320G stocking - can I add Oscar + Jack Dempsey

[mindstate]

So I have a 320 gallon tank with a 80 gallon sump with the current stocking:

- 1 Hypselecara temporalis
- 4 Severum (Heros efasciatus Rotkeil)
- 5 Silver dollars (I don't have the exact type at hand)
- 2 Pleco's (L002 and L142)

Now the question, can I add an Oscar and Jack Dempsey to this stocking? I know the regions don't match entirely, but looking at Ph and temperatures should be ok?

Thank you in advance for your feedback.

FINWIN please come in (love your topic and Brick)

 

[SilverArowanaBoi]

So I have a 320 gallon tank with a 80 gallon sump with the current stocking:

- 1 Hypselecara temporalis
- 4 Severum (Heros efasciatus Rotkeil)
- 5 Silver dollars (I don't have the exact type at hand)
- 2 Pleco's (L002 and L142)

Now the question, can I add an Oscar and Jack Dempsey to this stocking? I know the regions don't match entirely, but looking at Ph and temperatures should be ok?

Thank you in advance for your feedback.

FINWIN please come in (love your topic and Brick)

I don't think it would be a good idea. I would do something like this:

1 Jack Dempsey, 6 Silver Dollars and 2 Plecos. Or...

An Oscar tank with 2-3 oscars.

Or a severum tank with the 4 severums and 1 chocolate cichlids

Understocking is much better than over stocking.

 

[mindstate]

I don't think it would be a good idea. I would do something like this:

1 Jack Dempsey, 6 Silver Dollars and 2 Plecos. Or...

An Oscar tank with 2-3 oscars.

Or a severum tank with the 4 severums and 1 chocolate cichlids

Understocking is much better than over stocking.

Thanks for your input but at 320 gallon option 1 and 3 would be severely understocking imo. Surely I can keep more than that without being overstocked?

 

[SilverArowanaBoi]

Thanks for your input but at 320 gallon option 1 and 3 would be severely understocking imo. Surely I can keep more than that without being overstocked?

The first one you may be able to add something else, maybe a larger catfish? The last one same idea, perhaps a couple of Striped Raphaels. Or you could add some dithers like buenos aires tetras.

 

[duanes]

Above are the ranges of water in S America where Heros, Hypselacara and other Amazonian fish come from.
Note the disparity in pH, Total Hardness (TH) and Carbonate Hardness (CH) and Conductivity of S America, with those same parameters in Mexico.

Below are the type waters Rocio (JDs) come from in Mexico.

Since you are keeping a S American biotope type tank, I would assume your tap water parameters are similar to the first two shots of water parameters in S America above.
And if so, to me, an oscar would work, and be a good match.
On the other hand the JD comes from quite the opposite water parameters., seen in the Mexican water parameters of the 3rd shot

 

[mindstate]

And with the ksca

View attachment 1536612View attachment 1536613
Above are the ranges of water in S America where Heros, Hypselacara and other Amazonian fish come from.
Note the disparity in pH, Total Hardness (TH) and Carbonate Hardness (CH) and Conductivity of S America, with those same parameters in Mexico.

Below are the type waters Rocio (JDs) come from in Mexico.
View attachment 1536614
Since you are keeping a S American biotope type tank, I would assume your tap water parameters are similar to the first two shots of water parameters in S America above.
And if so, to me, an oscar would work, and be a good match.
On the other hand the JD comes from quite the opposite water parameters., seen in the Mexican water parameters of the 3rd shot

Thanks for this info. My tapwater actually is somewhere in the middle between that at carbonate hardness 5, total hardness 6 and pH 7.

I dont keep wild caught fish though, so we have some margin I presume. Am I good for the current stocking?

If not the JD, any other singular SA Cichlid options?

 

[duanes]

JDs are not S Americans, Mexico is part of North America, (Central America) .

Most cichlids from Central America (whether wild or not) have evolved over millions of years to live in hard, high pH water.
A hundred years of living in aquarium does not change that.

Just as it is not a great idea to force Amazonian South Americans to live in high pH, hard water

Any truly S American/Amazonian should work in your tank, and pH 7 tap water.

Below , a water parameter test where I collect in the southern most country in North America, Panama .
The left tube is nitrate (undetectable) the right tube is pH, 8.2.

 

[FINWIN]

So I have a 320 gallon tank with a 80 gallon sump with the current stocking:

- 1 Hypselecara temporalis
- 4 Severum (Heros efasciatus Rotkeil)
- 5 Silver dollars (I don't have the exact type at hand)
- 2 Pleco's (L002 and L142)

Now the question, can I add an Oscar and Jack Dempsey to this stocking? I know the regions don't match entirely, but looking at Ph and temperatures should be ok?

Thank you in advance for your feedback.

FINWIN please come in (love your topic and Brick)

Hi!

What are the dimensions of your 320? Acaras are nice, too. Glad you like Brick, he's an amazing character! If you add an oscar, I'd thin the silver dollars down to 2 or 3. Or keep only one of the plecos. Oscars are really meaty and that meat makes a lot of waste. I should mention they don't like being crowded either. Bad stuff happens when they are.

 

[mindstate]

Hi!

What are the dimensions of your 320? Acaras are nice, too. Glad you like Brick, he's an amazing character! If you add an oscar, I'd thin the silver dollars down to 2 or 3. Or keep only one of the plecos. Oscars are really meaty and that meat makes a lot of waste. I should mention they don't like being crowded either. Bad stuff happens when they are.

European sizes translate bad to inches in my opinion so I'm going to give you the cm and a rough number in inches. Dimensions are 250 * 70 * 70 cm for the tank (98*27*27 inch).

 

[mindstate]

Hi!

What are the dimensions of your 320? Acaras are nice, too. Glad you like Brick, he's an amazing character! If you add an oscar, I'd thin the silver dollars down to 2 or 3. Or keep only one of the plecos. Oscars are really meaty and that meat makes a lot of waste. I should mention they don't like being crowded either. Bad stuff happens when they are.

So, this should be an acceptable stocking?

1 x Chocolate cichlid
1 x Oscar
4 x Severum
1 x L142
1 x L002
2-3 x Silver dollar

Or 4-5 silver dollars and get rid of the tiger pleco? (Snowball ain't going nowhere).

Any other tips/suggestions left? Tony (chocolate cichlid), Snowball (L142), and at least 2-3 Severums are staying and main priority is adding that Oscar. From their I'd like to weigh all options.