55g Firemouth Community Stocking

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F

FireHorn123

Feeder Fish
Jul 10, 2018
3
2
8
54
Hi fellow MFK members! It’s been quite a little while since I last posted, I recently doubled up on a pair of 55g aquariums and I have been slowly creating a sufficient aesthetically pleasing habitat to fulfill my fish keeping addiction, the aquascape includes a lightly colored fine grain sand mixed with black substrate that is not quite gravel but not quite sand, it works quite well for having a dark yet natural looking substrate. I just recently acquired a multitude of slate rocks that I am going to stack in the tank to create a cave system which will be highlighted with a splash of green by mixed aquatic plants dashed in sporadically.

My question is what are some species of fish you would recommend to max out or complete this tanks potential?

Stocking can be any type of fish including cichlids and non cichlids but must be compatible with the current stocking of (5white skirt tetras) and (1) Firemouth which I believe to be a male who is about 41/2 inches.
 
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FireHorn123 said:
Hi fellow MFK members! It’s been quite a little while since I last posted, I recently doubled up on a pair of 55g aquariums and I have been slowly creating a sufficient aesthetically pleasing habitat to fulfill my fish keeping addiction, the aquascape includes a lightly colored fine grain sand mixed with black substrate that is not quite gravel but not quite sand, it works quite well for having a dark yet natural looking substrate. I just recently acquired a multitude of slate rocks that I am going to stack in the tank to create a cave system which will be highlighted with a splash of green by mixed aquatic plants dashed in sporadically.

My question is what are some species of fish you would recommend to max out or complete this tanks potential?

Stocking can be any type of fish including cichlids and non cichlids but must be compatible with the current stocking of (5white skirt tetras) and (1) Firemouth which I believe to be a male who is about 41/2 inches.
Click to expand...

Welcome back
Livebearer such as Swordtails.
 
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FireHorn123 said:
I think that’s a great recommendation, now do those come as a single species because any time I see them they are usually mixed is that because they have become hybridized??
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Some members choose wild caught over the like you stated hybridized ones at most lfs. Checkout The Wetspot and see what types they have in stock.
 
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Check out this website, I have yet to order from them but seems like a cool operation, very user friendly and preservation-oriented. They sell more obscure livebearers like Ameca Splendens. Any of these should work in place of the swordtails. (nothing wrong with thw swords of course- but might be nice to do something that nobody else has)
www.selectaquatics.com
Here's pics of some Ameca Splendends I kept, I found them very interesting
DSC_8578.JPG
DSC_8573.JPG

If you wanted, you could probably get the firemouth a mate and breed them in the 55 as well. If I went that route I might just add a few more tetras instead of the group of livebearers, since the LB's will need a group of 5 or so to really thrive, and that would be quite a few fish in the 55.
 
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Hi everyone I’m gonna post pics soon when I find time to clean the glass.

I was wondering about space with these Firemouth, the initial plan was to create a cave system-like area with many territories using slate rock which works well as a structure to cut off sight. I was wondering if 1 M and 3 Fms could possibly work long term. I would hate to waste my 55 on just a single pair of T.Meeki, I mean the whole point of putting them in a 55 is to hopefully capture some of the natural flaring activity that this species is known for. This is my first time keeping them in a 55 ive had them in a 30L before and a 40B and I wasn’t able to keep more than a pair in either of those tank sizes. I was hoping the additional length that 55 offers along with double the width of the max size of 6in would give me some additional space to work with, especially with heavy structure and a planted community environment.
 
FireHorn123 said:
Hi everyone I’m gonna post pics soon when I find time to clean the glass.

I was wondering about space with these Firemouth, the initial plan was to create a cave system-like area with many territories using slate rock which works well as a structure to cut off sight. I was wondering if 1 M and 3 Fms could possibly work long term. I would hate to waste my 55 on just a single pair of T.Meeki, I mean the whole point of putting them in a 55 is to hopefully capture some of the natural flaring activity that this species is known for. This is my first time keeping them in a 55 ive had them in a 30L before and a 40B and I wasn’t able to keep more than a pair in either of those tank sizes. I was hoping the additional length that 55 offers along with double the width of the max size of 6in would give me some additional space to work with, especially with heavy structure and a planted community environment.
Click to expand...

Meeki are one of the few CA/NA cichlids that do well with crowding. It helps reduce aggression. I would get at least 6. Maybe more.
Definitely add Livebearers too. The fry often become meeki food, but some survive. I breed swordtails in a separate tank because fry can’t even escape in a 150g lol.
 
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In nature, Thorichthys (FMs)are a shoaling, social species, so usually do best in a group of 4 or 5.
Whether or not a 55 would be a large enough tank for a group as fully grown adults may be questionable .
I have seen 10" FMs, and an aquarist in Chicago had a old large male, @ 12".
And to IMPO a single cichlid species tank with a Shoal of Thorichthys and some live bearers as dithers would work much better than combining a bunch of random cichlids.
Thorichthys are normally more bluff than bite, so often end up at the short end of the stick if housed with any really aggressive cichlids.
 
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