4 male Severums in a 75g?

[GS1981]

What would happen if i kept my Rotkeil, Notatus, Red Spot and Gold males all together in a 75g, i have had my Red Spot for years and he seesm to have maxed out at 8", Notatus and Rotkeils max out at 8" and my Gold may grow the largest, they are all fine together at the mo, been together for months, i had to sell my 150g so stuck with just a 75g (only thing that fits in my living room) and i don't want to part with the fish

 

[GrantA94]

They will be very sad

 

[GS1981]

Why would they be sad? 4 x 8" fish with big water changes

 

[GrantA94]

No females was what I meant.

Personally I would go no more than 3. Better still 2. But that's just IMO.

 

[ryansmith83]

It sounds pretty cramped, IMO.

 

[djlamonica]

Sounds fine to me I dunno how the all males are gonna work out as my males hate each other. But in terms of 4 8in fish ina 75 that sounds about right to me

Sent from my SCH-I405 using MonsterAquariaNetwork App

 

[GS1981]

I found over the years that if males are grown up together they get on fine, but if you introduce them as adults they tear eachother to bits.

 

[notho2000]

I have been keeping 10 adult 'efasciatus' and 'notatus' in a 90G tank for over two years now (just the way it's worked out). There are two breeding pairs of each species in there plus a couple of extra males. Yes, they're a little crowded, but they spawn regularly and tolerate one another incredibly well. There are a few split fins to be sure but on the whole, it's amazing just how well they're doing. I think you are right on when you mentioned them growing up together from an early age as being a key factor. But I've found that compatibility is improved with both males and females present. I have set up the tank with several sight line breaks (tall plastic plants and drift wood) and have a number of ceramic pots in there as well. I'm not proposing that it's best to overcrowd, but it does spread the aggression around. I wouldn't hesitate keeping the four males together. Here's a video of two pair ('efasciatus' and 'notatus') spawning on two different sides of the same piece of flower pot. It was taken a year ago, and they weren't full adult size (they now are).

[video=youtube;ow_Njq4JYmY]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ow_Njq4JYmY&feature=g-upl[/video]
Jim

 

[tankboi]

@ notho2000, your severums are gorgeous. I love severums! They are my favorite cichlids. I have some red spotted gold juvies and plan on getting some orange shouldered severums next week hopefully. I'm hoping to get them mature to spawn regularly. I have bred them many many many years ago but I was less equipped for it and it was more unintentional on my part. If you plan on selling any fry I wouldn't mind getting some LOL! By the way what do you do with so many fry?

 

[notho2000]

@tankboi, thanks for the comments. I am a big severum fan as well. Unfortunately, there isn't much of a market for them locally, so I don't keep many young. It would be great if I could get some to you, but being in Canada makes it a very expensive proposition to ship to the states. I presently have some wild caught 'Rotkeil' and 'severus'(the mouth brooder) on the go. Here's pics of my rotkeil and severus.