Red Devil growth

[PoopSmart]

I have had my red devil for about a month doing water changes every week and feeding hikari gold every day 2-3 times (depending on if it wants to eat) and it has not grown whatsoever. It is still the 5 inches that I bought it at and I was wondering if the females grow slower than males or something? and Is it weird that my red devil will not eat worms when offered? Every other cichlid I have loves them.

It is in a 55 gallon all to itself, with sand bottom and driftwood.

I know the driftwood has leaked a little tannin into the water, but it isn't much since they were presoaked for about a month, can the humic acid cause stunted growth?

Any suggestions on what to feed? It is also afraid to eat when I stand near the tank, I have to walk all the way across the room.

Am I doing something wrong?

Also it has long fins that almost pass its tail, but it has a rather large breeding tube, so is it a male or female?

 

[big train]

Sounds like u have a female because males will not usualy show there tube unless it's spawning time and i would not sweat the tannins in the water as long as water dosent look like tea haha.Devil growth slows considerably at 5-6" and if it is female it may max out at 7-9" so don't expect every devil to get a foot long.

 

[PoopSmart]

Man I rally wanted a tank busting fish, I guess its not gonna happen then? Maybe I should just go back to the LFS and get the mate it was breeding with...then I am gauranteed a male.

Oh well...Will the female still get a pretty nice nuchal hump? Maybe I will just grow it out and trade it back in for a few juvenile red devils so I can get a for sure male.

 

[Mystix212]

Males are the ones that get the typical nuchal bump. Females may get smal ones.

Devils dont quit growing after 7-8", they keep on trucking all the way past 12" regardless of sex.

I would trade this one in for another and hope it grows. And anything meaner is a plus.

 

[PoopSmart]

Yeah, I called an LFS I will be at tuesday and they said they have some 5-6 inchers at 20 bucks, so i will just pick one I think is a male and toss it in the tank and if it breeds with the other, cool, if it doesn't I will put up a tank divider and take the other one back and maybe get soem sajicas for my sa/ca community

 

[Davey_8313]

Devils dont quit growing after 7-8", they keep on trucking all the way past 12" regardless of sex.

I agree... My friend has one that's about 12" now...

 

[Mystix212]

Sex does not inhibit growth of a Red Devil. I've seen many photos of 13"+ female red Devils/Midas.

 

[Andrewtfw]

I have had my red devil for just over a month also. I di 50% water changes every week. I feed once or twice a day using a mix of the following: bloodworms, beefheart, krill, spectrum cichlid, OSI flowerhorn pellets, HBH Soft Cichlid pellets, omega one algae wafers, live wax worms and red wigglers, and frozen cichlid delight. My red devil has more than trippled in size in this time. I do not feed anything that has a filler as the main ingrediant.

 

[PoopSmart]

is yours a male andrew? I heard the males grow faster, but I just don't know if mine will ever get as big as some of the males...

I feed mine red wrigglers, hikari, beefheart, various omega one freeze dried foods, and the only thing it eats is hikari pellets, so I cant feed it a varied diet because it simply wont eat.

Do the females have the awespme personalities of the males??? All the stories I read and the pics I see are of male red devils and the female is always puny and not very personable.

 

[Davey_8313]

Females are cool too. Mine had a good personality... I had a breeding pair once and the female was about an inch or two shorter than the male which was about 10". He killed the female before I had the chance to take her out after the babies appeared...