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How many zebras in a 20L?

Posted: Mon Apr 11, 2011 2:53 pm
by catfishbear
Hi,
A few months ago I got my first zebra plecos. 2 very small babies @ just over an inch. and 2 bigger ones that are around 2 inches. They have a dedicated tank and they seem to be doing very well. I want to get more though, and I wondered how many I can keep in this 20L? It has a 200gph canister with spray bar and a large air-driven sponge filter plus a denitrator coil so their nitrates stay < 5ppm. If I were to get more they would be around 2" also. Advice from a seasoned zebra keeper would be very much appreciated.

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Re: How many zebras in a 20L?

Posted: Mon Apr 11, 2011 10:12 pm
by Stevie.K
Hi i take it your tank is 20 gallon & not 20 litre?

If so around 4 or 5 adults, or if fry a few more. :)

Re: How many zebras in a 20L?

Posted: Mon Apr 11, 2011 11:06 pm
by TwoTankAmin
I believe the tank in question is a 20 long. I would be willing to have 6-8 adult zebras and a bunch of their fry in a 20L. But I also have lots of cover and caves. My primary breeder tank is a 30 gallon breeder which is 36x18x13 and at its peak it held 13 breeders and 50+ fry. However, I tend to be an overstocker and would not suggest others follow my example unless you feel secure about doing this.

If you basically have one cave/fish including females and lots of other cover, then it is doable as the fish will have lots of places to escape to and the fry should have the type of cover where they will fit but larger zebras can't.

Re: How many zebras in a 20L?

Posted: Tue Apr 12, 2011 1:38 pm
by catfishbear
Sorry for being unclear. It is indeed a 20 gallon long. I'm happy that I should have room for a couple more.

One other question though, for it to count as a cave to a zebra, must it be covered on all sides with a small opening, as with man-made slate caves etc. or do crevices in stacked rocks suffice?

I am guessing that as they get older they will fight for the "best" spot so the safest way is to provide identical caves for everyone. Is that about right?

Re: How many zebras in a 20L?

Posted: Tue Apr 12, 2011 2:30 pm
by Fern
a few of the man made hypan caves are nice to keep in there, my adult male has claimed one, I have 2 others in there just because. The 4 others are happy with the cracks and crevices. My tank is a 30 gallon.

Re: How many zebras in a 20L?

Posted: Tue Apr 12, 2011 4:36 pm
by mistern2005
It's a very nice looking tank! I had my group of 7 in a 20 gallon long for about 2.5 years until I had a larger tank available (and the new tank has roughly the same amount of floorspace!). I have 7 caves of different size/composition and almost 95% of the time my zebras just hide in slate rock crevices.

I'm very curious about your denitrator coil. Would you mind describing it or showing some pictures? I've been thinking about this for some time, but I'm still looking for guidance as how best to proceed.

Re: How many zebras in a 20L?

Posted: Wed Apr 13, 2011 4:35 am
by TwoTankAmin
The zebras need as many places they can feel secure as you are willing to provide. I say a cave/fish as often fms and younger males will over night in caves but not claim them. What you want to be doing in order to increase a tank's ability to hold additional fish is to provide increasing amounts of cover and ways the fish can move about w/o having to come out into the open. The fish need a way to dash for shelter and be out of site of others.

However the younger /smaller ones will actually prefer hanging together. Again for them shelter is a place they fit but bigger fish don't.

For spawning anything that allows a male to trap a female and portects from strong current is adequate. Usually a pre-made cave is the easiest way to provide this.