what are some good tank mates for a male convict cichlid in a 55 gallon?

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
koh the face stealer

koh the face stealer

Jack Dempsey
MFK Member
Jun 12, 2011
365
1
33
Arizona
currently in the tank is
1 pleco
1 blue gourami
1 convict
2 golden chinese algae eaters
2 columbian tetra
3 skirt tetra
2ghost cats
2glass fish

i want to work around the convict.what wouldnt harm him and what would avoid his aggression?

Jon gave me a great suggestion

take out the pleco,gourami,one algae eater,columbian tetra,(i failed to mention glass fish in that post).

add a smaller growing pleco,make a school of 9 plus of ghosts and skirts.

i like that but would like to see what others would do.
thanks
 
1. Get rid of the pleco, chinese algae eaters: too big for your tank and the CAE are nasty fish once they grow up, super aggressive and territorial and useless because they stop eating algae.

Get something like nerite snails (if you don't mind them polka-dotting everything with eggs), bristlenose pleco or otocinclus if you want an algae eater.

As for convict tank mates it's your personal choice.
 
I'd say it really depends on what size and the temperament of the convict that's going in. I echo the above statement on CAEs, as I have a CAE in with a breeding pair of cons, and while they put him through the grinder at times, he's still there. CAE's, in my experience, are nasty fish, definitely not suitable for a community setup.
 
I would definitely get rid of the CAE, they are generally very aggressive when they start to get any real size on them.

As for your pleco, you haven't provided a species which is important to get correct guidance. No one can advise to get rid because it is too large because if it is a bristlenose, rubber nose, leopard frog, etc; then it will fit fine in a 55g. It is generally only water conditions that become a problem with the more exotic pleco species (with a few exceptions such as adonis).

I would increase the numbers of your tetras and glass fish to at least 5 of each as they are happier in larger shoals. It may be worth looking into the cats too to see if they are shoal orientated.

As for more cichlids. I think you may be at a loss if the male con has been in the tank for a long time as he is likely to have claimed it all and will likely kill any threat to his kingdom. Maybe look at having him as the centre piece and maybe increasing the cats and tetra shoals even more.

You could rehome the blue gourami and replace with a more timid shoal orientated gourami species such as Trichogaster Leeri. Much prettier too IMO.
 
its a normal pleco.i believe my male convict has claimed the tank.i think he messed up the pleco and i have seen him chasing around the gourami at times..
so just make schools and have the main "big"fish the convict? sounds good to me,i dont think he'll allow any "threats"to his kingdom.
he doesnt mind the little fish unless they get in his fin room and he'll nip at them and they run away or stay clear of him.he wont pursuit the lil ones.

cae yeah ive been reading about them and they sound pretty vicious i wouldnt want to find dead fish and definately not my convict,ive grown attached.

i would like a smaller growing pleco or any kind of algae eater..but do they really help keep your tank clean???
what about a borneo sucker??
if i put anything near the size of my convict in there wont he just see it as a threat and attack?
im not positive about him attacking the pleco but is quite possible as they have been sharing a hiding spot together.plecos left eye is a bubbled mess and his dorsal fin seems kinda tattered..but all thats in my other post "bacteria on pleco?"..
 
I believe a Borneo sucker (aka hillstream loach) need colder water but I have never dealt with them and only glanced at a profile.
It is pointless getting a pleco to clean a tank. They do not eat fish poop, they rarely clean all the algae off the glass, most are very picky about what type of algae they eat and a single bristlenose probably produces more waste by itself than the rest of the tankmates you could fit into a 55g put together.
Bristlenose plecos work quite hard most of the time but a lot just stop because they fill up on pellets which is how you should feed one anyway, rather than it being the tank scavenger. My 3 have got kind of lazy, they clean the wood and the rock but not the glass. However, I have them because I like them, their cleaning skills are just an appreciated bonus. A lot of plecos simply grow out of algae eating.

As for your plecos condition, my money is on the 2 CAE before your convict. Cichlids are a great pairing with plecos and the cichlids rarely bother them, if they do its usually because of mating behaviour. I had 4 convicts and they never touched anything in my tank. I added a single 6" long CAE and before long white circles started to appear on my 9.5" midas' fins and body where it had latched on, it was very well fed too. She eventually killed the CAE after one bite too many. It also chased everything in the tank. Pure evil that fish was.
I would wager that once those CAE are gone your pleco will get better.
 
i had suspected those punks were the culprits as my convict and pleco seemed quite peaceful. i like plecos the way they look the way they move and just chill,i wouldnt want them to just clean but like you said an added bonus.:)
the caes are 1'' and a 2''.it could have been the 2'' on the eyeball,ive seen that ones mouth get pretty big.
hahahaha bristlenoses work quite hard. i would love to heal this normal pleco and keep him but i dont plan on getting any bigger tanks anytime soon.i just got this tank.i kinda have a soft spot for this now possibly blind in one eye pleco though.

i just looked up the borneo 72 to 80 degrees but the ph level 7 to 8.but they require good water circulation. i havnt put my touch on this "new" used tank,they like to live in groups of the same species minimum of three.peaceful creatures.sounds like a good choice after i get the second water filter and a water pump to make a current..
now im going to post another thread on plecos so i dont get all the subjects mixed up in this one.

thanks for your input everyone
 
IMO, every LFS that sells CAEs, should attach a warning label on the tank. Kinda like a CD with expletives, or a cigarette package. To many unsuspecting fishkeepers purchase these creatures and wonder why some of their fish die. I mean, a CAE is a living organism; a pet. If you were to buy a dog, you'd want to know if it was mean or aggressive. The same thing for CAEs. You can't count on everybody using the internet to do their homework.
 
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