Could I Add Halfbeaks With My Heckelii?

[the_evil_duboisi]

Hi I have this 13cm Acarichthys heckelii who's a bit odd. He currently lives in a 30 gallon tank with some hardly 2cm peacock fry and a Satanoperca jurupari. He like chasing the jurupari(Probably because it being the second largest cichlid), sometimes to the point where I think I should remove him.

But oddly enough, he hasn't ate a single one of the peacocks, who could easily fit in his mouth if he had the mind to. But he doesn't. I don't know why....One theory could be the fact that he saw the fry since they were born right in front of his eyes. He was 3 inches at the time, and at first he tried to eat

....So, I was wondering whether he could live with some halfbeaks around 3-4cm in length. They would be much longer then the peacocks, and about the same thickness.

Also, I could try distracting him by putting in floating hornwort or anacharis, or maybe dither fishes like tetras. Or even, could I put them in a breeder net for a few days until he gets used to them? Because he seemed to ignore the peacocks after he figured out he couldn't eat them,a nd gave up.

This site I know is having halfbeaks on sale as a rare item, and I'd love to get some. The cichlids will be removed to their own tank in the future, but right now I'm tight on tank space.

I hope someone could help me

Ted

 

[severum boy]

Half-beaks are cracking fish. Whats probably happened with the heckelii and the peacock fry, is that the hormones released by the adult pair affected the heckelii and tricked him into thinking that the fry were his own. I know of a couple of instances where this has happened. Introducing the beakies is going to be tricky, and personally I woudent do it. They look to different to the peacocks to be considered the same. As the saying goes, if something is too good to be true, it probably is.

 

[the_evil_duboisi]

Nah, the brooding mother was removed to the heckelii's tank, and she was taken out when the was stripped, so I don't think it's hormones. I think he just became so used to the peacocks as an uneatable part of his world, he accepted it as it was.

Besides my theory about introducing the halfbeaks, could those methods actually work?

 

[severum boy]

He could well have not realised that he has grown then.
Your methods could work, but having seen how some fish look at smaller ones, then eat them an hour or so later, it may well just be pushing back the inevitable. If you really want to go for it, lots of floating plants. Loads and loads. And make sure you feed the heckelli on sinking pellets so he has no need to come to the surface.

 

[the_evil_duboisi]

Thanks severum boy, I really, really appreciate your answers.

But I'm going to debate whether I should really do this......Right now the tank is under low mantience, perfect for my high school(8:00 am-9:00pm). But I think adding halfbeaks COULD complicate things a bit......Because I would have to get rid of my polypterus senegalus, buy floating plants(Actually it's what I'll do anyway) and buy some flakes for the beaks to eat.....Not to mention keep a close eye on them, something I really don't have time for.....

 

[severum boy]

It would also take a while for the beakies to accept flakes, you may have to try frozen or live foods first.
Personally, looking at your situation, id leave them out of the tank. Keep the senny, they are hardier and require less attention than beakies.

 

[the_evil_duboisi]

Yeah, I've decided to do so Still, thanks for the info, I'll keep halfbeaks when I have the time/space/money!

Ted