it may seem hard to believe but it shouldn't be. fish in the wild have much more space, habitat complexity, volume of water turnover and food (that list is just for starters) than anything we can put together in the home aquarium. if you think about it it's not hard to believe at all.--has anyone tried gras pickeral, or pike cichlids with their gars? what about the smaller "bass" like rock bass, or guadaloupe bass? i think I saw somewhere that the rock bass are more docile, so maybe the spook factor wouldn't be so bad with these guys. It's just hard to think that fish that live together in the wild can't live together in a tank
Hopefully I'm doing this correct?Niger Catfish - Oxydoras niger
Collective Members' compatibility rating : 7/10
Members' experience : pharmaecopia
Species & Size of Gar
- 3 Alligator Gars from 20” to 34”
Size of tank
10’ x 4.5’ x 2’ indoor pond
Size of tankmate
Range from 20” to 32”
Duration of cohabitation
A couple months so far
Comments (pros and cons, other comments)
Pros: The niger catfish are calm do not freak out the gars. They are very efficient at cleaning up after the little scraps the gator gars leave. Their armour like scales and scutes protects them if the gars should get aggressive.
Cons: Have been a few torn fins. Nigers occasionally push the gars out of the way to get to their food.
Other Comments: Seem to get along very well, are almost always resting near each other. Follow each other around and rest on top of each other. I feed frequent smaller feedings for the gator gars. This seemed to make the gars act calmer and less nippy.
Members' overall compatibility rating : 7/10
In find them to be very compatible and one of the few things I would mix with similarly sized gator gars. Due to the relatively short period of time I have had them together I am only giving them a 7. This rating would likely increase the longer the combination is successful.