Armatus guys... I need your wisdom! Army + GATF

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Personally, my Army is the most good natured of all the fish in my tank ... mine got to 12 inches real fast, but has really slowed down now, and is the same size as my Goliaths, if not a littl3 smaller, all being in the 15-17 inch range ... to me, Armys are more at risk of being badgered and being scared by other more aggressive fish, and they dont nip and chase like ATF's ... its simple, if it can fit in their mouth, they'll eat it, if not the other fish are most likely safe ... I'm confident that my ATF's and Army will live together indefinitely ... my issue would be, since Max seems a bit more aggressive than my sissy ATF's, that he may go after the Army, although I never had an issue with this ... they occupy different areas, my Army chills toward the bottom and stays put, while the ATF's cruise and stay more at the upper half of the tank .... I'd say get a small Army, and when he hits 8-10 put him in with max ... since he's smaller hopefully Max wont think he's a threat ... this is just my experience and we both know that different individuals of the same species can bahave very differently, but I'd try it ... I also agree with the solo apex pred tank, and everything else added is a risk, I just love all these fish and cant limit myself even though I cause myself a lot of headaches trying to make it work ... anyway just my take on Army's and ATF's

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I still think it can be done. With a big enough tank they can stay out of each others way and not be so confined. These fish especially ATFs needs lots of space. IMO bad things happen when they are not allowed to roam. With my 650 I still don't think that's enough space. To house one over 12" I would say a 1,000g tank is minimum.
 
So.... in my characin tank, what would look better? A big army swimming around with Max, or a smallish shoal consisting of a scomb, tat, rhaph and cyno?

I'm thinking I may as well just go with the smaller payaras and be happy with that.
 
Nothing wrong with mixing ATF with Armatus provided the right care giver and environment is present. I trust that you would be perfect for this Rob. Ive had my ATF and Armatus together for over a year now without problems in my 300g wide. My Yellow Vatf is 14"+ while Army is pushing about 13", Armatus do tend to grow quite a bit quicker so getting the smallest compatible specimen is a must. Growth on the Armatus from 3"-12" is about twice the rate of ATF but once they hit that mark they tend to even out to the about the same growth rate, give or take a cm per month difference. Given that Max is at a solid 12", IMO now is about a perfect size to start a grow out army. Just keep an eye out for any signs of aggression, One thing Ive noticed with Armatus is that they tend to thoroughly investigate their tankmates... Pretty much if they don't like a fish it will eventually become prey, though this behavior is easy to spot, usually within the first month of being in a tank together you'll know their disposition.
 
I like red tails, I had them first ... but once you grow an Army, the teeth and jaw size and overall more bull dog like structure makes them more appealing ... at least to me ... not to mention the Armatus can live with max for life, the others, probably not

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I have 7x2.5x2.5 tank, my fish are 7 Armatus, 1 Tatauaia, 1 GATF, 1 Curupira and 1 Odoe..

So far only my Armies are aggressive, specially the 14 incher, the other six is only at 9 inch..

What you guys think? ;)
 
I have a friend with a tank size of 8x3x3.. He got 15 24" Armatus, with no problem..
 
I don't want to derail this thread at all, but you're saying your friend has 30 feet worth of armatus in a 8x3? I don't believe this is possible, where does he keep the water, in a separate tank?

And on the topic at hand - I do think it is possible to keep them together, but it's a risk no matter what. I think the fact that Max is already well over a foot will work heavily in your favor. It seems like most people that have a bad outcome with this combo start with much too small of a tiger to go with the armatus.
 
I think it also depends on the fish, if it's easily got bullied or not.. 6 Months ago, I have 2 GATF one is 7" and the other is 4".. Will you believe that the bully among the two is the 4"? The 7" always stays on top.. Hahaha! Only the two of them is on a 100g..
 
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