[nzen111]

Anyone have experience with this species?
I was thinking of setting up a species tank for them. I've heard they could live in colonies but also that they were very aggressive. It would ideally just be 4-5 of them in possibly a 40 breeder. Would that work?

 

[Aussieman57]

Yes, you can do this in a 40 breeder. I would start with at least 6. They make excellent parents and males will spawn with more than 1 female. They are not true shell dwellers like multis but females will use shells to lay their eggs. Grab some extra large escargot shells off of amazon. Sand substrate. What are you water parameters (pH & hardness)?

 

[nzen111]

Yes, you can do this in a 40 breeder. I would start with at least 6. They make excellent parents and males will spawn with more than 1 female. They are not true shell dwellers like multis but females will use shells to lay their eggs. Grab some extra large escargot shells off of amazon. Sand substrate. What are you water parameters (pH & hardness)?

Thanks!
7.4-7.6 ph ~150 ppm GH.
Will do. Might also get some spare tanks running.

 

[nzen111]

Also I'm thinking a 50 gallon lowboy might fit them more than a 40 breeder due to the bigger ground space. Any thoughtS?

 

[Aussieman57]

Thanks!
7.4-7.6 ph ~150 ppm GH.
Will do. Might also get some spare tanks running.

With that pH I would put some aragonite sand and/or limestone rock to bring the pH and hardness up.

 

[Aussieman57]

Also I'm thinking a 50 gallon lowboy might fit them more than a 40 breeder due to the bigger ground space. Any thoughtS?

The 50 gallon lowboy would provide a much better footprint and more room for these fish as they hug the bottom anyway. They don't use much vertical space. Get some pieces of texas holey rock (limestone) to break up lines of sight. In my humble opinion the 50 low boy is one of the best tanks you can use for any shelldweller community. Wish I still had mine.