need advice about firemouth cichlids

[mr funktastic]

i was looking around walmart the other day and i came across there fish section (of course lol) and i saw that they had a whole tank of firemouth cichlids for like 3 bucks each. i really liked the way that they looked but i know nothing about them. i normally dont buy fish from walmart but they all looked quite healthy and very nice colours. i was wondering what you can keep them with. are they a cichlid that can only be with other cichlids or are they more like german blue rams. how hard are they to breed? what kind of water do they prefer? any general info i should know about them? thanks in advance

 

[TCTFish]

Firemouth cichlids are from South America and appreciate soft water (pH 7.0). They get about 7" adult size. They are aggressive, but not as aggressive as many other cichlids are. I wouldn't house them with the smaller rams. May be too aggressive for them to handle. They do best with oscars, blue acaras, juruparis etc. if they are going to be housed with any other cichlids. South American cichlids though tend to do best with other fish in a community if they are the only cichlid residing in the tank and introduced last as a juvenile. They could live with gouramis, barbs, rainbows, larger tetras, etc so long as those things are done (introduced last and the only cichlid).

 

[mr funktastic]

thanks thats what i needed to know he will get a little to big for my current set up but i will definatly look into them when i purchase another bigger set up. and i didnt realize they were ok with oscars. my friend has wanted to set up an oscar tank for a while but he wanted other fish in there aswell but didnt know any compatible. thanks again or the reply.

 

[YuccaPatrol]

I keep one firemouth with a large Oscar. Get along fine. The firemouth stays in his little cave and the Oscar has the rest of the aquarium. .

 

[TCTFish]

Make sure your friend is aware that a fairly large tank will be needed to house an oscar especially with other fish. Not only are they large, but are very bulky and produce lots of waste. Water volume makes a difference here.

It's said that one adult oscar can live in a 60 gallon, but I see that as too small. A 100 gallon tank or larger would be much more sufficient and easier to keep up on.