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Hey all, A few years ago I purchased what I would later discover was a male auratus. He's now 5 inches long and my last convict cichlid just died. Prior to this, they had gotten along very very well (contrary to what people say they will do) My question is about what other fish I could add to my tank. He is currently in a 20g. Any ideas on what I should get?

Also, what's a good rule of thumb to determine needed tank size for fish? I've considered going larger as I'm always told a 20g is way too small, however no one has ever told me why (other than saying Its not big enough)

Thanks

from what i reasearched in 2 minutes. i would say that a 55g to 75g would be big enough and some good tankmates would be 2 or 3 females for him. appearently they're very aggressive so be prepared

Hi Buddy and welcome to FP.Your auratus does need way more territory than just your 20 gallon. Whoever told you that a 20 is not big enough is correct. They are an aggressive fish that need a fairly decent sized territory. There are no species of Malawi cichlids that can be housed adequately in a 20 gallon tank. Like greenmonkey said, he needs a miniumum of a 55 gallon tank. He's also correct with the ratio of three females to your male. If you aren't able to upgrade to a larger tank, then you should return him to your LFS. If you're able to get a larger tank, there are a variety of other Malawi cichlids that could be housed with him. Due to the high Ph that Malawis love, South Americans, like your Convict do not make good tankmates.

the reason they need larger tanks is because the fish stake out large territories in the wild. they will choose a meter or 2 meter circle and it is their own. they will only lure females in there to spawn. since they are used to that size space in the wild, they need it in the tank also. so you can see a 55g tank barely has room for one. with two, their territories will cross. that is why so many people like to go with 125g (6') tanks. again, not all fish do this, but a lot of mbuna do.

but not all mbuna are that agressive