# Pretty top feeders?



## DeJay126

I have a 20 gallon long that is currently cycling. I had my stocking picked out until I started reading that guppies are also called "million fish" because of how much they breed. I am looking for small top feeders to balance out my tank. Any help would be appreciated...here is a list of what else I am stocking.

6 neon tetras
6 glofish dainos
4 albino cories
2 German blue rams

I am going to be a bit overstocked, yes I know this, but I am also overfiltering and will be doing plenty of water changes. Thanks for looking and please give me some suggestions!!


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## WheeledGoat

I keep guppies - like you, i like that they hang out at the top of the tank. They round off my 29gal, with 6 blackskirt tetras that hang in the middle, and 10 neon tetras that usually chill out at the bottom.

Maybe I'm making a bad name for myself by sharing this, but I just let things run their course when they breed. I'm pretty sure I have 1 female (yellow, and a bit larger than the other 3 that I think are male). She was getting followed around a good bit about a month or so ago, and then I saw her uncharacteristically seeking out low flow hiding places. I didn't see any fry, but I wasn't looking too hard either. I'm not set up to separate them and care for them, nor do I even half know what I would do. If they are able to live, then more power to them... but beyond that, I just let things kinda run their course.

I guess I'm just a heartless fish keeper, eh?


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## CAM

Top feeders or fish that mostly swim at the top of the tank (I assume you mean the latter)?

I'm trying to find, in my area, some *long-finned* White Clouds. Appears they are pretty rare as they are a bear to find. Coral Bandit recommended them to me and from what I've read and seen, they would be a nice addition to the top layer of a community tank.


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## DeJay126

Wheel, I have thought about that. The only problem I'm having is... what if the fry do not get eaten? Than I am over run with Guppies. They are by far my favorite fish for the top of the tank. Do either of you think it would be possible to have a fully male or fully female stock of those, eliminating the breeding process all together? I have heard that males (if there are too many) will stress each other out and eventually die.

CAM, yes I am talking about fish that remain towards the top of the tank, lol. Sorry for any confusion! :-D


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## jamnigh

If you look at CAM's signature, you will see the answer to having a all male tank. As long as you have more than 2 or 3 males you should be fine.


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## DeJay126

jamnigh said:


> If you look at CAM's signature, you will see the answer to having a all male tank. As long as you have more than 2 or 3 males you should be fine.


HAHAHAHAA, i didn't even see that until you said something! Well, males are the prettier looking ones anyway, I was just worried about them killing each other. If they will get along then I'm not real worried, and I'd rather have them! 

If I remember correctly, females have a bigger belly... and that's how you tell them apart right?


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## jamnigh

Well females usually are larger than males, and less colorful. The LPS and LFS will have them usually separated into different tanks to prevent breeding, but if you went with female you have the chance of having babies anyway since the female can hold onto male sperm for up to 6-8 months to keep reproducing.


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## DeJay126

jamnigh said:


> Well females usually are larger than males, and less colorful. The LPS and LFS will have them usually separated into different tanks to prevent breeding, but if you went with female you have the chance of having babies anyway since the female can hold onto male sperm for up to 6-8 months to keep reproducing.


Okay, I was under the impression that males couldn't be in the same aquarium unless there was at least 2:1 female to male ratio. Now that I have word from experienced guppy keepers that I can have multiple males with no females... that's what I'm going to do. I'm thinking we will get about 5 of them, hopefully that will be enough so they don't stress each other out and die.


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## jamnigh

I think you should be fine that way


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## DeJay126

jamnigh said:


> I think you should be fine that way


Thanks a ton! That makes me very happy :-D


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## CAM

DeJay... in my researching an all male fancy tail guppy tank, I did read from multiple sources that when you have all-male guppy tank, do not ever add just one or two, maybe even three, guppies to a tank unless they are your first ones. 

Appears male guppies will pick on, and even kill, new ones. 

By adding at least four at one time, they don't single out the new ones and you are much less likely to have problems.


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## DeJay126

CAM said:


> DeJay... in my researching an all male fancy tail guppy tank, I did read from multiple sources that when you have all-male guppy tank, do not ever add just one or two, maybe even three, guppies to a tank unless they are your first ones.
> 
> Appears male guppies will pick on, and even kill, new ones.
> 
> By adding at least four at one time, they don't single out the new ones and you are much less likely to have problems.



Okay, excellent information to know. Thank you.*w3


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## ArtyG

DeJay126 said:


> Wheel, I have thought about that. The only problem I'm having is... what if the fry do not get eaten? Than I am over run with Guppies. They are by far my favorite fish for the top of the tank. Do either of you think it would be possible to have a fully male or fully female stock of those, eliminating the breeding process all together? I have heard that males (if there are too many) will stress each other out and eventually die.
> 
> 
> 
> In any community tank you will never see a baby guppy, platty, swordtail or molly unless a few get sucked up by the filter. They will be eaten immediately unless you take precautions to actively save them. All males are a possibility and many breeders do it that way but that's just to keep the breeds true. These fish live to mate! Watching their mating dances as they shimmy and strut to attract a female is a big part of the joy of keeping them. Besides after all the work that has gone in to developing large, colorful females it would be a shame to not have any.


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## jamnigh

Maybe my fish are weird in a sense lol, but I have actually had 9 fry live in my 20g with a male and 5 females and nobody takes mind to them at all. They swim around the tank with the rest of the fish, its actually quite comical when they try to follow the older fish through the bubbles and the current made by the filter.


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## CAM

haha... love watching my guppies do that. And last night when I was changing out water in the 20 gallon and refilling the tank, a few of them tried to swim up the vacuum tube, against the flow of water. Hilarious !


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## jamnigh

Haha I actually got slightly worried this morning when I turned the light on in the tank. They all started going crazy because they thought I was going to feed them...and one of the fry swam right into the bubble current and got carried and smacked right into the side of the tank...needless to say he came right back looking for food lol.


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## CAM

LOL... guppies sure do love feeding time, don't they ? They come to the front, top of the tank every time the light goes on, "feed us now!!!!". LOL They are voracious eaters, those guppies. I have a few that need to be introduced to a good diet plan!


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## jamnigh

Haha agreed there. The 4 female sunsets I kept from my first set of fry are going on 3 months old and they are getting fat!


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## CAM

As big and fat as some of my males are getting, I bet your females need a diet plan even worse !  As much as they swim around, I'm surprised. They're quite active.


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## jamnigh

Haha I know, the females tend to just chill unless its feeding time. Its the fry and the male cobra who are starting to harass the ghost shrimp lol. They dont attack them or anything, just like swim right next to them and quickly dart away so it scares the crap out of the shrimp. Funny little things


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