you could look into a pair of shell dwellers from lake Tanganyika. I keep a small colony of multies in my 10 gallon tank and they dont move around too much and they stay small at around 2 inches.
What fish is best for a 3 gal. tank?
- Thread starter comet_rescuer
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A 3 gallon is really too small for shell dwellers. They are small and can be kept in small tanks but they are still cichlids and need territories. They also need stable water conditions which can be difficult to maintain in a small tank.
I think an invert tank is the way to go. Keep some cherry shrimp with a small nerite snail or mystery snail and it will be an interesting and active tank. I have a 5 gallon gallon with cherry shrimp, a couple nerites and a dario dario. The dario dario(or scarlet badis) are super awesome tiny fish. The downside is they pretty much will only eat live food. Mine loves microworms and white worms.
I think an invert tank is the way to go. Keep some cherry shrimp with a small nerite snail or mystery snail and it will be an interesting and active tank. I have a 5 gallon gallon with cherry shrimp, a couple nerites and a dario dario. The dario dario(or scarlet badis) are super awesome tiny fish. The downside is they pretty much will only eat live food. Mine loves microworms and white worms.
The ones I can think of are betta, least killifish, most inverts, oto catfish, and sparkling gourami. These fish stay small enough to be safely housed in a 3g. I have heard that white cloud mountain minnows are good choices for nano-tanks, But I do not know much about them.
If you talk to a betta person, they'll tell you 3 gallon is too small for a betta. That said, I kept mine in a 4 gallon eclipse, it lived for over 5 years. How about a couple white cloud minnows, they are colorful, super active, friendly, and don't require a heater which is great considering it's a small tank. I have reg white clouds and the gold white clouds, I think I actually prefer the reg white cloud coloring.
im back with another idea (if you dont mind a slightly salty tank)
it is the Bumblebee goby a small fish the size of a cardinal tetra that seems to watch your every move it prefers live food but it can adjust to nonliving food much easier than the dwarf puffer
here is a picture and the link it comes with so you can do some more research
http://www.brettb.com/TropicalFish_BumbleBeeGoby.asp
i also must disagree on the NO CATFISH comment
here is one that only gets to be about an inch and a half
it is a schooling catfish but a group of 3 would make them happy (just stay on top of those water changes if you get some)
sorry londonloco but i must disagree on the white cloud recomendation
super active fish need a lot of food, fish that eat a lot of food will poop a lot, and a lot of poo is bad for the water quality
sorry, the tank is too small for a pipefish but you could try a close relative
Indostomus Paradoxus at 2.5 inches (Needs small live food)
it is the Bumblebee goby a small fish the size of a cardinal tetra that seems to watch your every move it prefers live food but it can adjust to nonliving food much easier than the dwarf puffer
here is a picture and the link it comes with so you can do some more research
http://www.brettb.com/TropicalFish_BumbleBeeGoby.asp
i also must disagree on the NO CATFISH comment
here is one that only gets to be about an inch and a half
it is a schooling catfish but a group of 3 would make them happy (just stay on top of those water changes if you get some)
sorry londonloco but i must disagree on the white cloud recomendation
super active fish need a lot of food, fish that eat a lot of food will poop a lot, and a lot of poo is bad for the water quality
sorry, the tank is too small for a pipefish but you could try a close relative
Indostomus Paradoxus at 2.5 inches (Needs small live food)
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+1 on the endlers, you can get them to make a profit if you breed them. (Might want to upgrade to a bigger tank to handle the amount of fry...)
White clouds and Oto's are a definite no. IMO white clouds belong in a 10g minimuim, and a 5g BARE minimuim for otos. Your really better of selling the 3g, and pick-ing up a 10g starter kit for cheap. (At PetCo they currently have 14g;s for 40 bucks, includes heater, filter, tank, lid, and light.)
You best friend for stocking is aqadvisor.com
White clouds and Oto's are a definite no. IMO white clouds belong in a 10g minimuim, and a 5g BARE minimuim for otos. Your really better of selling the 3g, and pick-ing up a 10g starter kit for cheap. (At PetCo they currently have 14g;s for 40 bucks, includes heater, filter, tank, lid, and light.)
You best friend for stocking is aqadvisor.com
