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I might be getting a 55 gallon and was pondering blue acaras. Would these work in a 55? If so how many would comfortably fit? What tankmates would be compatible? I'm also in the beginning stages of breeding guppy's, so they will probably get live food from time to time. I have an emperor 400 and I might be able to get a fluval 202 back working, but if more filtration would be needed I can figure something out. Any other suggestions are welcome.

What does that mean, Bob? "Till the cows come home." Where have the cows been?

The honest biz? Two absolute max, theyd better be a compatible pair too, or theyll beat each other to death,and you might have to go for a bigger tank when they are full grown,

Compatible species in a 55 will be limited, because the adult acaras will already be putting a huge dent in the bioload of the tank. They produce excreta that mists the water.Basically you cant put them in with anything that isnt armoured or capable of intimidating them with size or aggression back. In shops youll see paler specimens who by bad care and stress have been rendered infertile, and they look peaceful enough, then you see a truly healthy one, with vibrant dark stripes, brilliant blues, and an attitude that is hard to relate to the paler specimen.

When they finally get a place to call their own, a good diet and excellent water quality, and a partner... it begins...

People say they are "peaceful" when they arent breeding. So when is that then? They can breed every 2 weeks , and spend most of the time inbetween breeding, tearing up plants, moving gravel, intimidating other fish, and generally fighting like hell to get the best egg laying spot. If you thought they were aggressive when they had eggs, wait till they get fry! They will murder any fish who even looks at a fry funny! I have to remove fry and raise them myself or the different pairs would kill each other,and the other fish, no matter how big the tank.

Each pair will want a space roughly 2-3 cubic feet or more round a nest site, so that really doesnt leave much room for other fish, even in a 55.

Basically people who say they arent aggressive, have off condition fish. In condition they are hell on wheels from the age of 2 months. They do not stop, and dont give up. I have 8 adults split into pairs into 2x 120 gallon tanks, and thats the only way I can stop them fighting until they have no faces left, and I have to structure the tanks so there is a suitable egg laying area at each end, or they will fight for the right to use one nest site so badly, they would be debilitated if not seperated.

Community in a 55 is only really possible if you have one, preferably female, and some tough fish, like big plecs, tough talking catfish or other tough midsized cichlids like green terrors, and some of the bigger regular fish like tinfoil barbs, adult red hooks, and maybe the midsized synodontids. Theyll eat anything under 1.5 inches long.Basically if you want to include acaras in a community youll need to scale things up for the fish that can survive living with an acara, and that really means a 75-100 gallon minimum.

If you already have a regular community , dont even think about putting these guys in. I had to buy another 120 gal, a fry raising tank, move 40 fish, tend to 6 injured, and I spend ages replanting the tanks in ways the acaras cant pull the plants up. I just raised over 500 fry in just a few weeks, and was very glad to see them go.

Im contemplating just immediately removing eggs now, so that I only get the "preparation" aggression which is just about tolerable,rather than the nightmare they become when they actually are guarding eggs, and the total psychopaths they become when they actually have fry.

Blue acaras are one of those creatures sent by god specifically with the intention of telling you not to get too cocky. I love them and I hate them.

If you must have them, just be aware they demand tankspace, and dont tolerate much.Other much smaller acaras like sheepsheads are a much better choice for community. Unless youre a seasoned cichlid keeper, who knows a thing or two about managing aggression, this is a good choice for a species tank, maybe with just a large reclusive and armoured algae eater for company that can hide during the day and feed at night in safety when the acaras are asleep.

To the owner of a midas cichlid, a blue acara might not seem that aggressive, perhaps even be considered small change, but to anyone else however, especially those new to cichlids , they could easily be the most aggressive fish youve ever owned.Its one of those ironies in life, people who dont keep them in good condition may have a more peaceful fish, and those who get the care right have to deal with daily aggression.

Heres an interesting little video of 2 pairs of acaras arguing over nesting territory, not long before I split them up as the fighting was getting too severe.Note the big one , named humbug, getting sick of the fighting and breaking it up, even to the extent of telling off the partner for fighting! Well, I have one nice acara anyway! Just as well, the little guy in the back left corner took several days to recover from that lipfight, it had been going on for a while. Trouble is, they dont back down when well matched, they just keep at it until one dies of exhaustion. Be warned and all that.

http://s12.photobucket.com/albums/a245/longhairedgit/?action=view&current=blueacrafightseperation.flv

"You stay there and shut up! I'll sort these two out!"
Sweet.

I had a female blue acara in a community-type setup in my 75g with no problems. She was with a GT, severum, plec, and a school of giant danios. If you're interested in breeding them though I'd only keep a pair in a 55g.

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There is water at the bottom of the ocean

I'm fine with a species tank. The tank will probably go along a wide hallway, so a fish that doesn't mind me walking by would be good. I will admit I'm fairly new to cichlids, besides discus. They are one of the bigger pair choices you can keep in a 55 right? LHG, you keep them with ottos, right? would a group of 6 ottos or so be ok for cleanup? What would be a better, if any, bottom feeder choice?

What does that mean, Bob? "Till the cows come home." Where have the cows been?

Now theyve broken 4 inches I moved the ottos. Better choice for an algae eater might be a BN, maybe a clown plec. I think much bigger than 4 inches and an otto would be lunch,it was fine when they were mere babies, but you should see the way they tear into frozen feeder fish now!

Alright, a BN sounds good. Thanks for all the help.

What does that mean, Bob? "Till the cows come home." Where have the cows been?

wow.longhair,you must have gotten some truely evil acaras,i know they can be a mean fish,but mine is vibrant,robust,she is truely a beautiful fish,and the only time she shows aggresion is at spawning time,as you said even worse when they have fry,but if mine is not spawning, sometimes she is borderline shy,i just had to put in a divider to fend off my green sev male from beatting her up,but when she spawns the tables get drasticly turned,,but she is genrally cool most of the time..