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i no its not close but for christmas i am probaly going to get a new tank, around 55- 75 gaallons

the cichlids i was tihnknig of are red devils. green terrors. convicts. and jack dempseys

in a 55 whould my stocking options be with these fish

in a 75 what ones coudl i put in

Last edited by importfan878 at 14-Oct-2005 19:04

i would get the 75 gallon you could put 1 jack dempsey and 1 green terror

any1 else

you could add a

texas cichlid http://null]http://null[/link][link=http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/texas.xml
and a
managuense cichlidhttp://www.fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/managuense.xml

i would go with the same in a 75, and maybe a texas depending on agression.

i think they'd all kill eachother before they outgrow the tank.

i have 5 convicts 1 texas 1 oscar 1 JD 1 GT 1 Fire mouth 1 pike cichlid 1 managease they are all over 5 " and they are doing fine and they are not fighting. I think you can get away with those cichlids in that tank.

Just dep[ends on individual personality of the fish, i have had a texas that wasnt that aggressive.
My favs are GT's if i were you i would get one in a 75g

Hmm. You're thinking of moving into big, aggressive Cichlids then?

I'd aim for species whose reputations were merely 'rough' rather than 'outright psychotic' to start with I'd also ty and pick species that remained a reasonable size. Even in a 75, I reckon Dempseys are probably going to cause problems because they hit 8 inches, whereas the Convicts will stay around 5 inches. As for a Green Terror or a Managuense (Jaguar Cichlid), those boys are seriously bad. Even as juveniles they'll probably pick fights with all comers, and with those species you're looking at 12 inch adults. A 12 inch Green Terror or Jaguar Cichlid can inflict a LOT of damage if it's in a bad mood, and it's pretty rare to find a Green Terror that's in a good mood ...

Head for Ad Koning's Cichlid Room on the web, and hunt down the extensive species lists there. There are a good number of medium sized species that will cause fewer problems than the big bad boys that you can cut your teeth on as a starting point before moving into the realm of the serious hardcore criminals as it were ...

Here's the link to the Ad Konings site ...

Ad Konings Cichlid Room

Oh, and while on the subject of species to avoid, two of the medium sized ones I'd give a wide berth to until you've acquired a LOT of experience dealing with internecine warfare among less savage Cichlids are Salvinis and Neetroplus nematopus. Salvinis can be persuaded to live amicably with other Cichlids in the right setting, but when they DO decide to throw a tantrum, they don't take prisoners. As for Neetroplus nematopus, this is a complete berserker that knows no fear (especially at breeding time) and will pick fights with fishes three times its own size if it's feeling ornery enough. It may be beautiful to look at, but temper wise it's a pyroclastic flow volcano with fins - this is the Cichlid that Satan himself is afraid to keep!

If you're intent on keeping some ruffians and reprobates, there are quite a few, shall we say, 'lesser crmininals' on the Ad Konings site that will provide more than their fair share of ding-dong entertainment if that's what you want, but within relatively safe limits. If you've never kept the big bad boys before, then even some of these 'lesser criminals' can be an eye opener, while the hardcore terrorists polarise aquarists into two camps - the "never again will I keep anything that psychotic" camp and the "boy these guys are fun" camp. Pick your species wisely so you don't end up running in fear from the very mention of the word 'Cichlid' after a ruckus in the underwater rumpus room!




Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

75 and some GTs. I currently have 3 breeding pairs in my 56 gallon tank, and I am thinking I might have to do away with one, or two, but for now, and until they are fully grown, they should do fine.

I have a pair of convicts, jewels and salvinis, and 2 striped raphael catfish in the tank with them.