Cichlids Are Wimps

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I have seen very few fish that would ever try to bite you through the tank glass. It is super funny to see those fish.

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Every cichlid I've ever had tried to bite me through glass when spawning. I had a 6" managuense that attacked the glass to the point where her jaw was disfigured.. She would attack when it saw anything outside the glass. She eventually couldnt eat and died. I have convicts that occasionally attack glass, but mostly flare up.


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I saw a GT at the lfs once that was so aggressive if anybody walked by the tank it would immediately attack, ramming the tank with its head. I figured it was probably wild caught. The article seems to be making the claim that farming was reduced cichlids from thier natural state. I dont see this as a bad thing. Our tanks are not the wild, they dont need to compete for resources and nobody I know wants thier fish to kill eachother off. I'm okay with them being wimpy if thats the case
 
My Dovii definitely bangs on the glass and bites my algae scrubber. I do not put my hand in the water. He's F2.

My GT from petco I'd assume is F1000000000 and a farm fish. I actually got him as an experiment to see if one of these from petco could turn out ok since all I hear is "mine got perasites and died" stories from petco GT's. So I wanted to get one and give it proper water quality and a good home to see if they are really junk fish or if some of it had to do with inexperienced fishkeepers failing to raise cichlid fry properly. He's never had an issue with disease. His color is pretty good, and he flares at people outside his tank and fights with the catfish in the tank. I wouldn't call him "wimpy", but he's definitely not to the "big bad bruiser" standard my Dovii is. And IMHO, they're no worse for the wear of being a fish farm fish. I get a lot of compliments from guests who see him in person, and he's definitely not "anemic," or whatever. He's stocky and well filled out for his current size, and I'm confident he's going to continue to get bigger and better looking as time goes. In my opinion, GT's are one of the species that don't suffer from inbreeding issues to the extent some other species suffer. For example, I see a LOT of deformed JD's that are the result of bad breeding practices.
 
Interesting read but not true all the time. Any oscar, firemouth, or convict can be ferocious. Pick the most dominate ones out of a tank full of them, its simple. The dominate ones eat the most/best, they harass the others, and they usually have the most color.

To be honest, wild caught fish are 'almost' always pansy's. They would hide in or behind something in a tank for months.
I literally can go and buy a MEAN fire mouth and a MEAN convict from petsmart, only if I choose the most dominate one(s). Oscars on the other hand are bi-polar IME. They'll be fine one day eating and swimming with the other fish. The next day the oscar will fight, chase, and glass bang.

You never know, every cichlid has a brain of its own therefore you can't judge them all.
 
It seems that maybe the author's memory is slipping. I've been keeping cichlids for 20 years and the ones I had in the beginning are just as I remember them, at least when it comes to attitude and behavior. I don't think oscars or convicts were ever all that aggressive if you stocked them properly.
 
The author is a Brit. any relevance to the issue of what's available there, vs other countries?
 
Stupid article, first off those fish are of the least aggressive when comparing to some of the meanest! My new red devil is 9 inch and he is psycho cant come with in a ft of his tank im scared he will hurt him self.
 
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