Housing 10 Brandtii In Same Tank.
- Thread starter Ohio Entusiast
- Start date
Aquatic Sanctuary;3087403; said:
No mistake about it, these are the true Brandtii. I have pictures and more less full documentation from day to day. I'm putting up my own website which is about half done. When close to being finished I'll post the url [provided that's kosher with the administrator/moderators.
So far one fish had it's complete tail fin bit off. This was the smallest and seemingly weakest fish of the bunch. They started taking up territories so I removed most of the plantings. This seemed to aggravate them for a day or so but they've mellowed out and are just hanging out amongst one another. I also lowered the temperature to 68 degrees which seemed to cool their aggression down a bit.
All and all it's going well thus far.
If I keep them together for like a year do I win a prize such as my pick of fish from your stock?
Just kidding!
From what I understand they will keep picking on that one until he's dead, then they'll move to the next runt of the group and pick on him til he's dead. So on and so forth until equilibrium. You could maybe try dithers. Might give them other fins to snack on beside brandtii fins. Just make sure they're tough enough to hang for a while. Maybe Gt's, JD's, and of the amphilophus etc...
Diogenes;3096841; said:
That's what I've heard and have observed. I neglected to add that I removed the injured fish and put him in a 29 gallon ''hospital'' tank until I figure out a good plan of action. The rest are all doing well and nipping at fins is almost non existent. I put in a batch of Convicts and they target those well.
One thing about it, they love the tail fin and head of their prey and all but ignore the rest of the body. They take off the tails first and after a few hours/days they go for the head and leave the remaining body for me to clean up.
I love these fishes attitude. My Pygos freak completely out during water changes and sometimes just walking up to the front of the tank. These just sit where they are when I reach into the tank. I thought one was going to go for my hand once as I adjusted a powerhead. They really have no fear of me entering their tank. That's a lot more than I can say for my Pygos and Sanchezi.
Ohio Entusiast;3096860; said:
I'd still keep on eye on them. I've always heard that when you remove the target its simply a matter of time before they select another target. I know the purpose of this cohab is primary research, but I would still be extra vigilant for signs indicated that a new gimp had been selected. May not get a warning after all, may just lose a fish.
The behavior your describing is pretty typical serra behavior I think. They tend to lurk more than patrol, and they always stalk their prey from the 6 o clock position resulting in tail and fin injury first, before they go after the main body. My serra has left tailless/finless fish alive and nearly immobile for weeks before finally finishing them off. Remember that in the wild their diet consists primarily of scales and fins, that's why it's advisable to feed fish filet that still has some of this tissue attached to the muscle. Kepp us updated. Good luck!
I believe you but I've seen many playing sell Dents as Brandtii. Could you send me a pic? I also wouldn't add or remove decor during this process. They go from protecting there territories to fighting for new ones.
Diogenes;3096872; said:
Fins, scales and insects are primary diet choices for mid to smaller Brandtti's. When they are adult size, they mostly eat whole fish. You can check the 2 references I mentioned earlier in this thread to veryfy.
Yes. over time they will take out the weakest until one is left. If these were adult size, most would probably be badly injured by now. I tried 10 baby rhoms in 180 and basically they started their territories and began the process of elimination. After 2 deaths, I sold the rest and ended the co-hab. In another instance, one observed in a pet store where often they will put a bunch of baby rhoms together due to lack of tank space, this tank was bare of decor and each 2 inch rhom kept a defined territory of their own and repelled and chased any other that would venture near their imagined boundaries. Clearly this was a tank heading for a disaster.
i'm curious to know where you found all these brandtii... maybe i missed it, but how many in total and what sizes?
