55 Gallon Tank: Adding GBRs into my Community Tank

[Steve420]

Hi all,

So after wandering around my LFS for awhile I happened to stop in front of their GBR tank. Like most, I was instantly attracted to their bright colors and am now getting the itch to go back and get a pair.

However, prior to doing so, I'd like to see what you all think about adding a pair into my existing community tank.

Currently My 55 gallon is home to:

5 Neon Tetras
4 Dwarf Neon Rainbows
4 Corys
2 Angels

So what do you think? Good idea or bad? Please keep in mind that my community is rather calm (my Angels "scuffle" once in awhile but nothing severe or major) and I'd hate to disrupt the peace.

I've done my research and it seems like GBRs are reasonably passive but can be territorial around the bottom of the tank. Will these guys pick on my corys?

So I'll leave it up to the experts and experienced.....help me decide!!!

Steve

[agabr123]

hmm, this doesn't so much relate to the GBRs but your angels, chances are if they start spawning then the tetras are going to be in trouble....they could be in trouble anyways because angels are pretty notorious for seeing small fish like that as snacks. how long have you had all the fish?

[mathas]

Originally Posted by Steve420

I've done my research and it seems like GBRs are reasonably passive but can be territorial around the bottom of the tank. Will these guys pick on my corys?

Everything I've read says that german rams behave much like the bolivians I have experience with... if that's true, your corydoras will be fine.

The only time I've ever seen my rams chase off a cory was when they were guarding eggs. Then, much like any breeding cichlid, they were quite protective... but even that was just chasing it to a safe distance, there weren't any injuries or prolonged aggression.

[Steve420]

agabr123 - My Neon Tetras were my first arrival and my Angels were my last. There was about a 4 week span in between adding them. My Angels have been in the tank for about 6-7 months and things are pretty peaceful. I actually have one renegade Neon who like to hang around my Angels. I think its because he knows they get to the food first ;-)

Mathas - Thanks for the info. I'd be devistated if my corys were stressed or being picked on. Those little guys crack me up.

At this time, I'm leaning towards getting a pair!

[ledzeppman]

The GBRs should do fine with what you have. Make sure you have places for them to tkae cover as they spend most of their time in the bottom 2/3 for the tank. I have 2 pairs of GBR with 6 Panda Cories and the only time the rams mess with the cories is when the algae waffer the rams are chowing down on gets invaded by the Pandas and even then the rams dont chase but "shoo" the cories away for a few seconds. If you are only getting 2 make sure they are male/female. I started with 2 males and after rearranging my tank one time one of the males became really aggresive towards the other so had to quarantine one. Now that i have 2 females the males now are chill with eachother again.

[Steve420]

Thanks for the info Ledzeppman.

So, does everyone think 2 GBRs (1m/1f) would be okay? I've been reading that a 1m/2f mix might be better?

[Regal]

I think 2 GBRs would be perfect for your tank. I have (I'm pretty sure anyway) 1 male and 1 female. I haven't seen any problems with my angels of my cories.