Rummy Nose Tetras are one of my all time favorite characins that I have kept. That being said,they are not always that easy to keep. You must pay close attention to their water quality, low nitrates and pH, frequent water changes are needed with a good conditioner. If not keep in favorable conditions their normaly bright red "nose" will fade. Once acclimated to your tank they are an awsome fish. In my 75 gal the group of 13 are tight schoolers who very rarely leave each others side. Hemigrammus Bleheri are the ones you see more often which is nice because even though they are not supposed to be as hardy as H. Rhodostomus they are considered the more colorful of the two as the red coloration extends further back past the gills. Buy as big a school as you can 10-12 would be best. One of the few fish that can be kept in Discus tanks because of their similer water requirements.
By "as big of a school as you can", how much running room do they need? If one had a ... say 40 B, just for example, and she -- I mean they -- wanted to add in a big school... is 25 too many?
How many fish do you have in your tank right now and remind me again what your filteration is?
Of course! I’m very sorry I neglected to include any pertinent information. In my 40 B, I have 2 filters: Fluval U4 (submersible filter) rated for 65 gal; 260 GPH Fluval AquaClear 50, rated for 50 gal -- 200 GPH Current stock: 3 Platys; 16 Neon Tetras; 9 Cherry Barbs; ~30 Red Cherry Shrimp; an Assassin snail Planned (hopeful) additions: Sterbai Cory – a med sized school – perhaps between 9 and 15, leaning more towards 15 *I still want to leave room so that I can consider a small school of Dwarf Chain Loaches (like 6) The question: Rummynose Tetras – the point of all this is that I’d like to add in a fairly large school of these. My priority is a healthy tank, so aiming to not overcrowd them though. Can I add something like 25? I’d like this school to be the largest group (not counting the RCS, lol) in my aquarium. My centerpiece, if you will.
With the filtration you have, I would grab all 25! You have the room and you could still follow your "cory plan" :) 25 RN's would make your tank realy pop!!!
Thank you very much for your advice!
Always!! Looking forward to them being in your tank .
I love having the school of 21 Rummy-nose in my tank. Thanks for your encouragement to get the whole batch that was for sale.
I'm glad your enjoying them ;-) Everybody thinks they need a big fish as a "centrepiece" to their tanks but a large school of these can fit the bill :) After the 75 gets over it's "hiccup", I think I will restock another 10 Rummys.
Ooo I could see that! It will look wonderful for you, Lee. I'm still dreaming to get a larger tank someday. I used to think I'd make it a cichlid tank, but now I day dream about moving most of the inhabitants of my 40 over and bumping up a few of the schools -- like the Rummy school.
