Severum Tankmates

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The paludarium will have a glass panel to seal it off. It'll help keep the cats out of my plants, little buggers. I'd like to have planted tanks so I'll skip the silver dollars and severums unless java fern might live? I'm thinking a sandy bottom with lots of leaf litter and the like. Would a group of 5 angelfish do well?
 
I actually have Vallisneria and water lettuce with my severum and Uarus. I agree I don't think the severum will eat the cherry barbs especially if you get it as a juvenile and the barbs are already there. The Vals get nibbled a bit but noting serious, they don't touch the water lettuce. Uarus are even less likely to eat smaller fish than the severum.
 
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The build is a year out at least but I'll definitely post pictures as I build it. I have huge hopes for it as well as several other projects but those are mainly for frogs and the like.

Uarus are very cute! I'm curious how rainbow cichlids would do as well? Would it be possible to fit a rainbow cichlid with a severum/uraru/angelfish? Also, I figured I would stock the smaller fish over the course of a year and then stock the bristlenose and cichlids on the second year. Would this give the other fish adequate time to grow out? I'm not sure how quickly cichlids grow.

So vallisneria and water lettuce survive. Does anubias or java fern make it? Perhaps if I feed lots of vegetable matter? I get 40lb boxes of lettuce twice a month so I need help eating it lol.
 
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The build is a year out at least but I'll definitely post pictures as I build it. I have huge hopes for it as well as several other projects but those are mainly for frogs and the like.

Uarus are very cute! I'm curious how rainbow cichlids would do as well? Would it be possible to fit a rainbow cichlid with a severum/uraru/angelfish? Also, I figured I would stock the smaller fish over the course of a year and then stock the bristlenose and cichlids on the second year. Would this give the other fish adequate time to grow out? I'm not sure how quickly cichlids grow.

So vallisneria and water lettuce survive. Does anubias or java fern make it? Perhaps if I feed lots of vegetable matter? I get 40lb boxes of lettuce twice a month so I need help eating it lol.
To your last question, I have not tried Anubias (too expensive to risk here), but I had my severum in a different tank for nearly a year with java ferns and she didn't eat them. I have not tried these with the Uarus (both of these species love lettuce leaves and they will eat softer aquarium plants). Rainbow cichlids should be OK, I have not kept them but I believe they don't eat plants and are peaceful and of course quite a lot smaller. I think they would like harder water than the South American species though, and this could be an issue especially with the Uaru.
 
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I have a rainbow with my sev. A few squabbles but they generally get along. The rainbow is the boss between the two, but even then the kribs dominate over everyone else.
My sev has chewed on Anubias, Javas, hornwort, duckweed, Val, aponogeton, and really any plant clipping I throw in there. Same for silver dollars.
Different cichlids grow at different rates, when young sevs will put on an inch per month but this slows down around 6-7 inches or so.
 
Rainbow cichlids are also plant eaters (sorry got that wrong before). But if you get your plants established before adding the fish the tougher plants should withstand a bit of grazing. I do give my severum and Uarus a variety of food meant for herbivorous cichlids, as well as chlorella and spirulna flakes and lettuce so maybe this helps to save the plants.
 
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