Loaches Online Forum

Hey everyone,

I have three healthy Beaufortia kweichowensis that I have had quarentined for about a month and they now have a 10 gallon, mini river tank, all to themselves. I was wondering, what would be good fish to keep with them? The tank looks very empty (all I have in there currently is gravel topped with smooth, flat river rocks) and my little guys aren't all that active.

I was wondering, are there any fish that I can add in there that will do well with them. I currently have way too many adult guppy males for the number of females I have and I was wondering if they would be a good fit in the tank, I know the adults can live in 70-75 degree water and do just fine. If this won't work out what other fish could I house with them, as well as what decorations would be good to add? I know that too much vegetation wouldn't work well because of the water flow in the tank.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Hi Rae,

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I feel a 10 gallon tank is a little small for housing your hillstream loaches, and most dither fish that would otherwise be compatible with them. Any chance of upgrading the tank to a larger size (length and width the most important measurements)? If you had more space for the fish, a shoal of white cloud moutain minnows (Tanichthys albonubes) would do well, as would some of the Danio species such as D. kyathit, but 10 gallons is not large enough for them.

Hope this helps,

Emma

I was originally considering housing them with my Botias in a river tank I will be building for them 36" X 12". However, I was informed that their temperature requirements make them unsuitable tankmates for my B.striata and B.almorhae. I will see what I can do. I do have another tank of the same measurements and I MAY (kinda a big if at this point) be getting a larger tank from my temporary roommate once she and her husband sell their house.

Would these little guys do well in a 20 gallon long? I could retrofit one for these guys very easily.

Also, one of my original questions wasn't fully addressed. Would my surplus of male guppies make good dithers?

Thanks.

I have a 20L set up as a river tank and it works well. Your Beaufortia would be fine in there, but the male guppies would probably not like the current, particularly if they have long tails.
Like Emma, I would suggest white clouds or danios of some kind.
I have a shoal of Danio choprae and Microrasbora rubescens in my 20L and they do well and love the high flow.

One thing I have noticed while watching my guppies is that the young males that I have had like to swim directly in the stream of the powerhead. Sometimes, under an inch from the powerhead itself. I have several males that have smaller tails and once I get everything set up I will see how they do. If they don't do well, I will get other dithers.

Thanks!

The flow that you should be providing for the hillstreams should be strong that a guppy will not be able to swim constantly against it. I am a firm believer that fish should be kept in optimum conditions-you should really try and provide for both and that will require different tank setups, if not then the fish should be rehomed.

My guppies like 'flow' but if I put them in the hillstream tank they would be blown away. Theres no point in trying to make do-neither fish will thrive.

Ashleigh

What is the optimal water cycling rate for these guys? I currently have a 124 gph powerhead in their ten gallon. I remember reading on the loaches.com that the Botine loaches need a refresh rate of 16X per hour. What is the rate needed for the Hillstreams?

I have come to the conclusion that I'm going to do this right. I am going to house my guppies with my kuhlies and get different dither fish for the hillstream tank.

I have some other questions as well. Is 3 a good number to have in the tank or should I get some more? Would these guys be alright with different species of hillstreams if I were to find them?

Thanks again,

I run most of my community tanks at about 10X, and I aim for 20X in the Hillstream tank, and I have Darter Tetras and some Schisturas in there, not the Beaufortia sorts of Loaches.

I couldn't say for sure what the optimum turnover is, but my 20L river tank has a 275gph powerhead in it plus a 175 gph hang on back filter and a 80gph internal filter. My other hillstream tanks have similar water movement.
Beaufortia mix well with other hillstream species. In fact, most hillstreams will do fine with a mix of species.
If you do find more species, you can expect to become hooked on these fish. They are very cool. The only downside about beaufortia is that they tend to be a bit reclusive. If you can find P. cheni or any of the gastromyzon species, they will be out front much more. The Sewellias seem to be somewhere in between, being out more than beaufortia, but easily spooked.
Good luck!!