If you have a Sunfish of any specie and a koi, there is every chance that you might try to keep them together in one tank, especially when there is only few tanks or you just want to keep them together for fun. If you are reading this article, you must be trying to figure out if they could be able to coexist together in a tank.
Can Sunfish live with Koi? Yes, Some less aggressive species of Sunfish can live peacefully with Koi.
If you notice, in my answer target, I used the word some.
This is due to the fact that sunfish are generally very aggressive, except few species like the orangespotted sunfish etc.
Related: Can Sunfish live with Cichlids?
So if you ask me if some species could live in harmony with Koi, then I will say yes, but if you ask me if all sunfish could live with Koi, then the answer is definitely No!.
let’s examine their nature and see how compatible they are with each other.
Koi Water Conditions and Temperament
Koi can tolerate a pH of 6.0-9.0.
Temperature between 68-80°F.
They could live in tap water, so they’re freshwater and loves calm and water that replicates their natural habitat (gravels, caves, plants)
Related: Can Sunfish live together with goldfish?
They’re non aggressive fish and could be little aggressive to themselves sometimes.
Like all fish, they are omnivores and could eat anything ranging from vegetables,plants and smaller animals etc, depending on the natural habitat and the condition one is brought up with.
Sunfish Water Conditions and Temperament
Sunfish as we all know has many species, some are salt water dwellers, while some like bluegills, orange spotted etc are freshwater.
Many are aggressive and territorial in nature and also are omnivores and carnivores.
Related: Do Sunfish change color?
They can get pretty big in size ( up to 20 inches) depending on the specie, while some smaller species can grow up to 6 inches.
Try keeping the Sunfish in a calm water with heater and filter at a parameter of – They can only live in a water temperature of 70°F and pH of 6.8-8.0 with water hardiness of up to 8 GH
Can Koi Get Along With Sunfish?
Judging from the various water parameters and nature of these two fish, do you think they can coexist?
Can Koi get along with Sunfish? Yes, some more peaceful species of Sunfish can comfortably get along with Koi in a tank.
When I say more peaceful species of Sunfish, I mean species like orange spotted sunfish can comfortably get along with Koi.
Related: Smallest species of Sunfish
So yes, some sunfish can live with Koi in the same tank.
Can Bluegill and Koi Fish Live Together?
Bluegill is one of the freshwater sunfish species. They can grow very big in size and are aggressive. Do you think they can comfortably live with Koi? let’s find out.
Can Bluegill and Koi live together? No, Bluegill is both big and aggressive and will harm Koi fish.
Although bluegills are fine fish to keep, but they’re both territorial and aggressive, so they won’t make much nice mate with your koi fish, so don’t try to keep them together.
Related: Can Rainbow Shark live with Neon Tetra?
Koi being far less aggressive than bluegills makes them prone to bluegills.
You might wake up one day to see their fins and tails ripped off if you try having them with bluegills in a tank.
Although there are some people who claim to have successfully kept these two fish together, well, all I can say is, don’t listen to them.
Only an infant bluegill or a bluegill that is way smaller than koi can be kept with it.
That may be why they claim to have success in keeping them together.
Give the bluegills a time to grow and see them do wonders to your Koi.
Related: Do Rainbow Shark change color?
So if you ask me, I would say ‘ keep them In different tanks.
What Fish can Live Peacefully with Koi?
I believe it’s not very helpful telling you not to keep koi and sunfish together without telling you what is possible to keep with them.
Some suitable fish for koi are:
Grass Carp.
Goldfish.
Redear Sunfish.
Suckermouth Catfish.
Orfe.
Largemouth Bass.
Orange spotted Sunfish.
Conclusion
Like I always say, the best tank make is the animal of the same specie, it’s hard to get any animal of different specie that can be 100% peacefully, at least 70% is ok by me.
So Don’t keep an aggressive species of Sunfish with Koi.
