I understand the perception of this fish as being exceptionally aggressive for a Vieja, I'm wondering if anyone here has any PERSONAL verification of this. As simple as it sounds, I'm wondering if some of the stigma around the fish derives from the name. I'm considering purchasing OSA's 12"er they have available and trying to acclimate him into a community tank with other 10-14" mildy aggressive CA's -Pearsei, Vieja Syn, Boucorti, Texas, JD, True Parrot, etc. Any input would be appreciated, thanks
Blackbelt cichlid (Vieja Mac)
- Thread starter scarecrow1f9
- Start date
They are no more or less aggressive than a big male zonatus, syn, or gutt.
They can be a little more ill tempered but you don't have a fish like a Midas or jag which would be an alpha and cause obvious conflicts .
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They can be a little more ill tempered but you don't have a fish like a Midas or jag which would be an alpha and cause obvious conflicts .
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For a vieja they can be a little more mean ( in my experience) but overall not nearly as evil as their reputation makes it seem. My father had a big male that ruled a tank that had a red devil and jag in it but it wouldn't start issues it would however not take any crap. How big is your community tank?
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Depends on the individual fish and the community!
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I had a 10 inch blackbelt destroy a large kamfa which is the most aggressive cichlid I've ever kept, well besides the black belt lol
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I had a black belt that I grew from about 2" to 9" over a year and a half in a 210 gallon community tank with other Vieja and assorted CA cichlids (JD, Firemouths, salvini, Nic etc). He (or perhaps she) started off alright, but rapidly outgrew the others and became prone to delivering sudden unprovoked attacks at close range, particularly around feeding time. When he attacked another fish it was like he was being shot out of a cannon! He claimed a 6" synspilum and was roughing up some others in the tank in an escalated manner, so I decided to sell him. But it is still hard to say how it would work out for you. As aclockworkorange said, it depends on the individual fish and the community. If you are really attached to the fish you have, I'd say it is risky. The bocourti and pearsei are known for being on the mellow side, but I'm not sure the black belt would care.
Despite the aggression I experienced with my blackbelt, I have mixed feelings about giving him up. He was the highlight of the tank, and nothing has quite replaced him in that role. I have since purchased another small black belt to see if it works out better this time. If it doesn't, I may just stock the tank around him.
Here is the one I ended up selling, and below it is the new one. They are beautiful fish!
Despite the aggression I experienced with my blackbelt, I have mixed feelings about giving him up. He was the highlight of the tank, and nothing has quite replaced him in that role. I have since purchased another small black belt to see if it works out better this time. If it doesn't, I may just stock the tank around him.
Here is the one I ended up selling, and below it is the new one. They are beautiful fish!
I had the exact same experience with Blackbelts as fug202. I had a Boucourti, Pearsi, Polleni, 2 Syns ,and a BlackBelt grow out together. They were all fine until they reached about 6-7" then the Blackbelt took over the tank... It was in a 150g. I had to seperate him as he was relentless toward everything but the Polleni.