Freshwater Angelfish Tank Mates – Angelfish attracts aquarists with their unusual and graceful appearance. They are wonderful, smart, beautiful, and very peaceful pets.
These representatives of the cichlids family are quite unpretentious in care and have many varieties with an interesting and bright color. But before buying an aquarium fish, you need to figure out who is compatible with the angelfish and who is not!
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How To Select Tank Mates for Angelfish?
The compatibility of angelfish with other fish is often problematic. To avoid conflicts between the inhabitants of the aquarium, you should follow simple rules:
- Angelfish are heat-loving individuals, therefore, you should choose tank mates which are comfortable with high temperature.
- The tank mates of the angelfish should feel great in soft water. Because of this, even some cichlids and angelfish do not have compatibility with this factor.
- The volume of the aquarium should be sufficient to accommodate a big number of fish. If it is small, then even the calmest individuals can be aggressive.
- Small fish often become prey for angelfish.
- The fewer varieties of the fish will live in the aquarium, the better. Excess variety can be stressful for a calm angelfish.
- It is best to start keeping the fish in the aquarium together with the fry. This will allow them to gradually get used to each other. In adulthood, they will recognize their neighbor and be more friendly towards them.
- If a bully is wound up in the aquarium, then it should be moved to another aquarium. If this is not done, it can disturb the order and lead to aggressiveness on the part of other individuals.
Observing these conditions, it will be easy to pick up tank mates for your new angelfish ;).
Compatible Tank Mates Of Freshwater Angelfish
Here is a list of all the freshwater angelfish tankmates:
- Catfish: are the calmest fish. They spend most of their time at the bottom of the aquarium. An angelfish can feel great when swimming between plants just above its neighbors, therefore it is with the catfish that it will have excellent compatibility with artificial pond.
- Gourami Fish: Great together in the same aquarium. Both varieties are calm and unobtrusive, they will not interfere with each other. But if there is little space for them or they cannot share the grass, then conflicts can begin. Therefore, the aquarium should be selected as large as possible.
- Molly Fish: Gets along well with angels. They simply do not notice them in the aquarium, and therefore there will not be conflicts.
- Rainbow Shark: These fish are quite large, so they will look very organic next to the angels. But only one labeo can be placed in the tank. A pair of individuals of this species will claim leadership in the aquarium and the angels will have to survive.
With all these fish, You will usually not have any problems. But there are some nuances in the aquarium that should be observed. In particular, FOR FOOD – Angels are very voracious, if you do not follow them, then all the food will be eaten, and the rest of the fishes will not get anything.
Incompatible Tank Mates Of Freshwater Angelfish
Knowing which fishes angelfish get along with, you can choose the right tank mates for them. But there are aquatic inhabitants, which are strictly forbidden to put in the same aquarium with angels.
Unwanted tankmates include:
- Tiger Barbs: Although it is generally accepted that these fish are friendly and easy to get along with any variety, in reality, this is not entirely true. The barbs are rather active and far from always friendly fish.
Barbs can drive the angel around the aquarium and grab her by the fins, which is not very good for angels. - African species of cichlids: They are close relatives of the angels, but are more active and aggressive. Often, African cichlids begin to fight and show the features of predators.
- Goldfish: It is impossible to settle them with the angels. The latter is more active and will constantly drive neighbors and spoil their fins. In addition, goldfish love cool water, which is not very suitable for angels.
- Piranha and discus: They are hunters, so such a neighborhood will only lead to the fact that the angels become food for predators.
Each fish has its own character and temperament, and therefore it is difficult to say how it will behave in the same aquarium with other individuals. Here it is important for the owner to create the right conditions to reduce aggressiveness and conflict.
If there is enough space in the aquarium and there are a large number of plants in it, then the scalar will feel great even in the company of large individuals.
William Smith is an Bachelor of Science in Marine Biology & holds 5+ years of experience in fishkeeping. Inspired by his grandfather’s aquariums, he created CichlidTips.com to help both novices and seasoned fishkeepers. His expertise spans aquarium setup, maintenance, fish behavior, and health. William constantly researches to provide up-to-date and accurate content, aiming to make CichlidTips.com a trusted resource in the fishkeeping community. He encourages engagement with fellow enthusiasts for mutual growth and improvement in this captivating hobby.