fish tank mates

Question
i have a 30 gallon aquarium and i have 2 bala sharks(i know thy get bigger in a few years) a red tailed shark and 2 rainbows and there all juveniles they all live hapilly together but i was wondering what other fish could i put with them like cichlids or other nice fish. ive aso heard that if your fish all grow up together they will be more peacful twih each other oh the tank in like almost 3 feet long

Answer
Hi Alex;

I'm not sure about any cichlids with those types of fish in that size tank. The only ones I think might work are the Apistogramma variety of dwarf cichlid. There are several types. You might ask another expert like maybe Ron Coleman about it. Cichlids tend to be very territorial and the rainbows are a pretty mild fish. The rainbows might be in danger from the redtail shark eventually too. They can get rather mean as they grow larger. I would opt for some larger types of tetras such as Bleeding Heart, Black Skirts, Buenos Aires, Colombian Redfin Tetra, Congo Tetra. Synodontis (Upside-Down Catfish) are interesting fish. Some Cory Cats might be nice too.

Sometimes fish are more peaceful with each other as they grow up together, but often not. If their true nature is to be aggressive or grow big enough to eat another fish, they don't care how long they have been together. Their true nature wins out and the smaller/weaker fish eventually lose.

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins