archer fish with....

[DRAGONFISH70]

i am planning on buying an archer fish for my tank. but i also wanted a school of cardinal tetra. will the archerfish get along with my discus and a school of tetra or will it bully my discus to death or eat all the tetras?

[Autumn Wind]

Archer Fish are brackish water fish, I don't think they would be happy in a discus inviroment. I don't know specifically about tetra's but they are peditory fish and will likely hunt anything smaller than it.
just my humble opinion.
vanessa

[DRAGONFISH70]

let me give you more info about archerfish.

temp:77-86 F

Ph:6.5-8.5

they can live in full freshwater until 6inches

but in your opinion which am i better off with archer fish or tetra? i do have a bichir in my tank but he is lazy the tetras will be safe unless they go to the bottom of the tank but they are surface dwellers though they only go to the bottom if they are sick. bichirs are slow and cardinal tetras are fast? which one will it be?:D

[plecocicho]

No, archer fish have nothing to do in a discus aquarium. Use tetras instead like cardinal tetra, redhead tetra, hachet fish, etc.

[DRAGONFISH70]

but will they be ok or is there a chance my bichir will eat them. she is very slow and not a pursuiter. and tetras are surface dwellers. or should i get some rams instead?

[Autumn Wind]

Yes there is a chance that your bichir will eat the tetras but IMO If you bought larger tetras and a good size school of them they will stay away. Sounds as if you feed the bichir enough to keep him happy and lazy.
Rams I think are an excellent choice, they can take care of themselves and don't pick on others. Rams do well in discus conditions too.
If your looking for a top dwelling fish that schools consider hatchetfish, the common silver type do better at high temps then the marbled.
vanessa

[DRAGONFISH70]

how about kribensis will they get along too im getting rid of the bichir. and will the kribensis like nip or bother the discus? buying like 4 of those

[OIF03VET]

I have had kribensis in the past and would not go with them, esp with discus, they can be really agressive, even to bigger fish. Also there temp range only goes up to 82 and I wouldnt suggest keeping discus in water that cold. Listen to Autumn Wind and get some Rams, they are beautiful, fun to watch and get along great with discus.

[DRAGONFISH70]

thank you and also for my scavengers can i buy some dojo loach or will there be something wrong with that?

[Apistomaster]

The fish you seem to like are all incompatible with Discus on the basis of their specific requirements for unique water chemistry, preferred temps and behavior.

Regardless of what you may have read, archer fish at all sizes or ages require brackish water or they will waste away.

Dojos are considered cold water fish with more similarities to Gold fish than Discus.

Bichirs are not good tank mates with Discus. They grow too large and aggressive. They are best kept with other fish of similar size and temperaments.

You will generally be better off keeping peaceful fish naturally found with Discus. This includes a large selection of popular Tetra species and SA Dwarf Cichlids.
Some of the small peaceful SE Asian fish which have similar water chemistry and temperature requirements.
T. heteromorpha, for example or Clown Loaches are often successfully combined with Discus. The latter has the potential to become very large but that can take a good many years.

Be sure to do your research on the fishes you are considering to keep with your Discus to make sure they share similar requirements and are not going to grow to big or aggressive.

[DRAGONFISH70]

ok here are my plans for my 55 gallon tank.

4 rams
10 cardinal tetras
6silver hatchets
and a bn pleco

sounds good.

and my bichir is very lazy and compatible with discus if there will be any problem i will put him in my 20gallon tank

[Apistomaster]

Your Bicher will lazily hunt down and eat every Cardinal Tetra. Adding them will make it very happy.

Silver Hatchets are fine if you quarantine them a few weeks. They are usually near death when sold and are Ich magnets of the highest order until they regain their original vitality during quarantine.

[DRAGONFISH70]

isn't it ich very hard to get for fish in very warm waters? if hatchets are ich magnets then i wont buy them i wont risk my $300 discuses.

[DRAGONFISH70]

how about kirbensis are they ok with discus they are dwarf cichlids too.

[jgentry]

Kribs are a little 2 aggressive and generally don't like discus type temps. I have had great success with kribs in planted tank with Angelfish, but the kribs ruled the tank and would be a little 2 mean for Discus. If you want dwarf cichlids go with Apisto's or Rams. Very colorful and not very aggressive.

Archer fish would not be a good choice because you could not keep it long term with your discus and they are 2 aggressive. They can live for up to a year in straight fresh water and do very well dispite what is said. I kept 3 archers and 2 mono's in a 90g for about 9 months in straight fresh water before I started adding salt. All the fish were as big as my hand and pretty aggressive. They eventually got to large for my tank (I had no ideal what size they got when I bought them, I wasn't being a very responsible fish keeper back then, but you live and learn) and I gave them to the Louisville Ky zoo. They are in there brackish water exhibit if you are ever there. Last time I was there all of the fish were well over a foot long. Not sure if mine are still alive but I bet they are. This post bums me out and makes me miss them:(