125 gallon salvini tank mates

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
Overall, I think the salvini is a difficult fish to stock around. The only success I have had with mixing them(other than temporarily) with others was with an oscar that was 3x the size of the male salvini. The oscar could not catch the salvini and gave up trying and his size kept the salvini in its place for the most part. I removed the salvini at about 6" because it was a fin nipping hit and run type of fish. For a long term situation I can see a lot of potential issues with just about any fish I can think of, especially if dealing with a pair. I think when mixing them with other fish it is probably best to keep a single salvini. This is the male I had.
9602654913_daf05365ed_b.jpg
 
  • Like
Reactions: cichlidfish, GamerChick5567 and Stanzzzz7
I completely agree with robham777.
If the op's tank were a lot bigger I would suggest keeping salvini with larger veija.The larger size would help when dealing with smaller aggressive pairs.
As the tank is not big enough for veija, a solo salvini,preferably female with a few mid sized robust cichlids could be the safest route.
My personal favourite option is a pair on their own with some dithers in a well furnished natural looking aquascape.
 
  • Like
Reactions: cichlidfish, bigsea, dan518 and 1 other person
Stanzzzz7 said:
My personal favourite option is a pair on their own with some dithers in a well furnished natural looking aquascape.
Click to expand...
What is the long term success rate of this kind of set up?
I think if you are going to go with just a pair of salvini with out any other cichlid tank mates, you should really regard salvini just as you would with any of the big heavy weight CA. A tank with a good divider and an understanding that the divider should be in place a good part of the time. Maybe not so great as a display tank.
As far as so called schooling dithers, my female salvinis cleaned up on good sized giant danios. Not saying that is going to happen all of the time, but be aware they need to be very large, tough and sturdy and still no guarantee it will work over the longer term.
 
  • Like
Reactions: robham777
BC in SK said:
What is the long term success rate of this kind of set up?
I think if you are going to go with just a pair of salvini with out any other cichlid tank mates, you should really regard salvini just as you would with any of the big heavy weight CA. A tank with a good divider and an understanding that the divider should be in place a good part of the time. Maybe not so great as a display tank.
As far as so called schooling dithers, my female salvinis cleaned up on good sized giant danios. Not saying that is going to happen all of the time, but be aware they need to be very large, tough and sturdy and still no guarantee it will work over the longer term.
Click to expand...
Agree on the divider. 2 for 2 here on males killing females. Hiding places were irrelevant since the fish were so similar in size. It's a fish you really have to want to keep.
 
BC in SK said:
What is the long term success rate of this kind of set up?
Click to expand...
Quite high if you get a well bonded pair.Not all male salvini will be hard on females if the pair bond is strong.
I have not kept any salvini for years because they can be a pain,I have however had well bonded pairs live fine with each other and dithers.The last time I kept them was with large b a tetras, no problems at all.i could never keep them with other cichlids without too much aggression though.
Not everybody's experience will be the same.
 
  • Like
Reactions: cichlidfish and dan518
A breeding pair of jags,6 Jack Dempseys, several FHs convicts and Firemouths plus catfish for 4 years in a 120?That's incredible.
I would say it's too small for a pair of 4 year old jags on their own.
 
  • Like
Reactions: cichlidfish and Frank Castle
Stanzzzz7 said:
A breeding pair of jags,6 Jack Dempseys, several FHs convicts and Firemouths plus catfish for 4 years in a 120?That's incredible.
I would say it's too small for a pair of 4 year old jags on their own.
Click to expand...
you would think that - most people would and I don't blame them for doing so, but the fact remains the same LOL
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
MonsterFishKeepers.com
Top Bottom