Convict Tankmates?

[Stan Laurel.]

any suggestions? i like the electric yellow, can that one be compatible? what other cichlids would make good mates for 3 or 4 cons?

ty

 

[Meds081603]

Most semi-aggressive to aggressive fish will do well with cons. Just make sure you have a good size tank with lots of hiding places. The problems would arise when the convicts breed, they get VERY nasty and are very protective of their fry. I have a single female with an Oscar who is much bigger than her and a firemouth which is the same size as the con. There is also one giant danio left with them who has gotten along fine with them for the past month.

 

[ox5477]

Meds is right about the breeding issue. Cons are very easy to breed, so if you have 4 cons in your tank, a pair will form and they will def breed. If you see this, def remove the other two cons to save them from being bullied to maybe even death. Also watch the rest of tank as well, because a pair of cons can keep cichlids bigger than themself stuck in a back corner of the tank.... a member of TFF had a pair of cons in a 350G with an O, JD, sevs, other cons, and I believe a GT as well. The pair of cons in the 350 coraled the rest of them and took over almost the whole thing if that gives you any clue of how protective they are

What is "electric yellow"? I dont recognize that as a name of a common cichlid. If you have a scientific name or pics then that would help

 

[jimw13uk]

"Electric Yellow" - do you mean Labidichromis Careleus (Sp?)
cos they wont mix with your convicts too well at all - American and African plus the Labs are quite mild tempered so the convict would probably do them in

 

[randallhart]

Here you go jimw13uk.

http/liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?pCatId=839

 

[jimw13uk]

Here you go jimw13uk.

http/liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?pCatId=839

exactly as I said - ok i cant spell to well but I was right - and I used to have them and they were great fish and mixed in a community tank fine with Keyholes , Severum etc.. but I wouldnt put them in with anything thats a bit tough cos they arent that way inclilned at all and would end up being bullied

 

[Stan Laurel.]

Here you go jimw13uk.

http/liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?pCatId=839

exactly as I said - ok i cant spell to well but I was right - and I used to have them and they were great fish and mixed in a community tank fine with Keyholes , Severum etc.. but I wouldnt put them in with anything thats a bit tough cos they arent that way inclilned at all and would end up being bullied

ty everybody! and yes that is the fish i meant by electric yellow. it's pretty nice and the color contrast would have looked nice. guess in the future i'm going to setup an african tank.

for now i guess what i'll do is just keep a pair, let them breed and make it a species tank, sell and/or trade the rest. this male i have who i got when about the size of a grain of rice is now about 3 inches. he killed off the other 6 tetras in there as i expected. i had nowhere to put them or anyone who would take them. ty again folks!

 

[Stan Laurel.]

well i just gave the lone male (2.5") a female (3.5") and noticing the male swimming all over the place watching her. definetly paying attention. he also turned almost black/grey? lol he's definitely gotten darker as he's never been this dark. i'm putting a flower pot in my tank and since these two have the tank to themselves i'm hoping for fry sometime soon.

what sort of things will i or should i notice from these two to indicate they may spawn?

 

[severum boy]

How big is your tank? If its anything over a 12gal you could have some shoaling fish like Rainbowfish or Giant danios with them. Woudent put them in if the tank was smaller though.

 

[Stan Laurel.]

How big is your tank? If its anything over a 12gal you could have some shoaling fish like Rainbowfish or Giant danios with them. Woudent put them in if the tank was smaller though.

it's a 20.

 

[severum boy]

Then you should get a group of rainbowfish in there. Anything under 10cm will be ok. Have a look in a lfs and dont be put off by the juvaniles colouring.

 

[Stan Laurel.]

Then you should get a group of rainbowfish in there. Anything under 10cm will be ok. Have a look in a lfs and dont be put off by the juvaniles colouring.

yeah there is this dump that opened up not long ago very close to my place. walking distance even. i'm going to see what he has. lf's are so over priced for fish usually. i like to but from folks in the paper. just today i bought a mature convict about 4 inches, looks in great condition for 3 dollars (CAN). this place by me wanted 10 plus tax for a fish like that!

 

[Stan Laurel.]

Then you should get a group of rainbowfish in there. Anything under 10cm will be ok. Have a look in a lfs and dont be put off by the juvaniles colouring.

yeah there is this dump that opened up not long ago very close to my place. walking distance even. i'm going to see what he has. lf's are so over priced for fish usually. i like to but from folks in the paper. just today i bought a mature convict about 4 inches, looks in great condition for 3 dollars (CAN). this place by me wanted 10 plus tax for a fish like that!

well i rearranged the tank and the female seems to be in command! wtf? there are about 10 caves/hiding places so i hope these two sort things out!

 

[ox5477]

If an established cichlid is "invaded" by a new cichlid then they will be aggressive towards the new fish. When a fish is by itself it will claim the whole tank to itself and when the new fish is introduced, it will defend all that territory. Males are usually more apt to this, but a female will defend territory as well for future egg laying

 

[Stan Laurel.]

If an established cichlid is "invaded" by a new cichlid then they will be aggressive towards the new fish. When a fish is by itself it will claim the whole tank to itself and when the new fish is introduced, it will defend all that territory. Males are usually more apt to this, but a female will defend territory as well for future egg laying

i understand that. the new fish (female) is the one in charge though! wth? she is nearly twice the male's size, but i never would have guessed this. i've been watching them for about 20 minutes each day this week and all i ever see is when the smaller male comes about she's chasing him around the whole tank. more so now than at first. it even looks like he has a couple minor scrapes on his head, probably from hitting rocks and plants when being chased. it's been 1 week sunday since the female was added, how long till eggs will be laid? or how do i know if they will never pair up and mate? could the male being smaller make a difference?