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i plan on pairing off each kind in the tank and them removing the rest so it would end up being 2 centrachus, 2 myrnae, 2 panamensis, aureus.

i've never had them before but was under the impression that they are the mellowest of the Archentrus group.

well, the Archocentrus genus currently only contains 3 species which are centrarchus, octofasciatus, panamensis and spinossissum. That's according to Juan Miguel Artigas Azaz and his website which is usually very up to date. Well, actually Juan still has panamensis listed under Neetroplus but that will probably be changed soon. He's always updating his site. Anyway, I wouldn't be surprised to see panamensis and possibly even spinossissum moved to Cryptoheros as they look very similar to all the other Cryptoheros species in body shape. Well, the point of all this was that to say the centrarchus is the mellowest of the Archocentrus group is only saying it's the mellowest of 3 species. I've never kept spinossissum so I can't comment on them, but I'd say centrarchus aren't too far below octofasciatus which is of course the Jack Dempsey. They may not be as aggressive but they certainly can be territorial...especially jumbo males.

My jack is pretty aggressive. He's constantly chasing the convict around. It's pretty awesome really. If you really want aggressive mix the Jack with a Red Devil of equal size. My Red Devil is smaller and whimpy though.

Here is a pick of them going at it.

http://www.mustangmods.com/data/995/imag0458.jpg

the Centrachus have already started growing, more than doubling the rest of the fish that i got at the same time from Jeff Rapp a few months back. i've never had them before but was under the impression that they are the mellowest of the Archentrus group.

you're very welcome. enjoy your fish and keep an eye on those centrarchus. it may take them several years but they do get big.

i've decided not to buy the jack dempsey. i am going to just be patient and wait for the fish in the tank to grow up. i think in the long run i'd probably loose some of the really small fish that i have in the tank and i don't want to do that. thanks for all the advice, especailly u jason.

i think i have an exeption... my F1 JDs are extreemly mean. i would compare them to that of of a jag or midas. i had 5, 2 were F1 and the other 3 were from my lfs (was trying to get a pair) any way the F1's turned out to both be males and killed off the other 3 even tho 1 was a female after they did this they each claimed a pot at oposite ends of my 75g and clashed in the middle at feeding time untill one eventually got the upper hand and i moved the weaker one out.

so i guess it depends but some can hold there own very well

Most, if not all, Jd's can hold their own against similar sized and sometimes even slightly larger fish. But, it's not often that you'll come across a JD that will go out of it's way to be mean or aggressive to other fish.

i have 2 jacks 2 3" timid shy lil fella n the other is 1.5" long n took over the tank i put him in with my shoal of red bellies all 3-4" long he had all 6 in a corner
so i moved him into my larger piranha tank where there all 7" long the lil jack took on a 7" red belly piranha n won held his own till he got his own tank
so i guess it depends but some can hold there own very well

i've been keeping cichlids for years but have yet to own a jack dempsey. What are these fish like? i know they can be aggressive but can they work in a semi-aggressive cichlid tank with mostly archcentrus species like sajica, panamensis,myrnae, and 1 thorichtys aureus? if not what kind of tankmates work with dempsey's?

ok, one more quick question...what are your future plans with the fish already in the tank? are you planning to try to keep all of them in there or are you waiting for pairs to form?

basically if you're planning to try to keep all, or even most of those fish in there permanently then you're already stocked if not slightly overstocked. the reason is the centrarchus. these guys can get pretty darn big and very territorial. I saw a male centrarchus once that was at least 7" maybe 8" in a 135 gallon tank with nothing more than a 10-11" albino oscar. the centrarchus very clearly ruled the tank and wouldn't let the oscar into his half of the tank. just something to keep in mind.

currently i have 6 myrnae's 2 inches, 4 panamensis 2 inches, 4 centrachus 2 inches, 1 thor. aureus 4 inches, 2 multispinosis 3 inches.

well personality will vary with the individual fish, but all the ones I've had (probably at least 4-6) over the years were not terribly aggressive and got along fine with other cichlids in 75+ gallon tanks. in your 100 gallon there's a good chance they would all be fine together, especially if the other fish are already established in the tank and you get 1 small JD. Just keep an eye on things as the fish grow, especially as the dempsey gets to around the 4-6" mark.

just to make sure though, exactly what all is currently in the 100 gallon tank and what sizes are they?

Last edited by jason_r_s at 20-Feb-2005 00:16

so they are not terribly aggressive? just kind of moody at times? i've been thinking about adding just 1 to my 100 gallon tank filled mostly with archentrus species. so you think the aureus will get piced on by the dempsey? i'd have to think about that one because the aureus is a pretty rare fish to come by here in colorado.

I, too, have found Jack Dempsey's to be rather timid, but will hold their own if pushed. I kept my Jack with an Oscar and they didn't have an issue. I don't really consider Oscars agressive, just territorial.
Jason took all that I would have said....

Last edited by cichlidae at 19-Feb-2005 18:40

I've owned several dempseys and none of them lived up to their reputation. they were all rather timid and hid most of the time. they were territorial though...one male I used to have used to quarrel with a male con but other than that I never saw any of them fight with other fish.

In a large enough tank a jack dempsey probably could be kept with most of the species you mentioned. the one I'd be most concerned about is the Thorichthys aureus.

tankmates can be tough for dempseys, like i have an oscar with him but the go at it sometimes, i also i have a pike and then don't really mess with each other, you could also do a convict , just don't do a pair of them bc when the pair off and breed they take over the tank