sure if they eat plants or not. Im pretty sure they don't though...

Heres what I keep my bosemani's with:
Bleeding Heart tetras, Harlequin Rasboras, Platys, Corrys, Rubber Plecos, and Tiger barbs. When I had my dwarf gourami they never seemed to bother him either. Over all most community fish do well with rainbows. Is there any specific fish you are looking to house with them?

[rich311k]

They do not eat plants, that I have ever seen.

[domjd05]

wow thanks for the responses guys, I am planning to keep them with cardinals, cories, maybe a few keyholes or even an angel... not really keeping it "south american" but I don't think my discus are going to put up with a 2 year old jumping up and down in front of the tank all day lol, and 2wpg 6500k lighting has me thinking I'll have spent several hundred dollars on fish that like to hide...

I googled some rainbow tanks, and WOW... I'm impressed, I've only ever kept a few boesmans (sp?) I never realized there was all the different species.. this is good news so far!

Very glad to here they don't eat plants... can anyone else verify this?

[Lady Hobbs]

I have 8 boesemani (7 are males) and even have no problem with them over that one female. I just recently picked up 4 turquoise, my favorite! I've had the turqoise before but due to messed up shipping by USPS, a whole lot of them were killed and another purchase of new ones found me with some that were ill.

The turquoise are unigue in that the top of their head flashes from orange, green, yellow and red when stressed or spawning. It's quite a sight! They get along great together.

Best to spawn them 2 or 3 males to 1 female. They can get aggressive with their mates so the other males keep some of the aggression away from that female. They love planted tanks. It's their natural habitat.

[domjd05]

Wow I'm excited the wife and I went rainbowfish hunting (for some reason they almost never are available here at least not the colorful males).. Well we found a whole bunch, and for a decent price! (Compared to some of the prices I've seen online).

Anyway, I got 4 australians, 1 tourquoise (loving it, definatlet getting more tourqs) and 1 boeseman. I'm going to keep hunting for them around here but probably have to go online for some of the rarer ones.

[rich311k]

Sounds good. Best of luck with them.

[Zilla]

Wow I'm excited the wife and I went rainbowfish hunting (for some reason they almost never are available here at least not the colorful males).. Well we found a whole bunch, and for a decent price! (Compared to some of the prices I've seen online).

Anyway, I got 4 australians, 1 tourquoise (loving it, definatlet getting more tourqs) and 1 boeseman. I'm going to keep hunting for them around here but probably have to go online for some of the rarer ones.

Hopefully you'll have better luck with the Australians than I did. I started my 55 with 4 of them and had to get rid of them due to extremely aggressive behavior. They not only beat up on each other ( this was not typical Rainbow sparring, they were being mean and meant to do each other harm) and then they kept bugging the foolishness out of my Geo. They annoyed him to much with their biting attempts that he spent most of his time being almost completely black because he was so angry all the time.

You'll know if they start to act up. They'll patrol the tank and when they try to strike, their mouths will be wide open. It's kind of creepy actually as looking at them one wouldn't think they could open their mouths as wide as they are capable of.

If there is going to be a target fish, my bet is on the Turquoise as they are the most mellow when it comes to Bows.

Also before you order any of the rarer ones you do your research. Some Rainbow species will kill any other fish in the tank and are meant to be kept as a single species per tank.

[Lady Hobbs]

Wow I'm excited the wife and I went rainbowfish hunting (for some reason they almost never are available here at least not the colorful males).. Well we found a whole bunch, and for a decent price! (Compared to some of the prices I've seen online).

Anyway, I got 4 australians, 1 turquoise (loving it, definatlet getting more tourqs) and 1 boeseman. I'm going to keep hunting for them around here but probably have to go online for some of the rarer ones.

Check AquaBid. Rainbows are always there for sale very reasonable.

I also did not like the Australian Splendid. Too large, too aggression.

[domjd05]

The australians I got are the "dwarf" kind.. they are all getting along great, but its only been 24 hrs...we'll see how things go in a few weeks...

Of course I will be doing my research! I don't plan to spend money on a rare fish and overnight shipping without knowing if the fish will work or not:11:

[Lady Hobbs]

My problem with them was the amount of them I had. They spawned and I ended up keeping many of them so the tank was run over with the Splendia. They are really nuts in huge schools so what happened was probably mostly my fault.

[domjd05]

lol sometimes it's just really hard to get it right when keeping fish.. there really are so many variables to think about when it comes to long-term tank plans..

I only have 4 australians, Probably not going to get anymore more of those right off.

[Greggz]

I don't chime in here too often, but was browsing and your post caught my eye.

I keep a mostly Rainbow tank. Don't be concerned about mixing them, as they all get along very well. I prefer a few of many species, as I enjoy seeing the different colors cruising though the tank. They won't eat plants, so no concern there.

I recommend lots of filtration and water flow. Seems to keep them happy. I run two Rena XP3's, and two power heads. I notice that when I turn off the power heads, the activity in the tank slows considerably. As soon as I turn them back on, everyone is back on the move.

When searching for Rainbows, it really helps to know what you are looking for. Most LFS's don't have mature Rainbows, unless they were traded in. Most young Rainbows don't look like much, and you could walk right by them at the fish store and they wouldn't catch your eye. It takes some patience to let them grow out and show mature colors.

Here's a link to a youtube video of my tank. Hope that helps you out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUlxYjXeAc0

[domjd05]

Wow great tank!! What were the almost black with red finned looking ones? Almost looked like very well color new guineas?

Also notices some nice emeralds and tourqs I think!

[Greggz]

Wow great tank!! What were the almost black with red finned looking ones? Almost looked like very well color new guineas?

Also notices some nice emeralds and tourqs I think!

I'm not sure exacty which one you are referring to. Here's a list of the varieties I keep. They are actually much brighter and more colorful in person than in the video.

Boesemani Rainbow,(Melanotaenia Boesemani)
Turquoise Rainbow (Lake Kutubu), (Melanotaenia Lacustris)
Neon Rainbow, (Melanotaenia Praecox)
Millenium Rainbow (Tami River), (Glossolepis Pseudoincisus)
Goyder River Banded Rainbow, (Melanotaenia trifasciata)
Running Creek Banded Rainbow, (Melanotaenia trifasciata)
Lake Tebera Rainbow (, (Melanotaenia herbertaxelrodi )