I'm thinking of a 450 gallon tank that will focus on angels and clown loaches (yea yea i'm mixing asia with sa but hey we should have a bit of diversity these days). My question is if i put in 2 chocolate cichlid will things mostly work and if so will they eat larger tetras like rosy white fin and lemon ? The tank would be approx 10 feet long and 3 feet wide - so there is a bit of room as long as they tolerate clown and zebra loaches at the bottom. I presume they would use display to warn off angels and there would not be too much true hostility but perhaps they are more aggressive than i presume.
What makes good small tank mates for chocolate cichlid and just how aggressive are they ?
- Thread starter jake37
- Start date
Just looking at the mouth and body shape, you can tell it is "not" a piscivore, and mostly inept at catching fast prey.
It is an omnivore that in nature feeds on insect larvae, crustaceans, mollusks and algae.
Fast enough, and large tetras should be OK in that size tank.
I would feed a pellet high in Spirulina (like Algaemax) to provide a proper diet.
It is an omnivore that in nature feeds on insect larvae, crustaceans, mollusks and algae.
Fast enough, and large tetras should be OK in that size tank.
I would feed a pellet high in Spirulina (like Algaemax) to provide a proper diet.
Their personalities are highly individual. Some are shy and withdrawn, some are pushy and dominant. I have four large H. coryphaenoides spread among several 6' tanks. Two of them are very shy and very rarely leave their staked territory except to eat. The one in my 150g living room display pushes around 11" Heros severus and doesn't tolerate anything nearby. H. temporalis are similar.
I've found that all large cichlids (Uaru, Heros, Hypselecara, Hoplarchus, etc.) will snack on small tetras if they feel so inclined. Most Hypselecara probably wouldn't bother them if they're well-fed but I'd never say never. Even Uaru, which are thought to be passive for large fish and heavily herbivorous-leaning, slowly pruned down schools of long-finned serpae tetras and lemon tetras.
My suggestion would be to add the smaller species you plan to keep first, then add small chocolates and allow them to grow up around the smaller established tankmates. I would also be careful only selecting two of any type of cichlid, as most unpaired SA cichlids will end up with a dynamic where a dominant fish bullies and harasses the other. I always recommend getting a group of them to raise out together to spread the conspecific aggression around more evenly, and then as they grow and pair, thin their numbers by rehoming or moving the rest. Or just keep them as singles, which has sometimes worked well for me when it comes to temporalis. There is a reason my four H. coryphaenoides are now all residing in separate tanks... they weren't until a couple months ago when one decided to mutilate all the rest.
I've found that all large cichlids (Uaru, Heros, Hypselecara, Hoplarchus, etc.) will snack on small tetras if they feel so inclined. Most Hypselecara probably wouldn't bother them if they're well-fed but I'd never say never. Even Uaru, which are thought to be passive for large fish and heavily herbivorous-leaning, slowly pruned down schools of long-finned serpae tetras and lemon tetras.
My suggestion would be to add the smaller species you plan to keep first, then add small chocolates and allow them to grow up around the smaller established tankmates. I would also be careful only selecting two of any type of cichlid, as most unpaired SA cichlids will end up with a dynamic where a dominant fish bullies and harasses the other. I always recommend getting a group of them to raise out together to spread the conspecific aggression around more evenly, and then as they grow and pair, thin their numbers by rehoming or moving the rest. Or just keep them as singles, which has sometimes worked well for me when it comes to temporalis. There is a reason my four H. coryphaenoides are now all residing in separate tanks... they weren't until a couple months ago when one decided to mutilate all the rest.
Yea. I have this experience with angles. I would start with 4 and then whittle it to a pair. Do you think this full stocking would work:
6 mesonauta festivus
12 angelfish
2 chocolate cichlid
60 white fin rosy tetra
20 pangio meyers
10 clown loaches
10 zebra loaches
6 flash pleco (l204)
2 blue phantom pleco
2 gold nuggets
-
water target temp around 79; tds around 80; ph around 7.0.
--
Or would this work better
6 winemilleri
10 german blue rams
8 cupido
20 sterbai
2 chocolate cichlid
6 mesonauta festivus
12 angelfish
2 chocolate cichlid
60 white fin rosy tetra
20 pangio meyers
10 clown loaches
10 zebra loaches
6 flash pleco (l204)
2 blue phantom pleco
2 gold nuggets
-
water target temp around 79; tds around 80; ph around 7.0.
--
Or would this work better
6 winemilleri
10 german blue rams
8 cupido
20 sterbai
2 chocolate cichlid
Honestly, if they are wild Mesonauta, they are going to be a bigger problem than the chocolates. Every group of wild Mesonauta I've kept have been very rowdy, dive-bombing other cichlids from above and pecking/attacking their foreheads and dorsal spines. It's usually the larger males. They, and angels, will also eat small tetras readily. And they're definitely streamlined and fast enough to do it.
I doubt they will be able to eat the mentioned rosy tetra which are not exactly small. I hope the Mesonauta will be tank bred and i know the angels will be tank bred. Still you do raise an issue. I have several years of experience with angels but none with Mesonauta.
Yea I've given up the chocolate. And will stick with mostly smaller fishes. The threads where they are constantly changing colour caught my interest and since i was planning these large tanks I thought maybe they would fit but it sounds like for fishes as small as 4 inches they will be a hazard and I'm not willing to drop those from my plans.