Setting up a communal tank means keeping a mix of different species together, with all the good and bad consequences co-habitation can generate. As a rule of thumb, experienced aquarists will usually avoid placing prey and predator species together in order to decrease chances of seeing the more vulnerable critters decimated by the dominant ones in the eternal struggle for space and food. A so-called unbalanced communal tank can be deemed a waste of money and a source of headaches. However, with just the right amount of control, it can also become a wonderfully educative, action-packed stage.
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