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killi fish in nano tanks

2K views 9 replies 8 participants last post by  psalm18.2 
#1 ·
Can killi fish be kept in nano tanks without a filters?
It would have lots of plants for natural filtration and floating plants. circular tank dimensions approx 12" diameter and 12" tall
 
#2 ·
Hmm, I am not an expert but I heard that most Kllifish live their entire lives in the wild in puddles, so I would assume that is enough space for a couple. As for the filter questions I am not entirely sure, I currently have some baby shrimp living in a large glass bowl with no filter and they seem to be doing okay, but they are much tinier than your fish would be, but I would imagine with enough plants it would work. You just need to make sure you cycle it completely before you add any fish, since you will be relying on the bacteria to break down the ammonia from your fish.
 
#4 ·
I had a striatum pair in a 2.3 gallon tank with no filtration. Didn't notice any behavioral difference from them being in both a larger tank and a slightly smaller cube that had filtration.

Just make sure you are diligent about keeping the container covered. I lost both of mine on different instances due to jumping when I forgot to place the cover back on. The female was quite an accurate jumper. Twice she launched herself into a small container next to the tank where I had a daphnia culture (before I had a lid), the last time she jumped into a potted plant (also a small container). She didn't fair so well that time.
 
#5 ·
Yes! I had one that got huge! It jumped out of the tank twice, was tramped on in bare feet once, the other time it landed between the wall and side of tank, and its fins and tail were all dried up, and it wasn't moving, and I put it back in the tank, where it floated to the bottom, and in an hour, was rehydrated, and was swimming again! Anyway, he was biting the tails off my angelfish, and ended up in a two gallon tank by himself, with some guppy grass, and snails, and lived in there for another year! I did feed him meal worms though! I think that is why he lived almost four years! They don't normally have a long life span!
 
#7 ·
I have a few least killifish breeding in a 2.5 gallon. From my research before buying them, some people have forgotten about them in buckets and they survive and prosper. I would suggest getting a little filter like the Azoo Mignon 60 just to be safe, but if you keep up with water changes it could work. The biggest adult I have is smaller than most of my cherry shrimp, so they aren't exactly having a big impact. Since they survive so easily they could outbreed the tank though, so beware of that.

They are really cool little fish.
 
#9 ·
Leptolucania ommata could easily work in such a tank. They are a tiny, 1" NA killifish that has bright golden yellow males and olive females, and could be kept in a sustaining colony in a 5 gallon with plenty of plant cover, though it would be better to breed them in a separate tank.

On a side note, fish in general appreciate tanks with more surface area compared to height. Not only does it give them more space to swim, but it also allows for better gas exchange for the tank (I.E a tank with no aeration will have much more oxygen if shallow and wide than if it is tall).
 
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