# Stocking ideas for a tiny 2.5 gal aquarium?



## Greg_o (Mar 4, 2010)

I've got a 2.5 that's been kicking around for a bit, thought I should put t to use.

Was thinking of doing a basic planted cherry shrimp tank, but am curious if anyone has a more creative idea?

I'd like a few fish but outside of bettas aren't too sure what would be happy in such a small space.

I've read there are arguably (not to mention surprising) more SW options for such a small tank but will likely go FW.

Any ideas GTA?


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## carl (Feb 11, 2010)

/pseudomugil-cyanodorsalis-blueback-blue-eye-rainbowfish/
There's a member on gta selling these rainbow fish, they can be kept in fresh or salt and you can have the shrimp also if you keep them in fresh


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## Fisheye (Jan 13, 2015)

Hi Greg_o,

How about Thai Micro Crabs?

Jackie


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## infolific (Apr 10, 2016)

I had 3 thai micro crabs in my planted tank. I would occasionally see 1 when the lights were low or off. Perhaps my 45g had too many hiding places.

Baring compatibility issues, I'd go for a pom pom crab instead. They're bigger and easier to see. Plus they like to crawl around more. However, mine liked to crawl out of the tank when I didn't have a cover.

And if you don't care at all about aggressiveness, I'd go for an orange or blue crayfish/lobster.


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## carl (Feb 11, 2010)

Who is selling Pom Pom crabs


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## Wiccandove (May 19, 2012)

you could do a single dwarf puffer


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## infolific (Apr 10, 2016)

Shrimp Fever has Pom Pom Crabs.

http://www.shrimpfever.com/shop/crayfish-livestock-shrimp/pom-pom-crabs/


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## Greg_o (Mar 4, 2010)

You guys are awesome! 

Every suggestion posed was something I had not considered.

Thank you all so much.

Decisions, decisions, decisions..


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## Fisheye (Jan 13, 2015)

Just want to add a +1 to infolific's suggestion of PomPom crabs...TMC's are super cool and tiny and would probably be more "findable" in a 2.5 but they aren't as active as PomPom's and they notoriously disappear. Mine did and I've read numerous similar accounts.

Hope you will post pics once you have your tank set up!!! 

Happy deciding!!!!!


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## Fisheye (Jan 13, 2015)

Hi Greg_o,

Have you gotten your 2.5 up and running? I saw that ShrimpFever had sold out of PomPom's a while back and wondered if they were with you??

Would be interested to hear all about it if you have a report!!!

Jackie


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## Fishfur (Mar 4, 2012)

Might consider Boraras naevus, aka Strawberry boraras. A very tiny and truly lovely fish that can be kept in a very small tank. Angelfins has them and Shrimpfever did, not sure if he still does. Very colourful and mine have done well so far. THey don't appear to be fragile at all, but if you wanted them to breed, they'd need soft, acid water and wood in the tank. If you only want to enjoy watching them, they have done well in tap water for me.

There are six different species in Boraras, all very tiny. Most commonly you tend to find Chlii boraras rather than the Strawberry. It's very simlar, having a stronger red colour than Naevus does. 

One nice thing about the Strawberry boraras is that they are easy to sex. Males have a much larger black blotch on the side with very red finnage. Females are just slightly larger, have a bit lighter shade of red body colour, no red finnage and a much smaller black side blotch. 

Given their tiny size, under one inch full grown, sexing them is a pain in the store because they're flying around the tank and it's hard to see them individually. Once you have them at home it's easy to tell. 

Really charming little guys. Mine are crazy for live micro worms and canned cyclops, but eat any fine textured food I give them. I had some Endler fry in with them and found the Boraras really liked the fry food. So now I feed them fry food half the time and micro worms or cyclops the rest of the time. The size of the particles in fry foods is a lot better suited to their tiny mouths. They also take tiny insects if there are any to be had. I discovered I had an infestation of duckweed weevils. Wretched things, but any time I can be bothered to knock some of them off their leaf perches into the water, the fish just devour them. If only the darn weevils did not demolish my floating plants, I'd try to culture them on purpose for fish food.

Btw, I had some of those Pom pom crabs. Dead cute and very interesting behaviours to watch. More active at dusk, ime, but, sadly, they did not live very long, which was terribly depressing. I am unsure why they did not survive, but I'm speculating that they were stressed by the fish in the tank with them. They love digging in the sand and within a very short space of time they had dug up every single plant that grew anywhere near the tank glass. They cleared a two-inch wide 'racetrack' all around their tank and would run sideways along it, quite quickly. They always run sideways, with their claws held up in front of them. They also dug holes under rocks and wood pieces to hide in. Each one had a favourite spot.

They're easy to sex; males have big fat fore claws with a cluster of bristles that looks a lot like a tiny shaving brush sticking up just behind the 'wrist' of the big claw. They were feeding ok, I'd see them grabbing their Crab Cuisine sticks and running off with them, but they slowly died off one by one over a period of several months. If I were to try them again I'd want them in a crab only tank, no fish, not even shrimp; probably not planted. Stones and wood with a sand bed would likely suit them best. They also love to climb, so having branchy wood or cholla would be nice for them.


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