Stocking a 65 gallon

[Glofish]

Ok, I have a heavily planted 65 gallon bowfront nearing the end of cycling.

I have 15 glofish that need to come out of the nanos they are currently in, so they are going into the 65 gallon. (novice ignorance caused me to put that many glofish into the tiny nanos and the bioload is way heavy, all I am doing these days is changing nano water it seems... They are healthy and happy though.)

So - 15 glofish.

Then I am thinking of a cleaning committee of 8 Corys and 8 Otos.

So I have some more room - maybe Rainbows or Rasboras? Or?

[Gesp56]

Maybe a dwarf cichlid of sorts? I personally chose the Festivum or Flag Cichlid for my 55 gallon.

My stocking list I chose for my future 55 gallon is
13 Emperor Tetras
10 Harlequin Rasboras
10 Dwarf Chain Loaches
8 Schwartz Corydoras
1 Royal Farlowella Catfish
1 Flag Cichlid

Currently you basically got a schooling fish and a bottom feeding schooling fish.. You can either add another large school and maybe a suckermouth cat or you can add a small group of dwarf cichlids and maybe another small school of smaller fish. I'd recommend Harlequin Rasboras, you can never go wrong with Harleys!

[Glofish]

The Glos shool about mid level most of the time. Are there any top schoolers?

I hear hatchets do that, but they are sensitive?

[Amelia]

I've not had hatchets so I can't say about sensitivity. There are many attractive Killifish which are surface dwellers, if your LFS carries these.

Harlequin rasbora are stunning. If you really like the Glofish you could add more of different colours and they will all school together.

Cories sound good, although I would recommend 1-3 Bristlenose Pleco instead of the ottos as they are notoriously hard to keep.

You could add a feature fish such as an angelfish, gourami, or some dwarf cichlids. A good idea is to go to your LFS without your wallet and write down the names of some wish which catch your eye. :) Then come back here and research.

[Glofish]

Unfortunately I have no LFS - there is a mini Petco with lots of dog and catfood and a few fish and plants.... and a Walmart that I won't even go into... and a marine fish store a couple hours drive away... but the next fish store with a selection of freshwater fish is a day's drive away.

So I am looking, learning and shopping online. Fortunately one can spend days and weeks reading up on everything and looking at pictures - but it's not the same as seeing something in real life.

I'll investigate the bristle nose.... and the Harlequin Rasbora sound more and more like right choice.

Are Angels really happy alone? I have a Betta living alone and he always seems lonely to me...

Chichlids in a community tank always scare me a little.... but I do hope to do a chichlid tank a couple of years down the line, once I have a lot more experience in general.

[Glofish]

So you think putting two angels in there qwould be a disaster?

[Gesp56]

Angels could do good but in my opinion you'd be better off without them. More times then not they're aggressive and may kill your glos and any other fish. If you want a nice top dweller and centerpiece get a cichlid. Cichlids CAN be community fish and there are several dwarf species to choose from.

[mda]

Have recently stocked a 67 Gal myself (nonplanted), 4ft x 1.5ft x 1.5ft

Inhabitants:
3 Oranda Goldfish (2-3" body size without the tail)
3 Blushing Koi Angelfish
5 Zebra Danios
10 White Cloud Mountain Minnows
15 Cardinal Tetras

I'm running a 1800L/H Powerhead/overhead filter with a 1000L/H Canister.

Fish seem healthy and the water conditions seem within normal range.

[Amelia]

Angels could do good but in my opinion you'd be better off without them. More times then not they're aggressive and may kill your glos and any other fish. Angels are usually only aggressive to their own kind because of territorial reasons, just like many other cichlids. MANY people keep them successfully in community aquariums, especially with just a single individual. Like most fish, they will eat fish small enough to fit in their mouths. If you want a nice top dweller and centerpiece get a cichlid. Angelfish are cichlids, and apart from Angels most cichlids are not top dwellers -- they are mostly bottom dwellers. Cichlids CAN be community fish and there are several dwarf species to choose from.

Glofish -- yes, putting 2 Angelfish together is not a good idea. If they are not a mated pair, one will become dominant and likely attack the other. IF you would like a pair, you may start with a group of juveniles and wait for a pair to form and then rehome the rest. But a pair is likely to get very aggressive to other tank mates when they spawn. Keeping a single Angelfish would be fine -- they do not get lonely as they are not a schooling or particularly social fish. Likewise, your betta is not lonely -- he might be bored though.

If you wanna go away from Angels, a single Gourami may be an attractive feature fish for you. I have a Platinum Gourami and I really like her. Or you could have a group or pair of dwarf cichlids. Kribs are a good hardy beginners dwarf cichlid but can be very aggressive when spawning (which they will readily do if you have a male and female). Bolivian Rams are a good choice. There are more attractive species such as German Blue Rams or Apistogrammas, but these are very sensitive and require very pristine water. In a 65g you could easily stock an Angel and some dwarf cichlids. It's all down to what you like.

[Glofish]

Well, I'll take it slow and just put in my glofish and some janitors (corys and otos). Then I'll go from there... I am worried about aggressive fish, so maybe keep that community tank very docile.

Discus turn me on, but that's a pipe dream for now, maybe in a year or two I can put up a big tank just for discus. They seem to be a lot of trouble.... but gorgeous and personable, too.