Currently I have 3, 5 inch severums , a 7 inch bumblebee catfish and a 7 inch frontosa in a 125 gal are there any potential problems with housing these guys together since frontosa like a higher ph than severums?
Severums and frontosa?
- Thread starter beerad555
- Start date
I have found consistency with pH is they key to happy fish. Letting it fluctuate trying to reach a set pH can be worse than being a few points off. Some fish won't color up as well if they are too far off all the time.
as long as your PH is stable, and none of the fish are wild caught, they should be fine. ive got New and Old world Cichlids all in the same tank, just on regular tap water. I've had no problems
Both types are fine with pH in the mid 7s (7.6 or so for me), moderate hardness, and 76-78 temps, which is where I keep most of my fish, some a little warmer. I've had severums (including a wild rotkeil) live up to 15 years in those conditions (and same conditions for geos, guianacara, green terrors, L200 plecos, etc.) and currently have 11 year old Kapampa fronts that show no signs of age in the same water.
Some species won't color up nice if water parameter are off compare to their comfy zone and easier to get sick other than that they just live for another day 
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True enough, and that's why I included some specifics of life span for the fish he asked about. 15 years is good for rotkeils, considering you can google and find a 10 year expected life span for them. Fronts can live 20 years, mine are 11 and still going strong. I don't keep fish just to keep them alive; I want color, activity, breeding, etc.Some species won't color up nice if water parameter are off compare to their comfy zone and easier to get sick other than that they just live for another day
I'm also going to be merging tankswith a group of about six frontosa some Julie's and some compresses in a 180 gallon
I'd say as long as the severums have been raised at a local store with about the same conditions you should be OK pH wise. I have some plecos in with my frontosa and the other hard water cichlids and they are all a-ok. In fact i think my smallest pleco is going through a growth spurt. Been munching like crazy! My water is about 7.6-7.8 last time I tested it.
Your frontosa should also be ok temperment wise towards the severums I would imagine. Mine is so big and calm the other fish don't bother him and he just minds his own buisness. Or if he gets stared down, he opens his mouth and they run away ahahaha. Have a divider handy if any get mean while breeding though.
Your frontosa should also be ok temperment wise towards the severums I would imagine. Mine is so big and calm the other fish don't bother him and he just minds his own buisness. Or if he gets stared down, he opens his mouth and they run away ahahaha. Have a divider handy if any get mean while breeding though.