90 Gallon aquarium with 3 Striped Mud Turtle.

[Kent]

   At his point I have been doing a lot more reading then writing on this form but I am in the process of setting up my dream tank.

   It is a 90 Gallon 48”Wide x 18” Deep x 24” Tall. It is Drilled for 2  1.5”overflows to a 40 Gallon breeder sump. 
   This is the largest aquarium I own and when I first got the tank I was having a hard time deciding what to stock it with. I enjoy smaller fish and larger schools but wanted a larger fetcher fish as well. I was thinking of Angels or Gourami. Then Last weekend I found my dream pet locally which is hard to find around here He is a one year old 3 Striped Mud turtle. His shell is about 3” long right now but he should get to about 4” at full grown. Mud turtles are not known for being great swimmers instead they more walk on the bottom of the tank.

   To start I have about 8” of water in the deep end and 3” in the shallow end. I plan to slowly raise the water level over the next month to get it to get the deep end up to 14” where the sump overflows will actually work then I will be building some platforms to give the turtle plenty of area’s to rest close to the surface.

   Once I am positive the turtle is doing well in the tank and that the filter is keeping up with his bio load I will be adding fish to the tank. There is potential he could eat some of the fish but most fish will be much to quick for him to catch unless he gets very lucky. 
   At this point I am leaning towards Platies. As the main fish. I have seen people keep Cory Catfish with them but I am concerned if he tried to eat one. Also if I recall correctly Cory had an issue with fish hurting his mini musks at one time but I do not recall what type of fish that was to stay away from.

   Also I plan to get as many plants as possible in the tank as time goes. I have not bothered to add plants yet since as I fill the tank fuller I will be shifting the sand around quite a lot.

[ChemBob]

I’d stay away from corys. Many have spines, so if your turtle did manage to grab one it could potentially injure or kill the turtle.  

[ChemBob]

Though I must say I’m jealous. That looks like a great turtle and an awesome setup.  Where will the sump be?

Edited September 4, 2021 by ChemBob

[Kent]

   Thank you for your feedback. That is the same concern I had with the idea of Corys. They are one of my favorite types of fish but this tank will not get any.

   I think I am gong to go for Platies and ghost shrimp. The turtle is not supposed to be a good hunter but if he does get lucky and catch them they are ok for turtles to eat. I will probably pick them up soon so I can give them a good and long quarantine before they get added to the tank. That will give them time to start breeding and give me time to get some plants set up in this tank.

   The sump will go on the floor beneath the tank. So far the turtle is doing good in 9" of water. I need to get it up to 14' before the overflow will work. So for now I have my quarantine tank under there.