Diversity, density, and being a general pain in the ---.

[Tannin Aquatics]

Like so many hobbyists, I enjoy virtually every aspect of aquarium-keeping. However, one of the parts of this game that always drives me a bit crazy is stocking! Now, it's not the aspect of, "I want more fishes than my tank can handle!" No, I'm pretty disciplined about that going in. With me, it's more of a question of, "Which of the 14 candidate fishes do I want to add to the tank?"

Is this a unique "Scott-Fellman-is-a-bit-wierd" problem, or do we all have this, to some extent? I suspect we all do...Okay, I HOPE we all do!

I mean, I generally know the types of fishes I want. I am a huge fan of characins, especially in my botanical-influenced "blackwater" aquariums. They are often found in these environments in nature. They're small fishes which aesthetically "fit" almost any-sized system and provide perfect "scale" for my aquascapes. I like them...no issues here. Where I run into difficulty is during that age-old debate: Let's say my tank can accommodate 50 characins of the size I am contemplating. Is it more interesting to have a dozen of four varieties, 16 or so of three varieties, or 10 of five varieties of characins? Or, do I just make it a "monospecific: tank and go for one large school of a single species? (click to read more)