55 Gallon Balzini & Firemouth

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
ramcharger1979;5164511; said:
If you still want to try it why even ask for others opinions just do it and find out what happens. The hardest lessons to learn are the ones we teach ourselves.
Click to expand...

You're right
 
yeah the males may get along now because they dont have a female to show off for. thats how most people on here get all these bruisers to get along in tanks is by having only males, most of the time if you were to add a single female to one of these tanks there would be bloodshed. but yeah i would just get some female balzanii for that male and then maybe just try keeping the single FM male and see how that works... i def wouldnt do a FM pair with the balzanii they just wouldnt be able to hang
 
blksubykid;5164475; said:
Gymnogeophagus balzanii are harem breeders, so a ratio of 1M:3F would be ideal. They also are from cooler waters than most other cichlids. I know some members on here don't even use heaters with this species as they can handle temps in th 60s
Click to expand...
Hit the nail on the head. If it were me, I would just do a group of Balzanii. They're very personable fish so you don't have to worry about them being boring either. However, I would go for a larger tank than 55 gallons for them. It's important to give them a "cooling off" where you drop the temperature of the aquarium they are in to the 60's for a while as well, this will assure their longevity and induce spawning.
 
Kalen;5164834; said:
Hit the nail on the head. If it were me, I would just do a group of Balzanii. They're very personable fish so you don't have to worry about them being boring either. However, I would go for a larger tank than 55 gallons for them. It's important to give them a "cooling off" where you drop the temperature of the aquarium they are in to the 60's for a while as well, this will assure their longevity and induce spawning.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your suggestion, I'm looking into getting some bigger tanks now.
 
Just throwing it out there. My Geophagus scrap with one another daily, and when territory is to be established, lots of lip locking. Hardly boring at all, I enjoy watching them shift through the sand.
 
EarthEaterBob;5165926; said:
Just throwing it out there. My Geophagus scrap with one another daily, and when territory is to be established, lots of lip locking. Hardly boring at all, I enjoy watching them shift through the sand.
Click to expand...

Agreed, once I introduced my 2-3" Balzanii male he quickly challenged my 5-6" Abailos and won. Every fish moves out of his way....
 
blksubykid;5166073; said:
Agreed, once I introduced my 2-3" Balzanii male he quickly challenged my 5-6" Abailos and won. Every fish moves out of his way....
Click to expand...

I think I'm gonna do because I'm getting more people telling me the Balzini can hold their own against other cichlids...
My male is 3" now, how big do they get?

@Bob I'm glad to know they're boring haha
 
So I finally got him a female yesterday and he turned into a totally different fish! He tried to kill her! I had to move her to a 5 gallon for recovery, and she'll be there for 2 weeks to a month. Her presence has triggered this aggression and he still very aggressive constantly trying to challenge the smaller cichlids in the tank. I'm hoping I can reintroduce her one day. Any tips and will he ever go back to the old fish he was?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
MonsterFishKeepers.com
Top Bottom