FishProfiles.com Message Forums

Would I be able to put a texas cichlid or a red devil in a 120 gallon tank with two oscars and a Jack Dempsey. Would I be able to put any other cichlid in with these fish?

If they are all the same size, then they would usually be compatible. There could be a little bit of aggression, but nothing major (again, if the sizes are comparable - otherwise, the larger one(s) would pick on the smaller).

However, your tank would be overstocked and that could health issues as well as increased territorialism.

would a severum or salvini work better instead?

Severums and salvinis tend to be smaller and less aggressive than Oscars and Jack Dempseys. Plus, you still have a stocking issue, so I would not recommend them.
You are probably better off keeping the three you have by themselves.

A red devil would probably clear that tnak out eventually. The JD would hold up for awhile, while the oscars are still alive but once the Oscars go the RD would eliminate the JD as well. A texas would probably work but he would most likely be the boss and harrass the oscars. In both cases there's always a chance that it will work or that some unlikely happening's occur, so in the event that you try it just have an alernative plan. I would not try a Sev, they would likely be killed and a solo salvani would work. A breeding pair of Salvani are known to be a mean pair and would possible clear out a tank of any inhabitants, so I wouldn't try that.

By all means marry; if you get a good wife, you'll be happy. If you get a bad one, you'll become a philosopher.
Socrates-
I happen to have become a philosopher

Would any cichlid work in my tank?

I'd leave well alone. Two Oscars and a Dempsey in a 120 will have partitioned the territory up between themselves pretty nicely, and newcomers would upset the balance. A less aggressive fish would be torn to pieces by the Oscars and the Dempsey, and something like a Black Belt would turn into an unholy psychopath, possibly eliminating the Dempsey and the Oscars.

One fish that might be 'balanced' with respect to the existing occupants is a Green Terror, but in a 120, that's a lot of bad temper simmering away just waiting to engage in serious warfare. Particularly if the existing fishes are already large. If your Oscars are 6 inches or over, and your Dempsey is likewise a 6 inch fish, then you are, in effect, stuck with that stocking unless you happen to have a perverse desire to see lethal combat break out in your aquarium.

You could try the Green Terror as an experiment, but be prepared to rehouse it if the experiment fails. In fact, yu should be prepared to intervene swiftly to keep the peace with your existing big Cichlids - even in a 120, those three could, at the drop of a hat, start bickering with each other.

This goes a LONG way toward explaining why I persist in trying to steer people away from big, aggressive Cichlids unless they have LARGE aquaria and are willing to take on something that combines a strongly asserted personality and even stronger territorial instinct with powerful musculature and mouthparts that can inflict harrowing wounds upon an unfortunate opponent if the integration of the fishes is not conducted with a lot of care. If an aquarist has space and is willing to live with the fiery temperaments of these fishes, fine, but all too often inappropriately large or aggressive fishes turn up in the shops and end up in aquaria that are too small - a recipe for heartache and disaster. Your 120 is a nice large aquarium, but you have large fishes in it - and you're probably at the limit as it is.


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

listen to them,my jd went mental,and gave my other fish hell,and that was in a 200gal,and a green terror in your tank,woooo hoooo,that would be a site to see,it would just be a all in brall,ive found even in a huge tank like a 200gal,you can keep heaps of nasty fish in together,while they are small, but when they start getting bigger and there territorial demands get bigger too,aggression nearlly always breaks out and the smaller weaker fish cop it,or get killed,and if they are smart enuuf to stay out the way or are just faster,they constanly live in fear or getting floggedor killed,thus wont thrive,just something to dwell on