This is purely for my own knowledge, i have no intention on acting on my ambitions until i am thoroughly educated. I have seen many pictures of festae pairs and have fallen in love with them. I would really really like to get a pair but don't know too much about them. What size tank should i be looking at, should i get any tank mates for them and what kind, what substrate and rocks should i get. I know they r very aggressive and would be perfectly fine with them being the only fish in the tank. Also what filtration will be suitable and any other information will be greatly appreciated. thanks
Questions on keeping festae
- Thread starter guyle
- Start date
just keep water clean with proper size filter, water changes, and temp at 82-84. That's basically how. Then however your fish is you learn it through keeping it.. Nice, mean, shy, however.
Have fun. Enjoy.
Have fun. Enjoy.
125g would be good for several years, though eventually i think you would need something 24in in width for the male, with just one festae you could have tankmates but with a pair it would be best to just have them to theirselves, or you may wake up to a massacre one day (ask VRWC this happened in his 265 after they hatched their fry) but yeah as for set-up just pretty much how you would take care of any fish, good clean water, keeping up on wc, suitable size filter/sump and whatever decorations you personally prefer (i like good ol' sand and driftwood to keep it as natural as possible), i would also suggest getting captive bred festae, especially if they are going to be the only fish in the tank so they are more personable, VRWC pair were gorgeous but his tank was kind of boring when they were the only ones left because they hid a lot, a fry that i have from them is very personable however and is always one of the first to the front of the tank when i feed
If you want them to grow big, get the biggest tank you can, as festae growth will be very slow if the tank isnt very big. You might also have to seperate them with a divider, either all the time or sometimes, depending on how they get along.
I wouldnt say a 125 is good for 'several years' unless you want to keep them small. In very large tanks with plenty of large water changes they grow as quickly as any other large cichlid.
Also if you buy a male and female seperately, make sure the male is a lot bigger than the female, as females are a lot more aggressive than males and the male might be killed when you put them together. Also if you buy a nice peaceful pair, that doesnt mean they will be peaceful in your tank, so have a divider ready just in case.
I wouldnt say a 125 is good for 'several years' unless you want to keep them small. In very large tanks with plenty of large water changes they grow as quickly as any other large cichlid.
Also if you buy a male and female seperately, make sure the male is a lot bigger than the female, as females are a lot more aggressive than males and the male might be killed when you put them together. Also if you buy a nice peaceful pair, that doesnt mean they will be peaceful in your tank, so have a divider ready just in case.