Green Terror Aggression

[Beau_kirch]

Hi, I’ve got a 6x2x2 tank with a juvenile Oscar (About 5cm) , juvenile Saratoga (about 12cm) and a juvenile green terror (about 8cm).... the green terror seems to be extremely aggressive, it’s relatively constant chasing of both.... as if the green terror is saying... “no you’re not going writhing eye sight of me” and I would like to know 2 things...

1: how much aggression is too much so that I have to move him to another tank? as some aggression was expected since they are known for it...

2: is there any way that it will subside over time? since it is his first time in a community tank, or is there anything to make it subside?

any opinions would be extremely appreciated...

 

[Gourami Swami]

1. Any aggression that is constant and one-sided, will cause the victim to suffer and probably wither away. GT's can be very feisty, some may not want to share a tank. How long has this tank been set up? I would personally be cautious putting 5cm fish in a 180 gallon, that they might not be able to find food easily.

2. Maybe, but probably not for a long time, and by then the subdominant fish could be dead already. Things that can make a community more likely to work would be lots of cover in the tank, and and target fish (other fish to absorb the dominant fish's aggression, so nobody is singled out too much). Your GT may just be a bully though, and not want to play nice. I would also be very wary of a Saratoga in a community setup, they tend to go through a teenage phase where they kill all their tankmates at around 12".

 

[Beau_kirch]

1. Any aggression that is constant and one-sided, will cause the victim to suffer and probably wither away. GT's can be very feisty, some may not want to share a tank. How long has this tank been set up? I would personally be cautious putting 5cm fish in a 180 gallon, that they might not be able to find food easily.

2. Maybe, but probably not for a long time, and by then the subdominant fish could be dead already. Things that can make a community more likely to work would be lots of cover in the tank, and and target fish (other fish to absorb the dominant fish's aggression, so nobody is singled out too much). Your GT may just be a bully though, and not want to play nice. I would also be very wary of a Saratoga in a community setup, they tend to go through a teenage phase where they kill all their tankmates at around 12".

Thanks so much for the reply!
he seems to be finding food just fine as he comes to the top when I feed, as for how long they’ve been in there, they’ve been there for about 72 hours... also I am awareof this “teenage phase”... although I’m pretty sure my Saratoga is a Leichardti, which I have read to be less aggressive although I will keep a very close eye...

 

[Beau_kirch]

I would also like to mention that this morning I woke up and watched them for a little bit and he seems much more docile, and the times that he did try to pick on the toga, the toga actually defended himself a slight bit (just by flaring a little bit and a small charge) whereas he usually just swam away... could there be a reason for this change in the GT behaviour at all?

 

[Gourami Swami]

72 hours is not very long, the GT may calm down yet. Just be careful to keep an eye on things and ready in case a fish needs to be moved. Another tank ready to go is important when attempting a community like this. I hope it works out for you!

 

[Beau_kirch]

72 hours is not very long, the GT may calm down yet. Just be careful to keep an eye on things and ready in case a fish needs to be moved. Another tank ready to go is important when attempting a community like this. I hope it works out for you!

Thanks heaps, it has calmed down... I think he still is the dominant one in the tank atm but definitely not constant chasing like yesterday. And I do have a backup tank set up just in case!