Caquetaia Myersi behavior and 110 stock

[LS2012]

Hi all,

I'm setting up a 110. Filtration will be established Eheim 2215 & 2217 and 2 new AC 110s. The stock list for now will be,

M/F Australoheros Oblongum, 3 in
M/F Bujurquina sp. Para, Brazil, 3.5in - male arriving next week
M L240 pleco, 5in
6 clown loaches, 3in
2m/4f Geophagus Red head Tapajos, 2in juvies- arriving next week

I also have 6 Myersi, for about 7months, they range in size from 2 to 5 inches. They've been together as a group. The plan has always been to keep 1 or 2. The dominant male and female are now apparent and have begun harassing the 4 sub dominant to the point where I had to separate them. I'm considering adding one or two subs to the 110.

If I keep the two smallest sub dominant Myersi, will they remain sub, or as they grow, will one always become dominant because of their inherent behavior and ultimate size? Will the conspecific aggression increase or decrease if its just 2; m/f or f/f? Lastly, if I only keep 1, I'm speculating based on their past behavior that a lone female would be the least aggressive to her non Myersi tank mates. They've not been aggressive to anything outside their own species....

Thoughts and opinions are most welcome.

Thanks!
Laurie

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[cichlidfish]

Are you looking to get a pair? They might be too aggressive w/ your other stock. I don't have any experience w/ them but I hear they can be quite aggressive, but it depends on the individual fish. Maybe sub dominate fish will be better like you plan on keeping, but if they pair they will take over that 110.


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[LS2012]

Thanks Cichlidfish. Initially I was looking for a pair and planned to return the other 4, also made arrangements with lfs to return what I wasn't keeping at time of purchase. Once a pair formed, they began terrorizing the 4 subs, which I expected. So I removed the 4 subs to avoid injuries and harm. The pair hasn't been aggressive to any other species YET. However, I know that could occur at any time and did my research in advance.

Now that I'm getting the 110, and adding small geos and a male for my Bujurquina, the formed pair is too big to be in the tank with the planned occupants. Myersi are incredibly fascinating to watch. However, I'm taking into consideration all of the fish. I'd love to keep one or two, that's why I'm thinking 2 subs. If one or both of them start harassing their tankmates, back they will go as well. And, no I don't want to breed them, I'm already raising 100+ Malagasy fry from my Ptychochromis Tarantsy pair

Yes, only time will tell with the subs. All of my other SA's are relatively peaceful and I enjoy their behavior very much. That's why I don't keep Mbuna anymore and am expanding my Madagascar collection.

Just curious to see what others think regarding behavior and looking for input

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[cichlidfish]

No problem Laurie. I would give it a try and watch them closely. You do need some input from someone w/ experience w/ this sp.


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[LS2012]

Thanks again Cichlidfish! Hopefully someone else will chime in

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[decoy50]

I don't have experience w/ Myersi, but I've found that if you remove the dominant fish, one of the subs will step up to take his place. Its natural heirarchy.

 

[Modest_Man]

My experience is that they are very hard on each other, but leave other fish alone as long as they can't eat them. I think if you break them into smaller groups you're going to see even more aggression between the myersi as they grow as it won't be spread out over 5 individuals.

 

[LS2012]

Thanks modest_man and decoy50. That's what I'm already seeing as they're separated into the 2 dominant & 4 subs. I'm going to keep only the smallest sub. The others are going back to lfs tonight.

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[jweav]

My experience is that they are very hard on each other, but leave other fish alone as long as they can't eat them. I think if you break them into smaller groups you're going to see even more aggression between the myersi as they grow as it won't be spread out over 5 individuals.

I agree with Modest_Man that this species is very hard on each other. Both my females that I had which I unfortunately lost to aggression from the males did very well in a community tank. I cannot say the same for my males that once they reached about the 9 inch mark became very aggressive to all tankmates and had to be removed and given their own tanks. My one 11 inch male has become so aggressive that you have to be careful getting to close to the tank because he will fly off the handle to the point that I am afraid he will hurt himself. With that being said that does not mean you may not get a male that may play nice with others given the wide range of personalities you can see from individual cichlids from the same species.

 

[LS2012]

Let's just say they were NOT happy about leaving their tanks. However, my lfs was thrilled to buy them back, especially the dominant male, who is a stunning fish. I'm hoping the one I kept can play nice in the tank as it grows. He/she appears to be quite happy the rest are gone. While they were thoroughly enjoyed, I would definitely not want to wait until they killed each other. I'm really hoping the little one is a female and am looking forward to watching it grow without being constantly terrorized.

Thanks to all for the advice and input.
Laurie



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