Rank these cichlids on an aggression scale

[TheEelKing]

Okay, here's the thing, guys: I'm about to get rid of my fish and restock my 300 gallon aquarium (I'll be keeping my big clown loaches, though. It took me years to grow them out to this size, so not gonna get rid of them). I am looking at cichlids to add in my tank. Can you rate the following list of cichlid species on a scale of 1-10 in terms of aggression with 1 being the least aggressive and 10 being the most?

Severums
Uarus
Panda Uarus
Blood-Red Parrots
Electric Blue Jack Dempsey
Green Texas Cichlid
Vieja Synspilum
Geophagus
Red Tiger Oscar

Of course, I will not be keeping all of these species. I will only choose a few. I just want to know how these guys rate amongst each other in terms of aggression so I can choose species that will be compatible with one another for my stocking.

The other fish in the tank will include the following:

1x Clown Knife OR 1x Fire Eel
7x Jumbo-Sized Cown Loaches (biggest one is 10")
6x Large Red-Tail Blue Botia (I have these already and will be keeping them)
1x Thin-Bar datnoid
1x Leopard Ctenopoma
2x Endlicheri Bichirs
2x Ornate Bichirs
2x Jaguar Catfish OR 2x Striped Raphael Catfish
12x Filament Barbs as dither fish (open to choosing a larger dither fish species instead of the filament bars and bringing down the number to 6 instead of twelve if I go with a larger dither breed.)

So, I just want to add a few cichilds to this stocking. I have a few severums in my tank right now, but I'm cool with getting rid of them to try new cichlids...or to buy small ones to grow them up again.

One more thing, I don't want anything that may scar up my clown knife by constantly biting or kill my fire eel. So whatever I get has to be compatible with whichever I choose between these two as well as the loaches and other fish on my list.

I've kept severums, uarus, blood-red parrots, and geophagus together many times in the past with no problems. So, I know they work well, but I'm looking at possibly shaking things up this time around.

 

[Belly up]

I have had some of those fish but none of them strike me as any more aggressive than another. The danger would be if any are spawning of course.

 

[Glenn238]

Agreed ^ also every fish has it's own personality for example my one Texas gets along with every fish I've put with it my other one has to be alone cause he has anger issues lol

 

[TheEelKing]

I have had some of those fish but none of them strike me as any more aggressive than another. The danger would be if any are spawning of course.

There will be no mating pairs/spawning in my 300 gallon tank. I have a 55 gallon tank to make sure of that. Whenever I buy my baby cichlids (I buy all of my fish young), I always get a group of them and put them in my 55 until they grow up enough so I can tell the gender of each fish. After that, I make a decision on which ones I think look the best overall between the males and females. After I make my choice, I put that gender in my 300 gallon tank and I either sell the others or take them back to the LFS. All of the cichlids I keep in the 300 gallon are the same gender even across species.

 

[duanes]

Before even considering aggression, I would consider water type.
Panda Uaru is a soft water warm water (low 80s) fish that prefer a pH range between 4 and 5. It isone of my favorite cichlids, but I could not keep them healthy in my hard mineral rich water.
Hericthys carpintus (green Texas (?) comes from hard mineral waters of norther and Central Mexico, prefer pH range above 7 into the 8s, also can handle cooler temps. I kept mine at room temps (high 60s low 70s) . Perfect for my tanks, but I did not find them to be good community species
Vieja are also hard water species.
carpintus below.

Geophagines, there are perhaps 100 species that range from the warm soft waters of northern South America to the cool harder waters of southern S America. Many of these do best in shoals of their own kind, as opposed to being kept as individuals. Those from west of the Andes prefer neutral more alkaline conditions.
The Gymnogeophagus require a slight winter cool down to stay healthy and look their best, they don't really do well in tropical constant warm temp tanks.

I bring water parameters up because some like the Panda Uaru are very sensitive to water out of their natural realm and deteriorate quickly without those conditions, some of the hard water species if kept in soft water end up scarred with hole in the head disease.

 

[TheEelKing]

Before even considering aggression, I would consider water type.
Panda Uaru is a soft water warm water (low 80s) fish that prefer a pH range between 4 and 5. It isone of my favorite cichlids, but I could not keep them healthy in my hard mineral rich water.
Hericthys carpintus (green Texas (?) comes from hard mineral waters of norther and Central Mexico, prefer pH range above 7 into the 8s, also can handle cooler temps. I kept mine at room temps (high 60s low 70s) . Perfect for my tanks, but I did not find them to be good community species
Vieja are also hard water species.
carpintus below.

Geophagines, there are perhaps 100 species that range from the warm soft waters of northern South America to the cool harder waters of southern S America. Many of these do best in shoals of their own kind, as opposed to being kept as individuals. Those from west of the Andes prefer neutral more alkaline conditions.
The Gymnogeophagus require a slight winter cool down to stay healthy and look their best, they don't really do well in tropical constant warm temp tanks.

I bring water parameters up because some like the Panda Uaru are very sensitive to water out of their natural realm and deteriorate quickly without those conditions, some of the hard water species if kept in soft water end up scarred with hole in the head disease.

So, I looked up the water perameters on the various fish. The Panda Uaru looks to be the odd ball out. The other fish have overlapping tolerances for ph levels. With that being the case, here are some questions?

1) Which fish can tolerate the same water perameters as panda uarus?
2) Since I probably won't get any panda uaurs, do you have any experience with the electric blue jack dempsey's and red tiger oscars? How would you rate them on the aggression scale? I know from the other thread you put uarus at 2, severums at 4, and vieja synspilums at 7-9, how about the oscar and the electric blue jd?

 

[Glenn238]

Oscars are all different they have a big personality some are super docile some are nasty as for the electric blue Jack Dempsey they have weak genes and aren't nearly as Hardy as a regular jd but jds in a whole seem to be more in the aggressive side from my personal experience

 

[twentyleagues]

My experiences are about the same. But my Oscars have all been cool with others unless of coarse it fit in their mouths. But not all my Oscars were Oscar friendly. Also seems as they are in the 3 to 6" range they are most aggressive. Once bigger they know who's in charge and as long as not attacked or stood up to its usually pretty mellow. But they all have dirrerent personalities.

 

[Serpentine]

It's been my experience that Uaru ampithacanoides a.k.a. triangle cichlids are hardier than the pandas and just as cool. Tank raised specimens seem to do better. They are amazingly intelligent and probably clock in at a 3 on the aggression scale. They seem happiest in groups of at least 4 and like to hang out together. They do require very, very clean water. My filter quit while I was away and I lost them because I was a dumbass and didn't have a backup filter.

Severums are neat. I really like mine. I notice that my chosen variety, Rotkeil red shoulders, seem to grow slowly. I would peg mine at a 3 on the aggression scale but they aren't mature yet so we will see.

I truly love Oscars to bits but they are dirty fish and they grow so quickly that they may end up gulping some of your slower growing fish to fuel their insatiably greedy appetites. Keep that in mind. They aren't super aggressive IMO, maybe a 4 and some individuals a 5, but they are hungry hungry hungry.

It totally depends on the species but most Geophagus are mellow and my abalios are around a 2 or 3. The problem is that 1) many--like abalios and red head Tapajos--do better in groups of at least 6. You will probably get a pair out of that but it's not the end of the world. You can move a brooding female to her own nursery tank. 2) They grow slowly. Very slowly. That's a problem if you keep them with predatory cichlids like Oscars.

I don't keep EBJDs due to their reputation for poor health, though they certainly are very pretty. Regular Jack Dempseys are most likely too aggressive for many of your other desired fish, maybe a 5 or 6 depending on the individual. My comparatively laid-back JD actually gets along just fine with Oscars but he would happily kick the butts of my mellower cichlids.

I wouldn't put any kind of Vieja in an otherwise docile to peaceful tank. They will make mincemeat of your other cichlids. 7 to 9 is probably a fair assessment.

I would say the same of Texas cichlids. There are some statistical outliers, but my personal experience has been that as they mature they turn from mellow fellows into killing machines.

Oh, blood parrots. Cute little guys with lots of personality. They tend toward the aggressive side BUT most of them have mouths that don't completely close so they can't rip on your other cichlids. Check yours before you buy it, and try to get one that is otherwise not too deformed. I will say that mine enjoy cannonballing into my other fish just for the sheer joy of it. It's fun for them but not so much for the others. I am considering moving them to their own tank for just that reason.

 

[duanes]

The other fish have overlapping tolerances for ph levels. With that being the case, here are some questions?

1) Which fish can tolerate the same water perameters as panda uarus?
2) Since I probably won't get any panda uaurs, do you have any experience with the electric blue jack dempsey's and red tiger oscars? How would you rate them on the aggression scale? I know from the other thread you put uarus at 2, severums at 4, and vieja synspilums at 7-9, how about the oscar and the electric blue jd?

The most important question might be, what are your normal tap water parameters?
This info with tell you what fish to get, and what to avoid.
Although many fish have a tolerance for overlapping parameters, and don't show acute distress if not exact, some species show chronic issues over time if kept far off the norm.
Panda Uaru are mostly wild caught in very soft water, so not forgiving when kept under unnatural conditions.
Even commonplace aquarium regulars like oscars, and severums often get hole in the head over time if put in high mineral content water with elevated nitrate.
Acaras are a good example of a cichlid that is very tolerant of varied and overlapping conditions, as probably are the designer type, man made species you mention (I don't have personal experience with those)
Normal JDs can be bully's under certain conditions, and vary individual to individual. If the tank is not to their liking, they spend most of their time hiding.
I find they don't do well with other cichlids in tanks, or in nature. They prefer calcium rich, hard water.
in the 1st video, note how torn up, and few JDs there are when in a place where other cichlids dominate.
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In the 2nd video, they are the dominant cichlid in this body of water, and share the area with only dithering live bearers, and a small population of catfish, a much healthier population.
Eden2