First foray into american cichlids

[stillsirpaul]

GT and blue acara will clash (with the GT being the aggressor) since they look so much alike. There's a smaller version of the blue acara and that's the electric blue acara, but I still would not put it in with a GT. GT's can be hyperaggressive to other species of cichlids as well. The threadfin can be a pain to other cichlids or if there is an aggressor like a GT, lose its nice threadfins.

Sounds like the GT would be an issue for my stocking.
What if I switch out the green terror for a severum, probably the least discussed fish on my original post?

125 gallon

3 FM
1 severum
3 threadfin acara
3 blue acara
small school of bleeding heart/black skirt /buenos aires tetras

 

[Rocksor]

The bottom area is quite heavy with those 9 fish so be prepared to move fish out due to territorial disputes.

 

[stillsirpaul]

The bottom area is quite heavy so be prepared to move fish out due to territorial disputes.

Which are considered "bottom" besides the FMs?

Would you be able to provide any suitable replacements that would be more mid-level or all-level? I do have another suitable tank I could put fish in, but that is not the intended goal here.

 

[Rocksor]

Which are considered "bottom" besides the FMs?

Would you be able to provide any suitable replacements that would be more mid-level or all-level? I do have another suitable tank I could put fish in, but that is not the intended goal here.

I've found the threadfin and blue acaras tend to hover more in the bottom areas than a severum. If I were to try it first, I would just put the FM and regular blue acaras or FM and threadfins then see how the dynamics works out with the 2 species.

 

[Deadeye]

First pic is def a Jack. Mine at that age:

Grew up into this:

I would swap it out with a terror, and it will be the tank boss. They are rather inactive and spend most of the time hiding near the bottom of hovering in the middle. They come from about the same area as firemouths in the wild.
Your dither fish will spend their time on the top level. Cichlids usually stay lower in the water. Except my severum, he is almost always up high.

 

[stillsirpaul]

Deadeye, my little guy looks very much like the one in your photo. Definitely a Jack, which I definitely didn't intend to buy. Love the colors on that monster it turned into for you... but not what I was looking for / expecting. How quickly do they grow?

 

[Deadeye]

Deadeye, my little guy looks very much like the one in your photo. Definitely a Jack, which I definitely didn't intend to buy. Love the colors on that monster it turned into for you... but not what I was looking for / expecting. How quickly do they grow?

Mine was the runt of the litter and I had a crap water change schedule when I started with him, so he is only about 4-5 inches and I’ve had him since November 2019. He was 0.5 inches when I got him. So a slow grower. He significantly increased in growth rate once I got better with maintenance.
More typical is about 0.5 inches a month.
Green terrors are also known for exceptionally slow growth similar to jds.

 

[Gourami Swami]

Youve got a jack dempsey and 3 firemouths. If it were my tank, I would keep all those, and add some more firemouths. Add some livebearers. Wouldn't try to mix the south americans in. Instead might go for some less common livebearers. I kept Belonesox with CA cichlids a couple years ago and they were very cool. Goodeids as well.

 

[Rocksor]

Would you be able to provide any suitable replacements that would be more mid-level or all-level? I do have another suitable tank I could put fish in, but that is not the intended goal here.

In the wild, Vieja types like Melanuras (varation Synspila) and Bifasciata have been found in or near the same area as the FM. This would be a centerpiece fish, but I can't guarantee it will get along with the Severum. JD's have also been found near FM.

 

[stillsirpaul]

In the wild, Vieja types like Melanuras (varation Synspila) and Bifasciata have been found in or near the same area as the FM. This would be a centerpiece fish, but I can't guarantee it will get along with the Severum. JD's have also been found near FM.

The Vieja Melanura is very interesting... great idea ... will look more into care requirements for it. Perhaps 1 of those could replace one of the acara groups or the Severum.