Uaru amphia. tank requirements?

[mattybecks]

Hi guys
Recently my lfs received a breeding pair of Uaru, full grown adults.
I have a 5ft 100gal tank, which currently has an oscar, poly sen. Syno. Erup.
I was actually looking at a Severum, and did not expect these fish to come in, but they are magnificent.
Before I do anything rash and impulsive, my question is if they would be happy in a 100gal. (I think I would have to rehome the Oscar).
Are they difficult to keep? (They are captive bred, not wild caught).
And in your opinion, if you were in my situation, what would you do?

 

[JasonsPlecosCichlids]

Personally, I like to see them in their own tank, they are a peaceful fish generally, you sometimes have that rogue one but for the most part they are peaceful. I have 8 in with a ton of plecos, no other fish. I had angels in with them and they seemed to be a little stand-offish I guess you can say, once I pulled them, they are out and about all the time. Since they are a pair, you could run into some issues, it's just not worth it to me to stress out an adult breeding pair at that Uaru. I have my 8 is a 220. I don't find them difficult to keep at all, some people do though. If I was you, this would be there tank only, even would ditch the rest and setup a tank for them and build fish around them that are from the same area, etc.

 

[mattybecks]

Sorry I was not competely clear

Personally, I like to see them in their own tank, they are a peaceful fish generally, you sometimes have that rogue one but for the most part they are peaceful. I have 8 in with a ton of plecos, no other fish. I had angels in with them and they seemed to be a little stand-offish I guess you can say, once I pulled them, they are out and about all the time. Since they are a pair, you could run into some issues, it's just not worth it to me to stress out an adult breeding pair at that Uaru. I have my 8 is a 220. I don't find them difficult to keep at all, some people do though. If I was you, this would be there tank only, even would ditch the rest and setup a tank for them and build fish around them that are from the same area, etc.

thanks. My research has suggested they also prefer to live in shoals. Maybe I will give these guys a miss until I can get a huge tank setup just for them.

 

[ryansmith83]

They're social fish. They do seem more comfortable in groups. You can keep single pairs but they would probably need some smaller tankmates to keep them company and help calm them down. I have found large Uaru to be a bit flighty or nervous in certain tanks and small, calming fish tend to bring them out of that. They are incredibly smart and inquisitive for fish and they certainly do not like change or new things, so my experience is to provide them dithers. Dithers essentially show them that there's nothing harmful around, and puts them at ease.

Uaru are prone to HITH because they come from very clean water. U. amphiacanthoides are much more hardy and adaptable than U. fernandezyepezi, but they will still need large, frequent water changes in a tank that size to keep the quality pristine enough to prevent stress and HITH. They also are mostly herbivorous so you should provide things like peas, Romaine leaves, spirulina, and other greens and veggies to give them a balanced diet. I also feed a good quality pellet and occasionally treats like earthworms, freeze-dried mealworms, or frozen bloodworms and mysis shrimp.

Warm, clean water is the secret to Uaru. There is no substitute for water changes. If you provide them the proper conditions they're a nice fish to have. Heros are slightly more forgiving in the water change department but they will still benefit greatly from it.

 

[mattybecks]

Thanks. Great info!

 

[mattybecks]

Ill keep the Oscar and the Heros notatus then. (Not sure if it is labeled correctly as they are about 2 and half inches, the whole body being a deep crimson, with brighter red and black spots, faint black bars in the back ground), maybe two and hope for a male and female combo.
But I think more suitable for the tank.
I do perform weekly/bi weekly fin level water changes, got a larger canister filter (rated for double my tank size), and a wet dry filter that runs the length behind my tank. Out this filter I also have a wall of pothos growing. As well as the normal power heads/sponge filter and what not.

 

[mattybecks]

My apt floor to ceiling is 3.5m high, so the pothos is about 1.5m now of intertwined vines, consists of 14 separate plants.
I think my filtration would be ok for the Oscars and sev/s?

 

[mattybecks]

Here are the two photos

 

[mattybecks]

And my dear Oscar