Vieja synipsilum or Vieja argentea with....

[buddha1200]

synspilum and argentea are both veijas,can be very aggresive at times the argentea may be more aggressive than the syn but i would wait til the up grade,male or female doesnt matter. as far as growth rate and size,both grow very fast and reach sizes well over 12 inches. My synspilum male grew to 12 inches from 2 inches in a year,and now at a year and a half is s good 14 inches long and very thick.

 

[eball2k]

I agree that the Argentea would be more aggressive my syn is pretty calm. I have heard the viejas can be aggressive toward eachother. They are both very cool fish, but I can't imagine any combination in a tank under 125.

 

[NixMix]

I'll definitely wait until I get my big tank. I'm not wanting less than a 180 for my next fish home anyway. So it seems like the synipsilum would be the best bet for all my fish combined.

 

[jiant2520]

I have a Vieja Argentea, Melanurus and Black Belt all around 5-6" and they get along fine. They are in a big tank with other aggressive cichlids, but the three of them have been together for about six months and I have had zero issues between them. I got them around 2 1/2" - 3" in July or August.

I agree that the Argentea will be the top "dog" in your tank though. I've never kept Synipsilum before...?

 

[Mr Pleco]

Personally I prefer the colors on the V. synipsilum. I'd love to have both though, don't get me wrong. I think I'm leaning towards the syn though.

I think I will wait until I get my much-needed, much-larger tank this summer. Maybe by then my sevs will pair off and raise some viable fry to help me cheapen the cost of my next equipment/set up. My LFS has been drooling over the idea of my sevs breeding. I wouldn't mind it one bit! lol

viable fry to sell?, done this , have seen it ..It never works out financially to your advantage ...expenses such as fry tanks, equipment , food. Those sevs are going to have to produce a lot of fry....its a nice thought though, however don't let me discourage your efforts..

 

[Words]

Congratulations to anyone who has never had any issues with their Argentea, but to me, mine is pretty much the most vicious fish I've ever kept. I made the mistake of adding the VA and a Green Terror to a 75g tank. Poor GT had no chance. It's almost as if the Argentea would show off his rule of the tank everytime I approached it. He'd go into overdrive at that point, with his eyes turned a solid black, letting me know I'd better get that GT out of there soon or he would be fish food.

I'd definitely choose the other Vieja.

 

[surfpalmsncycads]

the argentia is super agressive i would wait till you have the 180+ so theres more room and youl have your other tank to sepperate whem things get nasty. and they will! good luck.

 

[surfpalmsncycads]

Congratulations to anyone who has never had any issues with their Argentea, but to me, mine is pretty much the most vicious fish I've ever kept. I made the mistake of adding the VA and a Green Terror to a 75g tank. Poor GT had no chance. It's almost as if the Argentea would show off his rule of the tank everytime I approached it. He'd go into overdrive at that point, with his eyes turned a solid black, letting me know I'd better get that GT out of there soon or he would be fish food.

I'd definitely choose the other Vieja.

my friend lost his 6 inch gt to a 3 inch argentia a couple months back. va thinks there feeders or something

 

[jiant2520]

My GT chases my Argentea, but not much fighting between them or any others. I do have another Argentea in my smaller tank and he seems to be a bit more aggressive.

 

[VRWC]

I have a Vieja Argentea, Melanurus and Black Belt all around 5-6" and they get along fine. They are in a big tank with other aggressive cichlids, but the three of them have been together for about six months and I have had zero issues between them. I got them around 2 1/2" - 3" in July or August.

Not to discount your experiences, but your tank overstocked the way it is provides a scenario where the fish dont act/react the same way they would in an average stocked tank. You have minimal aggression because there is not enough space for anyone to claim territory and there is too much competition for anyone to be able to pinpoint 1 particular fish to take out.

You probably know this already, but take 1 or 2 out, even 4 or 5 and watch the dynamics completely change. One of them will establish the hierarchy and claim his/ her territory...so its a little different story in your situation.