Xtreme_B

My 55g tank finaly got done cycling today.I did the 50% water change and would like put some Angels in today.I know that it's 10g per Angelfish,so can I put 4 in there plus a Cory?And is it ok if I buy them today or do I have to wait still,cause my tank just got done today?I treated the water with Conditioner,Salt StressZyme and Easy Balance which my filter calls for.Thanks in advance.

Susanne

Kevin

how big are the angels?
if you happen to get a breeding pair, it would be better to keep just those 2 in the tank, but 4 should be okay
corys like to be in groups of 4+ and with that size tank you would do well to have 6-8

Isabella

Well, theoretically, maybe youcould have up to 4 Angelfish in there. But I personally wouldn't recommend more than 2 for your tank. If you get 3 or 4, and 2 of them pair up, the 3rd and 4th Angel will be harassed by the pair especially during the breeding times. And that won't mean anything good, especially that a 55 gallon tank does not provide a lot of space to run away in case of aggression. I have only 2 Angelfish in a 75 gallon tank. Angels are not like most peaceful copmmunity fish. When buying Angels you need to take into account their temperaments. I'm telling you now that they CAN get aggressive and WILL if they pair up (that is, they'll become aggressive towards other Angels during breeding times). I mean, it's up to you what you'll do, but I am warning you just in case.

Now, if the Angels you'll be buying will be large, get only one at a time (to avoid a sudden Ammonia or Nitrite spike). If they'll be relatively small, get 2 for a start.

Kevin

if they are around 2 inches long, get 2
i agree w/ isabella, a pair of angels will become extremly aggressive towards any other angels in your tank
...it would be best to find two that are getting along well in the tank where you are buying them from, and get those two

Xtreme_B

The problem is that our petstore doesn't know if they have males or female Angels.So I wouldn't know what I'm buying.About the size,they have small ones and large ones and I don't know which ones are easier to survive when you buy them.I tried another petstore and they don't know either if they have males or females.And I don't want any other fish,so 2 in 55g looks like I have nothing in there if you know what I mean.And with the Cory's,I had 3 in my 29g,but 2 of them died I don't know how.I replaced them with 2 more and they died too.So I kept the 1 in there and now it's fine.

Susanne

Kevin

for a bottom feeder, you could get a rainbow shark, a bushynose pleco (or any other pleco that doesnt grow to more than 8 in.)
i have a rainbow shark and really enjoy watching him swim around scanning for food
maybe you could try swordtails, mollies, or platys

Xtreme_B

No I want just Angels for this tank.I have a 29 g with 4 Serpae,4Blackskirt and 3 Orange Flame Tetrasand a Cory.I just called the Petstore here in town and all they have right now are 2 small Angels.The one in the next town which is the same Store has medium Angels for $10 each which are sometimes quite big.So I might go and get 2 today.

Kevin

i would go with the smaller ones...they are absolutely adorable when they are young

capekate

It is nearly impossible to tell the gender of Angel fish. So on that note, just buy the two that appeal to you best. Only time will tell if they pair off or not.
I have a friend of mine that had three angel fish for years. They got pretty big and seemed fine. It was strange that it took years before two paired off and produced eggs. It was at that time that they really became aggressive towards the third angelfish.So badly that my friend had to move the third angel to her 55g tank.
I have two angel fish that I bought at the same time in my 29g tank. So far they get along fine, they may well be two females or two males or even one of each gender. Only time will tell on that one too. I am not going to upset the applecart by bringing in any more angel fish or any other fish to that tank.
Like others have said, Angel fish can be pretty mean given the right circumstances. But if you were to buy the small angelfish I really do not see any reason why you cannot have four in that 55g tank. At that size it takes quite awhile before they are mature enough to pair off. When the time comes that they do pair off, maybe you will have a 29g tank by that time to put the other two in. If you only went by the 10g per angel fish ratio you would have enough room for five of them in that tank. But you have to take into consideration what to do with them down the road...
~ kate

capekate

BTW Isabella, your angelfish tank is gorgeous! love your planted tank.
~ kate

Xtreme_B

I did go to the petstore to get the 2 small Angels.Come to find out that the kid working today forgot to mention that 1 of them has ick and the other 1 has a cloudy eye.So now I have to wait and go to Petsmart this week to see what they have.

Kevin

awww...i hate it when i get all excited about something new...and it turns out that its gone...or sick

capekate

Well its a good thing you found this out before you brought them home to your tank. I also was just about to buy two female GBR's that I have been looking for and it turned out that they had ICH in that tank. Im so glad that I found that out before bringing them home to the other three GBR who are healthy.
I am also waiting... as patiently as possible for my new fish as well!
~ kate

Isabella

As has been said above, you can't tell the gender of Angelfish until they mature and pair up. When a pair is ready to breed, they develop breeding tubes. Here is what male's and female's breeding tubes look like: http://s239.photobucket.com/albums/f...sh%20Breeding/ - this is basically the only way you can tell.

Now, most people will say that the breeding tubes are the only way to tell, and maybe that's indeed so. But I have successfully selected 2 pairs by looking at other factors. Now, I don't know if I was simply lucky or if this really is another way to tell the Angels' gender:

(1) Males have a "bump" over their heads. Females have smooth head.
(2) Males have longer ventral fins (the "feelers"). Females have shorter ventral fins.
(3) Males have generally larges bodies, and females have slightly smaller bodies.
(4) Females have bodies rounder than males. Males' bodies are a bit longer (horizontally, from head to tail), and females' bodies are shorter (horizontally).

Now, this may be untrue, it may be just my luck. But then again, you have nothing to lose by looking at these factors when buyng Angels.

Xtreme_B

I bought 4 small Angels today and hope it wasn't to many at one time.I couldn't resist they were so pretty and Petco was the only place that had Angels.And it's a 45 min drive one way so I keep checking the water levels every other day and hope it will be ok.I also bought 2 small Emerald green Cory's they were on sale for $0.99 and them I can move to my 29g if I have to.I'm keeping my fingers crossed.And I want to thank everyone for bearing with me and helping me out with all my questions.

Susanne

timg

I know it's a bit late to come into this one, but congratulations on your purchase! I hope you are fortunate with them and they don't pair up! I bought 6 angels earlier this year, (or was it late last, can't remember now), and ended up with 3 pairs! Just my luck. Now I have dozens! It's a good job that I can sell them to the local stores, as there's no way I can cope with all of them pairing off too! lol

What Isabella says is very true. They get extremely aggressive towards each other and any other fish in the vacinity when they are breeding, and once they start, it's hard to stop them! My three pairs are taking up three of my tanks now, and laying every 2 weeks! They are starting to raise their own fry now too, which is really good, because it was taking me hours to remove, sort and try to raise 1000 eggs every two weeks! Now it's simply a matter of leaving them to it, and remove the fry when they are big enough to net. Much easier!

Xtreme_B

Thank you for your relply.I hope I get them to survive,cause I didn't have much luck in the past.But I guess that was cause I didn't know that a tank goes thru a cycle and I just put them in after setting up the tank.So I hope I will have more luck now,that I did it the right way.How big are Angels usually when they pair off?Mine are just the size of a quarter right now,that is without the fins....lol.They sure are fun to watch,chasing their reflection up and down the glass.

Kevin

they should be around 3 in. i think
you might want to move the corys to your other tank as that might be a little to much for your tank at the moment
good luck!...we would love to see some pics of the new guys!