Are Festivum groups needed?

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Pile_O_Rocks

Pile_O_Rocks

Exodon
MFK Member
Jun 9, 2019
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I spotted a stunning Festivum at my lfs today and I’d love it to be the centrepiece in my 90 gallon. 1. I’ve read they like groups? Are they needed or just preferred? 2. Will they eat Rummy Nose? If I keep them well fed will they leave my amano shrimp alone too? The tank will be well planted.
 
I've kept Meonauta singly or in pairs and they did just fine. I've kept them with discus, angels, small to medium peaceful acara species, arowana, catfish of varying sizes, etc. The discus I kept them with were some of the early pigeon bloods, robust fish that more than held their own-- feeding and otherwise-- in communities including all of the above and others I didn't mention.

Mine weren't predatory, but I suspect they could pick off a rummynose or two if so inclined.
 
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neutrino said:
I've kept Meonauta singly or in pairs and they did just fine. I've kept them with discus, angels, small to medium peaceful acara species, arowana, catfish of varying sizes, etc. The discus I kept them with were some of the early pigeon bloods, robust fish that more than held their own-- feeding and otherwise-- in communities including all of the above and others I didn't mention.

Mine weren't predatory, but I suspect they could pick off a rummynose or two if so inclined.
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So. Would you not recommend keeping them in my community with Rummy Nose then?
 
I'll say this-- I generally had mine with large schools of cardinal tetras (in the non-arowana tanks) and the cardinals had a way of disappearing a couple at a time. In a court of law I couldn't swear whether it was the Mesonauta, the angels, something else in the tank or all of the above. :)
 
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Mesonauta will hunt tetras, especially if they’re wild Mesonauta. Some of the species of Mesonauta have males that can get 8”+ and fairly pushy. Mine were too aggressive to keep with discus after they passed the 4” mark and started dive-bombing them from above. A second group did the same to my Heros in a 210 gallon.

I don’t keep them anymore. They’re one of my favorite fish but your mileage may vary on aggression depending on the species you’re keeping and what your other tankmates are.
 
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I have two fairly large festivum in my tank. They started off as 1to 2 inch juveniles. As they have grown I noticed a decline in my black neons so I had to remove the rest.
I do still have taller bodied tetra like the ornate and black phantoms. These seem to be ignored.
If you value your rummy noses I would tred with caution.
 
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Festivum will definitely chow tetras if they get this big
 
Ok. I’ll definitely tread carefully with his/her size compared to the rummies and them looking interested in eating them. I will regularly feed them plant matter such as peas lettuce and spinach. Will this stop him from eating plants? I have Anubias, Moss, Java Fern and Crypts. I may also add some elodea/anacharis to give them a plant that they CAN eat to distract them from the others.
 
Mine were 7-ish inches, but the some of the discus were 8 inches and, as I've mentioned before, this was a robust discus strain and nothing I kept with them messed with them. Mine looked like M. festivus, though I wouldn't bet my life on species. At the time anything Mesonauta was still called C. festivum in most circles.

ryansmith83 said:
A second group did the same to my Heros in a 210 gallon.
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Interesting. What type of Heros and what species of Mesonauta?
 
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