mixing fronts with other cichlids

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cichlid2006

cichlid2006

Fire Eel
MFK Member
Feb 20, 2008
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Fife - Scotland
now so we get off to a good start I am not looking for any bad mouthing about my following question. its just a question, if the answer is no it wont work then fine i wont do it.
I have a very peaceful community tank, its not a specific region biotope as i have asian in there as well as SA and australian.
the fish are as follow:
2 x uaru 2" or so
7 x clown loaches 2.5"-4"
4 x gold gourami 3"
1 x bristlenose plec 3-3.5"
3 x banded rainbow fish (max size 4" or so but these are going to a friend)
3 x filament barbs 2" (hoping to increase the shoal to 4-6)

tank size is 4x2x2/120 gallons, 2 x 1200l/h external canisters. wood, rock and slate. fine gravel (1-2mm), real plants, amm 0ppm, nitrite 0ppm, nitrate 20ppm, ph 7.9. weekly water changes of 30-50%. no RO water, treated tap water only.
will 1 Frontosa be ok, i have some space so i am looking for something amazing to put in it. has to be very peaceful but not too small. like i said no flaming as its only a question at the end of the day but i have heard about mixing but im not too sure.
thanks guys:)
 
Not really. Fronts do best in groups. I wouldn't have less than six. They also do best in a tank by themselves.
 
bump your ph up a little more to 8.2 to 8.4 to make the fronts happy...easy to do just add some crushed coral to your filters, and to keep your KH consistent add a teaspoon of baking soda per 5 gallons of water when doing water changes...I have had 4 fronts in a community tank before and they were fine...good luck
 
i wanted to make him as comfy as possible in my tank but if they do better in a group then maybe they is not for me. im not too keen on raising the ph. i dont like to mess with the water chemistry, my thinking is stable is always better than being spot on especially with tank bred fish. plus i dont want to possible make my uaru uncomfortable.
thanks for the help guys but i will do the responsible thing and leave well alone. :)
 
How are these fish at feeding time ?

How are they about chasing and nipping ?

Those are the two main reasons why fronts are often kept alone.

Fronts are very slow cautious feeders. They will usually let the sinking pellet float right past them and lazily go over and decide if they want to eat it. If these other fish are top feeding and aggressive eaters then it wont work or at best be a pain in the but to ensure that the fronts get enough. Any racing around snapping food up in a frenzy should be avoided.

Fronts can be highly aggressive to eachother but total wimps when it comes to defending themselves against other species. I have my fronts housed temp. with a bunch of haps and peacocks this week till my new tank arrives and i have to watch constantly cause the only front that defends itself is the alpha, the other 6 get chased and beat up by the peacocks that are attempting to spawn. I understand this is typical. Fronts also develop what are called trailers. Long beautiful fin extentions that get nipped short by other species of fish. (similar to what a brichardi get) These extentions are so pretty most people will remove any fish that is nippy.

Your tank is a bit on the small size. If it was just the front only with no tank mates you could get away with it as long as the front does not mind being alone. Tank mates would be a problem as they grow since you could only have large growing fish. Fronts will eat any fish that can fit in their mouth, their mouths get quite large as adults LOL I have heard of them catching and eating whole adult peacocks.
 
my fish dont nip. very frenzied feeders though. love their food. like i said i will do the right thing and give fronts a miss. thanks for the info though.
 
Hi to all this is my first post, just thought id drop my 2 bob in about the frontosa. I have owned and bred them for several years.
As far as the fish on its own i have a female about 25cm in a 80cm tank and another female in a community tank in both cases the fish are fine, they like to play a bit with the electric yellows, but enjoy they are all bluff.

Thanks
Darren
 
Welcome ayardstick. Thanks for posting. Bob, huh ? I know enough to know its slang for coins but cant remember where they say it LOL. Where you from england or Australia ? I dont recognize the name of the town your from. LOL
Anyway welcome. Got any pics. We love pics.
 
I actually think your setup will work. I once had to separate a front and he was in a central american tank by himself for months. He had no problem standing up for himself when it came to feeding. He was healthy, and achieved some pretty good growth. As long as nothing nips their fins or bullys the front I think it will be fine. Fronts are peaceful unless another fish will fit in their mouth. I think that will be a pretty creative tank. Of course the personality of the front may be a factor. I would definitly try to go with a male. Males are little more dominate, which would help them thrive as an individul. Their humps are also a little more striking. I think you should go for it.
 
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