Seatown12

Hi I am wondering if you guys recomend a red tail shark for a fish owner to get If I do get a red tail shark it would most likely be living by itself in the tank. Maybe a few corydora if its ok but those questions will come later.
Some questions I would like to have answered:

1.Do you recommend red tail sharks and why?
2.What do they eat?
3.Can They live with other fish?
4.Can they live in a 10 gallon tank,if not what size of tank?
5.What should I feed it?
6.What would be a beautiful looking tank set up for them?(Like, what coloer gravel,what kind of plants and how much of it,That kind of stuff)

Those are all of the questions I can think for right now thanks for helping

Seatown12

Is anyone there to help out?

King_Snuggles

I would recommend red tail sharks, they are active, a good cleaner, and really pretty.
Mine seems to eat everything from algy to sinking wafers to flake food.
mine lives with 6 danios 2 dwarf gouramies and 9 or so ghost shrimp.
they couldnt live in a 10 gallon i have mine in a 29
feed it anything but do a little of everything
i have sand, driftwood, and live plants and he seems to love all of them. i have pictures of it in my gallery.

belamyboo

G'day,
1.Yes, RTBS (red tail black sharks) are a fantastic community fish and fun to have.
2.mine are happy eating flake that will sink, algae wafers and algae that is growing on a rock that gets taken out and put in direct sunlight for a couple of days (I rotate between a couple of rocks from the tank to vary its habitat)
3.RTBS(red tail black sharks) are a fantastic community fish (with larger species, otherwise they can be bullies) and fun to have. just don't put any other of the "shark" variety's in the same tank (to avoid potential aggression)
4.a ten gallon minimum these fish can get to over 6 inches in length so a reasonably big tank will be needed for your fish to be comfortable as it gets older.
6.your personal preferance (mine are in a natural river bed style but any are cool)...but make sure your RTBS has lots of hiding places (caves, hollow logs, pipes etc) as they do enjoy some peace and quiet at times, and half the fun is watching them patrol all there territory.

dose that help? if you are in doubt look up the profile
http://www.fishlore.com/Profiles-RedTailShark.htm

Seatown12

Yea thanks for the info so far you guys i still hope to get more information though and belamyboo what does a natural river bed style tank look like can u describe it and also instead of saying just plants what specific type of plant would be good?

King_Snuggles

I have jungle vial, java furn and wisteria. he likes the jungle vial the best.

Seatown12

really jungle vial are they common? how much are jungle vail? and also how much are java fern?

King_Snuggles

i find all the plants wherever i look and they a 2 3 dollars depending where you go

markbenjamin123

can any of u help me out, as i cant write my own post yet,lol ? i have a 2 / 1/1.2 tank, dont know how many gallons are init, a sting ray 10 filter, a 200 air pump duel as have undergravel filter 2, which obviously together itd b 2 much,a 200 heater and a sun glo tube interpet starter, would the two filters b to much as ive bought a blue guorami, a female guppy, a white molly, and 15 tetras i now have all but 7 dead tetras 2 found in top of duel undergravel and 5 in middle of my fluval 1plus help all fish are sound now have only sting ray running help i only had 2 filters running together for 2 days

Seatown12

markbenjamin welcome to fish lore and i understand youa re knew to this but please dont thread "high-jack" and also you are posting in the wrong forum if you want the best answers post in the correct section

markbenjamin123

ok

Red1313

1) Yes, they are active and interesting. They also look great and mine is personally my fav. (just don't tell the betta's that lol).
2) They're onmivours. Mine is picky and I don't see him eat the flakes or the drop pellets that I put in the tank for him. However they'll graze on algae and I've heard that catfish pellets can be a good staple for their diet. Some people recommend live foods as well. However I've never had experiance with these.
3) They're a territorial fish so if you get one you can't have any other "sharks". However they do well with larger more robust fish who'll stand up to them. (Rainbows are a good example.)
4) 10 gal is the minimum size that you could sue for them. However it's recomended that you have a tank of at least 36" long to keep them happiest. In gal that usually come out to somewhere around 30 ish gal. I think that the minimum size I'd recomed for a full grown would be anything bigger then a 20 gal.
5) see answer #2
6) They look good in any tank. However my personal preferance is for planted tanks. One thing that you must have if you want your RTS to feel comfortable is "caves", and cover to make him feel secure. You can see pictures of my tank in my gallery (it's a 10 gal but he's a little guy yet and will be upgraded as soon as I have $$$). As for gravel color and how to set up your own tank it's all about preferance. Darker gravel with make your fishes colors stand out more. However RTS are black so thiir tail with stand out but the rest of him will blend in. It's entierly up to you.
Hope this helps. If you want I can send you some good links for more RTS info.

Seatown12

That would be awsome red1313 thanks for the info sending those looks would be really great =)

Seatown12

also do you think a rd tail shark will be better in a 10 gallon or a rainbow shark? because i read they were pretty much the same so does it matter if I put a red tail or rainbow shark in there? will they both get to the same length?

Red1313

Ok here are the links some of these you may have found on your own, some you might not have. Hope you find them helpful.
http://fish.mongabay.com/cyprinds.htm (I love this site for all my fish research)
http://www.theaquariumwiki.com/Epalzeorhynchus_bicolor
http://www.fishbase.org/summary/Spec...y.php?id=10835 (a bit more scientific)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-tailed_black_shark (wiki warning)

Now about the ten gal. I currently have my red in a ten gal and... have mixed results. It is large enough for him (he's 3" currently) however it might just be my shark but I don't see a lot of him. He spends most of his time hanging out in his bell. However I've got an open space in the middle of my tank that he doesn't appear to like to be in when the lights are on and the lights are fairly bright.
If a ten is all that you have at the moment then I think that it's fine for a juvi. However after you get your guy you'll find that they really like to zip around the tank and they fly once they get moving. It all comes down to the length of your tank, however you'll probably find that you'll want a larger tank, a) b/c your shark likes to swim and he'll get to 6" long, and b) b/c you may eventually want to enjoy him with tankmates.
I'm not saying don't put a red in a 10 but just letting you know to make your own call.

As for red vs rainbow, I don't know if there's a difference other then color but I'm sure that someone will be along to help you out with that.
Good luck,

King_Snuggles

I have mine in a 29 gallon and i always see him out he never hides, i have lots of hiding places but he never uses them.

fishchick

mine always hides ! seems like he is in seclusion ! any ideas ?

King_Snuggles

more hiding places i have a ton and the more you have the less he seems to use them

J J Indy

I have a rainbow shark same as the red tail but all the fins are red and the body black. I have read up on both and as far as what i have read the red tail is a little more aggressive than the rainbow but both should be kept one per tank as they are agressive towards their own kind. Mine likes to eat my plants especially the cobomba plants but he will eat anything i feed the rest of the tank. Hope this helps.

belamyboo

Use drift wood, stones, large rocks of all shape and sizes, plants (if your not big on plants try simple ones like ambulia, rush's or elodea)other wise pick ones that you like (plants are natural so they all ways fit) and a natural looking gravel or sand and try to imagine what a river/stream would look naturally (no good try to look in one that is in a city and full of rubbish, unless you like coke bottle and empty cans!) like if you could go diving in it.

You cant get this wrong, have fun with it, but remember to test what goes into your tank; if its not alive clean it with bleach and a scrubbing brush, rinse it in hot water a few times thoroughly (otherwise bye bye fishies, bleach isn't great for their health) to remove potential contaminants, check stone/rock for pH, soak it in tank water (left over from a change) and check the pH levels over an period of a few weeks. Be wary of where you buy plants from, only buy from a store you trust as they can harbor parasites etc

To get caves lean flat stones on logs, or build "Stonehenge" type structures, get hollow driftwood or make your own, find a nice piece & soak it in water for 6 weeks to remove tanin's.

have a look here http://www.ratemyfishtank.com/ at some really nice set ups especially planted tanks.

Don't be afraid to "borrow" ideas from other peoples pictures, after all imitation is the greatest form of flattery, and also how we learn.

Red1313

Hmmm.... I suppose that would be one difference. As far as I've read, seen and heard RTS's don't eat your plants just the algae off of them.

fishchick:
You could try dimming your lighting and putting more plants in for cover. I'm not sure what size your tank is but maybe another fish would help.