Need Cichlid Breed & Other Question...

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CrystaliZed

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Jul 22, 2010
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VA Beach
I recently bought a cichlid that is shades of greens, blues, purples & pinks, with pinkish/redish edges to its fins & a horizontal stripe throughout the middle of it... it also gets really yellow eyes when agitated... I am wondering what breed it is since I am told it was labeled wrong at the pet store. I haven't been able to find a correct photo (or get a good one taken) of what I've been told is a "she" who is pretty territorial... (will try to get photo if needed)

2nd ?... Right now she is in a 55 gal (she's about 6-7 in. long) w/ 3 Balas (all about 9-11" long) and a catfish (bout 6-7" long) and she really harasses the others. The cat will try to fight back as I've seen em scuffle but the cat hasn't been harmed and she also tries to go after my balas but they haven't been harmed either... So far none of the fish look stressed out as I've been keeping an eye on 'em. My ? is I plan on moving all fish into a 180 gallon w/i 7-10 days as my bf & I are setting up a new tank currently... do you think she'll be better off left in the 55 gall. alone or will she be less territorial in the larger tank w/ the others...

Lastly... if I add a couple Gars to the mix (once in the 180), will she be too much for them as I have found out & have been told that gars aren't very resilient to stress 'n' such... I've actually had 2 die on me to due moving... If she is, an option is to leave her alone in the 55 and add a gar or 2 to the 180 as I have had good luck w/ gars (around the 10-12" length) getting along w/ my balas and cat.
 
This is a clear video of a vieja zonata. take a look at it and compare it to the cichlid you have in your aquarium. The pictures you posted didn't show the color too well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXyYrEW2fUU

CrystaliZed;5090030; said:
2nd ?... Right now she is in a 55 gal (she's about 6-7 in. long) w/ 3 Balas (all about 9-11" long) and a catfish (bout 6-7" long) and she really harasses the others. The cat will try to fight back as I've seen em scuffle but the cat hasn't been harmed and she also tries to go after my balas but they haven't been harmed either... So far none of the fish look stressed out as I've been keeping an eye on 'em. My ? is I plan on moving all fish into a 180 gallon w/i 7-10 days as my bf & I are setting up a new tank currently... do you think she'll be better off left in the 55 gall. alone or will she be less territorial in the larger tank w/ the others...

Lastly... if I add a couple Gars to the mix (once in the 180), will she be too much for them as I have found out & have been told that gars aren't very resilient to stress 'n' such... I've actually had 2 die on me to due moving... If she is, an option is to leave her alone in the 55 and add a gar or 2 to the 180 as I have had good luck w/ gars (around the 10-12" length) getting along w/ my balas and cat.
Click to expand...

a single adult bala shark is too big for a 55 gal, let alone 3. They're big fish that love to swim in open water very fast and that tank is only 12" wide... it's like putting you in a 10x2' room for life lol. Find them a new home.

You probably won't be able to keep anything else in that 55 gal w her... unless it's a mate or another strong cichlid that can stand its own. what type of gars? some of them get to 3 feet long.
 
Thanks for your help!

The Balas are moving to the 180 here soon... they've just recently reached that size and can still maneuver around in the 55 easily, but yes I'm aware that they are too big for it.

The type of gar we had before, they were about a foot long... they looked like this:

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...=168&ty=103&page=1&ndsp=15&ved=1t:429,r:4,s:0

I am aware that gars also get very long, but I was told they ones we had would only reach about 16" in. in length, if this is wrong, is their a specific type of gar that stays smaller that I can look into?
 
Thats a florida gar. they generally dont mix well with cichlids, they don't like aggressive tankmates and can be bullied by em... common tankmates include arowanas, bichirs and other big, slow moving fish. They get to 3'. I've seen many people keep em in 180 gal tanks without problems, I don't think they reach their full size in captivity

hujeta gar (aka freshwater barracuda) only get to 9"-12"... but they don't mix well w cichlids either

20080228214442_0.jpg
 
Alright... thanks for your input... possibly the gars w/ the balas and my cat then and maybe just the cichlid by herself in the 55... I was lookin for a fish to keep in that one anyway...
 
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