Geophagus?

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Geophagus "red head" tapajos are my favs so far, but I think they will be the tip of the iceberg. Just got them two weeks ago at 2.5" each and I have already noticed some growth. Love these guys and I think I will probably be getting more geos in the future. They are housed in a 125 that they will always be in.

As for a 75, I think the only geos you could fit in there long term would be gymnos. The reason is that geos are social and need to be housed in groups of at least four. Otherwise it would be a good grow out tank for 4-6 geos. But if you get a 100+ gallon tank, then it would open you up to housing several different species long term.


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Geophagus pellegrini are my favorite

I have a full grown breeding trio in a 75 gallon and a lone male in my 150xh
I also have 4x 1.5" growing out who I kept from the last spawn.



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You could do a small group of orange heads in a 75, or a group of something like G. parnaibae or G. pindare if you don't mind the smaller species. They're not as flashy as something like an altifrons with the long streamers, but you still get to witness the sand-sifting behavior and whatnot. I wouldn't keep any of the larger species in a 75 unless you're just using it as a grow-out. Like Jackson, I kept a trio (a breeding male/female and a spare female) of geos in their own tank for a while but they needed more space. Even with hiding spots, the pair beat the crap out of the third fish.
 
Agree with the above posts. Too small for any larger Geos, but a quartet of 1 male 3 female Gymnos would work well.
Gymno quilero

Gymno sp paso pache

Gymno balzani

I equally like them all, but for larger tanks 6' + Acarichthys heckelli is stunning
 
Agree with above, you could go for some of the smaller/medium growing species. Also, while they like to be in groups as juvies, once they get a little older and pair up and are interested in spawning they could care less ime. So it's possible to raise a small group with the idea of ending up with just the pair-- except something like steindachneri or pellegrini (males like to have a harem). Also, haven't kept gymnos yet, so don't know as much about them or if you can keep them as pairs only.
 
neutrino said:
Agree with above, you could go for some of the smaller/medium growing species. Also, while they like to be in groups as juvies, once they get a little older and pair up and are interested in spawning they could care less ime. So it's possible to raise a small group with the idea of ending up with just the pair-- except something like steindachneri or pellegrini (males like to have a harem). Also, haven't kept gymnos yet, so don't know as much about them or if you can keep them as pairs only.
Click to expand...

This is true. If you were to grow out 4-6 of the medium growing species (maxing out at no more than 8"), you could keep a pair in a 75 with ease. Unfortunately, like most cichlids, they will get aggressive as they spawn, so you would have to skip adding any more middle or top dwellers.


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Jackson said:
Geophagus pellegrini are my favorite

I have a full grown breeding trio in a 75 gallon and a lone male in my 150xh
I also have 4x 1.5" growing out who I kept from the last spawn.



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Click to expand...



I kept all 3 species of the red hump group, I thought Pellegrini was the best until I kept and spawned a few generations of them, but I always go back to the first I ever kept Geophagus Steindachneri, easily my favorite Geophagus and the most aggressive of the complex.....
 
I currently have a 75 setup with an adult red head tapajos pair, adult wild angelfish pair, few guianacara, some tetras, one L200 and one L260 pleco. The red heads don't bother the angels, pay no attention to the tetras, and only bother with the plecos when they're getting ready to spawn or guarding fry. Basically the red heads and angels are equally dominant in this tank, both will fuss with the guianacara a bit, especially the red heads. The guianacara are feisty enough to hold their own and none of it amounts to more than minor spats with no harm done. The red heads and angels are basically equal and respectful to each other in this particular tank.

Also have another tank with juvie red heads growing out with a couple of wild angels and they ignore each other. My point being the red heads pay more attention to the species similar to themselves than the other fish, at least mine do in these particular tanks.

I like the tank as is-- producing more fry isn't my highest priority at the moment, already have enough juvie fish growing out in other tanks. Eventually I'll probably change things a bit. If I was more anxious to get guianacara fry they'd probably need to move from this particular setup.
 
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