behaviour
Tankmate compatibility
AquariumHQ derives compatibility from stored behavioural and environmental traits and shows the reasoning. A pairing that fails in a 60 cm tank may work in a 120 cm one, and a pairing that works for six months may fail when one fish reaches adult size or starts to spawn.
Short answer
Compatibility depends on water requirements overlapping, on adult size difference, on behaviour, and on the tank having the dimensions the combination needs. It is rarely a simple yes or no.
What the assessment considers
- Whether temperature, pH and hardness requirements overlap, and by how much
- Adult size difference and whether one animal fits in the other's mouth
- Fin-nipping against vulnerable fins
- Territoriality, and how it changes during breeding
- Whether the two compete for the same zone and the same food
- Risk to shrimp and snails, adult and juvenile separately
- Flow and substrate requirements
- Whether either species needs a group, and whether the tank can hold it
Why a single verdict is not enough
Most interesting pairings are conditional. Stating the conditions — tank length, group size, cover — is more useful than a yes or no, because the conditions are what the keeper can actually change.