Will Featherfin Rainbows do well in my tank?

[Mistago]

Hi,

I just discovered a fish at my local fish store called the Featherfin Rainbow (http://www.peteducation.com/images/articles/p_89918_threadfin_rainbow.jpg).

I did some research on it and I have discovered they are quite peaceful, quite small, and do well in groups.

My question is: will 4 of these (2 male and 2 female) do well in my current tank?

My stock:
10 gallon
1 african butterfly
2 male guppies
6 female guppies
1 crayfish
5 ghost shrimp
5 cherry shrimp
1 amano shrimp

Is there a good chance they will get harassed by my current tank inhabitants?

[troy]

Your tank is very overstocked so definitely no.

[Lady Hobbs]

I'd also advise against it. You have 8 guppies and 11 shrimp. That will equal 50 guppies and 50 shrimp before long.

[Pleco380]

In a 10 gallon with that many fish, I agree with Troy and Lady Hobbs.

[Mistago]

Your tank is very overstocked so definitely no.

The reason why I ask is because there is a lot of swimming space. The shrimp hide most of the time and the Butterfly just rests at the surface (when it's not feeding) and the Crayfish is a bottom feeder. I thought a true middle level fish would work.


I'd also advise against it. You have 8 guppies and 11 shrimp. That will equal 50 guppies and 50 shrimp before long.

I was also hoping the guppies would keep the shrimp hatchlings in check and the butterfly would eat the guppy fry to keep the population from getting out of control...

[troy]

Guppies occupy that part of the tank.

[wolf_eyes]

From my experience, a lot of the featherfins that I have seen in stores are males. Males tend to sell much better than the females since they have such beautiful fins. Males will however fight a lot more than females do and the males will nip at each other's fins. Nipped fins can lead to fin rot, which if not treated can in turn kill the fish. Featherfins are also a bit more sensitive to water quality than the other fish you have.

While you may have extra swimming room, do remember that stocking a tank deals with a lot more factors than just space:

Agresssion issues: If you have fish that are territorials (such as gouramis, bettas, cichlids, or too many males of one species) you want to understock slightly so that the fish do not get stressed out and go on aggression rampage. Overstocking tends to make the fish more stressed and aggitated because they do not have their own space. I'm not fond of analogies but imagine it like being in a hotel with your whole family. Sure the first few days are fine, but as the trip wears on little things start to irk you and the stress level goes up. While we may be able to go outside and walk around, do remember that your fish are stuck in this glass case with each other, all the time, 24/7. Giving the fish a little space to get away from one another is always a good idea

BIOLOAD ISSUES: This one is extremely important. If you stock a tank with too many fish than your chances for a tank disaster increase dramatically. A properly stocked tank should be able to support itself for a couple of days incase of a filter failure. You may not think that it happens often, but believe me, there have been several times that I have gone up to one of my tanks and notice that one of the filters isn't working. If you have too many fish, and the filter stops working, the ammonia and other harmful toxins are going to build up quickly and more sensitive fish will perish, if not more
.
Compatiblity issues: Certain fish just shouldn't be with other fish. There are several reasons for this : some fish will eat others, some will be mean and attack other, and some fish just have different water needs. Crayfish are usually pretty incompatible with most fish species, especially peaceful community ones. They will hunt them and eventually they will eat them.

Breeding issues: Wether we will it or not, some fish will breed in our tanks, and some rather prolifically. Livebearers are a great example of this. Each female can have up to 30 babies a month, sometimes even more. 6 females having only 15 babies each, which is a small number for them, is 120 babies a month. Now, let's say about 95% of those babies get eaten, which is a realistic number(although a very high mortality rate) because some will evade a slow moving predator like the butterfly fish. That's 6 babies that will make it a month. 6 babies in a year equals 72 extra fish in the tank. In a 10 gallon tank, that's a big problem.

As you can see from the above, there are many reasons people are suggesting not to put anymore fish in the tank. Bioload and breeding are the main ones and those two are pretty intermingled since more babies means more stress on the bioload and a higher chance of full tank failure. If I were you, I would suggest rehoming a few fish or getting a bigger tank and more filtration.