Most Interactive livestock for workplace desktop nano?

[Feclar]

Hi Everyone,

Purchased a 12g Aquapod to put on my desk at work

Wondering what some of the most interactive livestock would be for a nanotank

The tank has been cycling for a week now.

I have been researching mantis shrimp however I am concerned that with the difficulty of keeping a cleaning crew the tank would be very scummy and definitely want to have a clean tank

Look at some info on Cuttlefish/octo's but the tank is too small and I feel they would be a lot of work to keep and not such a good choice

What are some other options?

[warr40]

i'm looking for the same thing....tagging along

[yellowwatchmen]

A goby,cardinal,blenny,

[ReneX]

I would vote for mantis shrimp. Keeping a cleaning crew is tough, but you can probably fashion some cleaning tools and do it yourself. Don't skip on water changes, and feed the shrimp from a feeding stick. If you keep the light not super-bright, it'll discourage nuisance algae growth (and save electricity). I know a lot of those 12-gal tanks come with two bulbs...consider only running one of them if possible. Or you could go the other direction and keep a mantis with bright light, but include a lot of fast-growing macro algae to soak up nutrients and stave off nuisance algae growth. I've had three mantis shrimp tanks and only one had an algae problem. One of the others wasn't a very bright tank, and the other was a macro garden with some small anemones, which was far more interesting than I thought it'd be.

[ch0daboy]

goby + shrimp pair

[Frick-n-Frags]

blue ring...

ya know that really REALLY obnoxious clown over in accounts payable........

[woodycb]

Clown gobies are cool. they are not the most active but I like the way they perch on the rocks.

[Feclar]

I read some more last night on cuttlefish and octo's and they are starting to seem to be a valid option
Do have 2 concerns with them thou
-If they get startled they will hurt themselves in such a small tank when they bolt and smack into the wall or LR
-Will need a protein skimmer, if they ever ink they would run out of oxygen very fast in such a small tank

The mantis is still topping the list and will try to keep a gobby with the mantis, 80% of the pictures/videos of mantis tanks I have seen have been really scummy. Planning weekly 1-2 gallon water changes and cleaning the walls daily, what else can I do to keep it crystal clear?

Unfortunately I did not use RO water (tap water) so am thinking I will need to redo the water, I also did not wash the sand when I set up the tank

Will read up on some blenny's and carndinals and gobbys next chance I have, thanks for the suggestion

[Frick-n-Frags]

xenia

mithrax crabs can be pretty interesting to watch or something goofy like a decorator crab

and maybe a peppermint shrimp.


this might be the only time and place EVER I could justify a domino damsel as the lone fish in the nano. they really are pretty when little.

if you run light, you can get a POS condy anemone too. dominos will dive into those and maybe wow the crowd.

frickin' dominos, heh

yeah, superbudget and all tough as nails stuff: some crab, a pepp or 2 , a domino and a garbage condy. that would keep the show rolling I bet

[useskaforevil]

you won't be able to keep a cuttle or octopus in a 12g. and good luck keeping fish with a mantis in a small tank. mine snaps anything moving as soon as it enters the tank. i'd get a skimmer anyways so you can be a little lazier with the water changes

[Aaarrrggg]

I'm no expert but I'm afraid I've never heard of cuttles or octos in a little tank. I don't know too much about cuttles but they look pretty big from the size of the things budgies chew on!

Octos are highly intelligent creatures and are often (if not always...I can't say for sure, just from what I've read here and there) classed as an 'expert only' species... not the kind of creature you want for a tank at work where you can't keep a close eye on it... plus they get v bored and like escaping(!)

Don't worry though, there's loads of fun easy-care critters you could have for a nano. I 2nd the shrimp/goby pair, I have a "Yasha Haze goby" (my avatar!) and a "Randall's pistol shrimp"...highly recommended... they are so cute to watch! "Sexy shrimp" are also good fun... oh and "Pom Pom crabs!"

Have fun!

[Icefire]

I would go for some goby, not all (like a diamond) but clown, yellow watchman.

[Mark426]

A blenny. They are like dogs.

[ReneX]

OH! I totally forgot! Get a pseudochromis as the only fish in the tank. You can't keep small crustaceans with it but some snails should be fine. The one I had was colorful, active, and interactive. It would beg for food and it was always a fun fish to watch going about its business.