75 Gallon stock

[Cz1989]

Hey all,

I am working on setting up a heavily planted 75 gallon aquarium. 
I have relatively hard water (thanks New Mexico) and I need a “Centerpiece” fish or fishes. 
What shrimp safe fish would you recommend?  
It seems like most centerpiece fish would happily eat mature fancy shrimp.  
 

Thanks!

[Scapexghost]

I mean its basic but what about a ton of guppies? Or a really big school or tetras

[Cz1989]

I plan on doing a large school of small tetras or rasboras.  I was thinking something else to go with that school and shrimp 

[Scapexghost]

On 9/27/2022 at 7:32 PM, Cz1989 said:

I plan on doing a large school of small tetras or rasboras.  I was thinking something else to go with that school and shrimp 

Like you said anything centerpiece worthy will chow down on those shrimp. Maybe give it a few month for the colony of shrimp to get going before adding a betta. That way, even if the betta does get a few, the colony will be big enough to overcome a few losses

[Patrick_G]

I really like Swordtails as centerpiece fish, I know they’re  not commonly thought of as one, but they’re big, showy and colorful. They’ll opportunistically eat Neo shrimp but they leave adult Amanos alone. This color is my grail, but other colors can also be spectacular. 
 

[Fish Folk]

I often plug Discus, especially in a tank that size. Now, some full-grown Discus will eat small shrimp. But if you start out heavily planted, get a Shrimp colony going strong, and then add young Discus, you might be able to make it work. Stendkar Discus are supposedly better in various water than other lines . . . but I've never tried them.

I like to think that a few red melon Discus in a bright, green Tank will keep you happy forever. A tank like the one up first on this montage will provide ample places for Shrimp to hide. The Cardinal Tetras and Red Discus really make this whole system "pop." Discus are social and do best in a groups of 6 or more. A 75 gal can easily be home to half a dozen. One tip: keep the heat up above 83-F. That may become a stress factor with Neos though.

I'm trying to think of other possibilities. I remember this crazy "Betta Sorority" tank from a Fish Store in Lansing MI. It's a mad splash of life. Soooo much going on here...

All of the typical species I think of as "Centerpiece Fish" will certainly eat shrimp if given the option. Angels . . . Acaras . . . Rams (maybe) . . . Apistos (likely) . . . Geophagus . . . 

I wonder if Congo Tetras could work? They can be absolutely stunning in a mature school:

Sheesh . . . now I suddenly want a tank full of Congos!

Edited September 28, 2022 by Fish Folk