Looking to add new more interesting fish

[@ombomb]

I certainly wouldn't add any African Cichlids to that setup.

I agree that the current fish should be added to the larger tank asap.

You can always use the 55 for Cichlids if that's what you decide to go with.

 

[qwikimpss]

Man, 125 gallons....i'd toss in 100 tetras...but thast me....i know theyre not interesting.

 

[freddyk]

I don't know very much about cichlids, can you name any species in particular that would not cause problems?

To do this you must use the 125, there is no room in the 55 for them in your current setup. You must decorate wisely, taking into consideration the needs of the cichlid species you choose, and you may have to make some modifications to your current stock to make room. For example, most of your species are bottom dwellers that enjoy cover, as do the larger number of cichlids - this would result in unwanted aggression in disputes over territory.

My biggest concern is right now is your Leporinus, known for becoming hostile as they mature, and as fish that like cover they will likely compete with most cichlids for territory, and probably win in many cases. It's better to plan the tank around the cichlids rather then the other way around, but some ideas are possible - keeping in mind that when it comes to cichlids there are rarely guarantees of success, the best we can do is arrange it for the greatest odds.

That little blurb wasn't to dissuade you from the idea, but merely to keep you aware of the con's. The pro's are unique and beautiful fish with unique and intelligent seeming behavior that never gets tiring. Click below to see my successful cichlid/community mix. The cichlids you see are Nicaraguensis - one idea that could likely work without the Leporinus involved. Should you still be interested in the cichlid additions let me know and we'll dig up some more species for you to consider. One possibility that won't get in the way of your bottom dwellers is the popular Heros Severus.

 

[RabidChild]

If it were me I'd probably move everything but the barbs and rainbow shark into the 125 then build a smaller community around those in the 55. Maybe adding some more barbs, some of the smaller varities of loaches...???

 

[fish_r_great]

I would just add all the fish from the 55 to the 125 and use your old 55 for Africans. As for Bumblee Bee cichlid AKA Psuedotropheus Crabro or Melanochromis Crabro they are very aggressive and I wouldn't sugget keeping them with labs.

Sites on African Cichlids to check out

http/www.cichlid-forum.com/index.php Lots of Info
http/www.africancichlids.net/
http/www.cichlidae.com/
http/bnbafricancichlids.tripod.com/
http/www.bigskycichlids.com/

 

[caliskier]

dude you have a SERIOUS problem with all your tanks unless you have a 300 gallon your not telling us about.

balas need to be kept in schools of at least 3. get to 10-12" not good in a 55.

clown loaches get to a foot. you have 5 in a 4 foot tank.

depending on which bichir you get it can be 12" or much more.

the pleco is probly gonna get around a foot or more like most plecs.
leporinus are schooling fish. you need at least 3. they get to a foot

you have around 120 inches of fish in a 55 gallon tank. your supposed to have no more than 1 inch of fish per gallon. you have 2+ inches of fish. you should put all your big fish in the 125. its about the right size and you cant really add any more to it but youre fish will be in an adequate environment.

[snapback]865347[/snapback]​

Yes, I realize all these things. Note that Clowns take forever to grow that long. They are some of the slowest growing fish, 4 are 2” one is 3”. Also the bicher is only 5” long along with one of the bala sharks the other is 2”. Yes they need to be in schools of three, however one of them exited my holding tank when I was moving the larger tank and we lost him. You should know that you do not have to have a larger tank if the fish aren’t full grown yet. Keep that in mind before you go out and buy something you do not need. Here is a website that will help you.

http/fins.actwin.com/index.php

[snapback]865379[/snapback]​

ok you dont NEED a tank big enough for the full grown fish but its a bad idea to not have one. what if something happens and you cant get a bigger tank. you have a 5" bichir that should be growing around an inch every month. and banded leporinus are some of the most aggressive fish ive ever seen. and some of the most active. i still recommend putting the fish you have ion the 125 because most cichlids do NOT tolerate new tankmates well. my Nw cichlids are the most passive species possible and they still get into liplock fights and go after my new fish. i've had 2 angels and a bichir killed before i could even get the net out to rescue them. so i'd recommend putting the fish you have in the 125 first. and then anything else you put in there would just be overstocking

[snapback]865581[/snapback]​

Hey, thanks for the info, I agree with and appreciate your statements. I most likely will put all my fish into that tank. I don’t know anything about chiclids though, do chiclids respect larger fish, or do they pretty much attack anything?

 

[caliskier]

I don't know very much about cichlids, can you name any species in particular that would not cause problems?

To do this you must use the 125, there is no room in the 55 for them in your current setup. You must decorate wisely, taking into consideration the needs of the cichlid species you choose, and you may have to make some modifications to your current stock to make room. For example, most of your species are bottom dwellers that enjoy cover, as do the larger number of cichlids - this would result in unwanted aggression in disputes over territory.

My biggest concern is right now is your Leporinus, known for becoming hostile as they mature, and as fish that like cover they will likely compete with most cichlids for territory, and probably win in many cases. It's better to plan the tank around the cichlids rather then the other way around, but some ideas are possible - keeping in mind that when it comes to cichlids there are rarely guarantees of success, the best we can do is arrange it for the greatest odds.

That little blurb wasn't to dissuade you from the idea, but merely to keep you aware of the con's. The pro's are unique and beautiful fish with unique and intelligent seeming behavior that never gets tiring. Click below to see my successful cichlid/community mix. The cichlids you see are Nicaraguensis - one idea that could likely work without the Leporinus involved. Should you still be interested in the cichlid additions let me know and we'll dig up some more species for you to consider. One possibility that won't get in the way of your bottom dwellers is the popular Heros Severus.

[snapback]865634[/snapback]​

Wow, I would really like that. I am working about 12+ hours a day right now, but will try to check this message during my lunch break at work. For now, I am interested in that Melenic. And there is a small dark solid blue one that I saw in the pet store, but have not been able to find the name. Incidentally My leps are about 3 ½ years old, I bought them after my wife went “ooooh, I like those” I probably would not purchase them again after having them and experiencing there territorial habits. I will say that their digging is interesting though.

 

[caliskier]

I would just add all the fish from the 55 to the 125 and use your old 55 for Africans. As for Bumblee Bee cichlid AKA Psuedotropheus Crabro or Melanochromis Crabro they are very aggressive and I wouldn't sugget keeping them with labs.

Sites on African Cichlids to check out

http/www.cichlid-forum.com/index.php Lots of Info
http/www.africancichlids.net/
http/www.cichlidae.com/
http/bnbafricancichlids.tripod.com/
http/www.bigskycichlids.com/

[snapback]865846[/snapback]​

Thanks for the sites, I will surf those tomorrow!!

 

[freddyk]

Heh, melenic should be malenic, just the name of the photo - the species is Hypsophrys Nicaraguensis - wonderful and hardy fish, but can take some time to get used to their owner and tank. They're also extremely avid diggers, and if you want to keep the Leps forget about the Nics.

And there is a small dark solid blue

Well, as long as you don't buy it before you find out. Small doesn't mean much in a fish store though, even fish that get to 2 feet long start out small there. Take your time at those sites, there's a lot of information. When looking at species to consider for the 125 gallon make sure you research New World cichlids, not Africans - look at Africans only if you want to donate the 55 gallon to them.

 

[caliskier]

Heh, melenic should be malenic, just the name of the photo - the species is Hypsophrys Nicaraguensis - wonderful and hardy fish, but can take some time to get used to their owner and tank.  They're also extremely avid diggers, and if you want to keep the Leps forget about the Nics.

And there is a small dark solid blue

Well, as long as you don't buy it before you find out. Small doesn't mean much in a fish store though, even fish that get to 2 feet long start out small there. Take your time at those sites, there's a lot of information. When looking at species to consider for the 125 gallon make sure you research New World cichlids, not Africans - look at Africans only if you want to donate the 55 gallon to them.

[snapback]868018[/snapback]​

Well, this may be asking for much, but I think what I really want to do is add some of the more peaceful chiclids to my tank and maybe do some live plants. Are live plants possible with some of the chiclids you were recommending?

By the way are those live plants in your tank?

 

[Fishy411]

dude you have a SERIOUS problem with all your tanks unless you have a 300 gallon your not telling us about.

balas need to be kept in schools of at least 3. get to 10-12" not good in a 55.

clown loaches get to a foot. you have 5 in a 4 foot tank.

depending on which bichir you get it can be 12" or much more.

the pleco is probly gonna get around a foot or more like most plecs.
leporinus are schooling fish. you need at least 3. they get to a foot

you have around 120 inches of fish in a 55 gallon tank. your supposed to have no more than 1 inch of fish per gallon. you have 2+ inches of fish. you should put all your big fish in the 125. its about the right size and you cant really add any more to it but youre fish will be in an adequate environment.

[snapback]865347[/snapback]​

Yes, I realize all these things. Note that Clowns take forever to grow that long. They are some of the slowest growing fish, 4 are 2” one is 3”. Also the bicher is only 5” long along with one of the bala sharks the other is 2”. Yes they need to be in schools of three, however one of them exited my holding tank when I was moving the larger tank and we lost him. You should know that you do not have to have a larger tank if the fish aren’t full grown yet. Keep that in mind before you go out and buy something you do not need. Here is a website that will help you.

http/fins.actwin.com/index.php

[snapback]865379[/snapback]​

ok you dont NEED a tank big enough for the full grown fish but its a bad idea to not have one. what if something happens and you cant get a bigger tank. you have a 5" bichir that should be growing around an inch every month. and banded leporinus are some of the most aggressive fish ive ever seen. and some of the most active. i still recommend putting the fish you have ion the 125 because most cichlids do NOT tolerate new tankmates well. my Nw cichlids are the most passive species possible and they still get into liplock fights and go after my new fish. i've had 2 angels and a bichir killed before i could even get the net out to rescue them. so i'd recommend putting the fish you have in the 125 first. and then anything else you put in there would just be overstocking

[snapback]865581[/snapback]​

Hey, thanks for the info, I agree with and appreciate your statements. I most likely will put all my fish into that tank. I don’t know anything about chiclids though, do chiclids respect larger fish, or do they pretty much attack anything?

[snapback]867737[/snapback]​

depends on which one. severums are pretty peaceful and Midas/RD's are really mean. i dont know if anything could take a beating from your leps and also not kill them. PM CFC about leps. he a had a couple kill off a couple big fish

 

[caliskier]

Would this be a disaster?

5-Clown loaches
3-Pictus Cats
1-Pleco
1-bicher
Some, don’t yet know how many, - Blue Acara or cichlasoma sajica or
Heros Severus (Severum)
125 gallon tank

Sorry I don't have common names

 

[Kajuki18]

I think you should move your current fish into the 125 gallon and keep the 55 for african cichlids. I suggest Yellow Labs cuz they are easy to care for and Pseudotropheus Saulosi like my icon

 

[andywg]

To be honest, I would not want to keep the balas in the 125 for too long. To really give them a chance to be comfortable you need to keep 5+ so they can really shoal and to give them room to swim (as they love to stretch their fins once in a while) they really need a 6' x 2' tank.

Plus, it's all good and well saying you will get the fish a bigger tank, but will you? In a few years circumdstances might change and you could end up stuck with a fish too big for your tank. Unless you have a tank already, or know someone who will definately take it, I think you should hold off buying bigger fish.

 

[freddyk]

I think you guys need to look at things more realistically. The bigger the bala's grow, the slower they grow. Once they reach mid size the growth slows considerably, and only gets slower. The final average size of these fish is what they tend to reach over the course of their considerable lifespan. They will be fine in a 125, which is not exactly a tiny tank, for a long time to come and a bigger deal is being made over this then should be.

caliskier, I think you're plan sounds nifty. Two pairs of Severums would look fabulous in my opinion, And Acara would be great too. The Sajica's are good because you can keep a whole bunch of them in that tank, but the problem is that they will use caves for spawning and I can picture all those big bottom dwellers causing a lot of stress to these little guys. I haven't kept this set up, of course, I'm just speculating using judgments based on what I do know.