Geophagus....Peaceful?!!?
- Thread starter rook45
- Start date
dirtyblacksocks;2192682; said:
I just got it last week because the store didn't have altifrons. I drove down to a LFS in that tropical storm Hannah and I didn't want to leave empty handed. I was told that it would be ok with other geos but not other brasiliensis. Also it was a 4" for $8.99 so I got it.
I was thinking of either 5 altifrons or 5 red heads. Then just mix the rest of them up a bit. I'm leaning toward altifrons because of their size. But 6 of each species is out of the question.
Their only other tankmates is a black aro. I think if I keep the aro well fed I'll be alright.
titansfever83;2192857; said:
With multiple species of eartheaters, you need a tank full of them. I just moved all of my geos out of a tank except for my Rio Tocantins and the agression started before I could acclimate the others into the new tank.
It doesn't matter if its more geos or any other fish, just load up your tank and stick to the water changes!!! They will be happy! They just don't like their own kind is all it is.
How many more do you suggest? Which species are the larger species? 8"+
japes;2192872; said:
You sure? I've seen lip locking between the brasiliensis and altifrons already. The altifrons is the smallest of the 4 at about 3" and the brasiliensis is 4". The red heads are the biggest at 4 1/2" and 5". Surprisingly the altifrons has the most fight in him.
I'd ditch the brasiliensis, everything else is fine so long as you up the numbers.
With a black aro dithers are out of the question...just make sure there's a lot of open space in the middle of the tank and caves/rocks on opposing ends for the males to take up residence...
With a black aro dithers are out of the question...just make sure there's a lot of open space in the middle of the tank and caves/rocks on opposing ends for the males to take up residence...
dirtyblacksocks;2193880; said:
Everything else is fine, period. They may be shoaling fish but there is no necessity to keep 6 or more of the same species.
I'm not going to argue over it. Just putting in my own opinion. Shoaling fish discontinue aggressive behavior when there are a larger number of females than males - to accomplish this you generally need at least 6 fish. It works the same in discus, with the exception of breeding.
In my own personal experience with geophagus - having a larger number helps to reduce targetted aggression. It doesn't get rid of it altogether, but one single fish won't be picked on quite as much - and the fish will display more schooling behavior as they develope a pecking order.
In my own personal experience with geophagus - having a larger number helps to reduce targetted aggression. It doesn't get rid of it altogether, but one single fish won't be picked on quite as much - and the fish will display more schooling behavior as they develope a pecking order.
Rook45, if you want ones that will grow large then go with Altifrons. 
The aggression won't be nothing compared to a bunch of Brasiliensis.
How many??? Just depends on what you plan for the future of your tank. I would load up with some Altifrons, redheads, etc. And as they grow, just weed the ones out you do not like. I just sold all of my Altifrons 'Manuas' just because I didn't like them compared to some of my other geos. Just get what makes you happy
Also, just from my experience, I have several different species of loaches in with my Geos. I have seen that they help break the aggression somewhat because they both stay near the bottom of the tank creating more 'traffic' and less one on one chases between the geos. I'm not sure if your black aro would see the loaches as food or not.
The aggression won't be nothing compared to a bunch of Brasiliensis. How many??? Just depends on what you plan for the future of your tank. I would load up with some Altifrons, redheads, etc. And as they grow, just weed the ones out you do not like. I just sold all of my Altifrons 'Manuas' just because I didn't like them compared to some of my other geos. Just get what makes you happy
Also, just from my experience, I have several different species of loaches in with my Geos. I have seen that they help break the aggression somewhat because they both stay near the bottom of the tank creating more 'traffic' and less one on one chases between the geos. I'm not sure if your black aro would see the loaches as food or not.
