It doesn't work that way with American cichlids.To be honest I don't believe in crowding Africans either.JD's reach nearly 10" and are aggressive cichlids.Id honestly say only one pair of JD's would be acceptable in a 55.Trust me you don't want to see big American cichlids tearing into one another.For a 55 id recommend acaras or something similar.Something in the cryptoheros area maybe.
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I mostly agree... Ive found out very recently that they push for territory. I didn't really always see them in such an aggressive state as i only kept smaller or less aggressive species before, or wet-pets. Now, trying to mix larger fish with the power to kill... A challenge. JDs are pretty mean, not top of the scale, but i wouldn't think it would work super well. Especially if they wanted to breed.
I have a 75, so if I had a pair of JDs what else could go with them?
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I think a pair would be good. They have personality.
Bottom feeders are the only things that could live long-term. Dithers will get eaten, cichlids will probably be killed by a pair.
Anything in the Synodontis genus should work provided it is of the right size. They are durable and they clean up the tank well. They also push back against fish that try to terrorize them. My old Syno Eupterus actually sparred with my male Texas of equal size. Synos are nocturnal, mostly, which should help keep them out of the way.
If you want to try dithers, i would go with Giant Danios. They are fast and agile and should live. Not Tiger Barbs, they will die when sleeping. The JD will probably grow big enough to eat a lot of the Tetras but Buenos Aires might work, as well as some of the other ones.
If you want to try cichlids with them, avoid anything large, overly aggressive, underly aggressive, or too small. I would say that Cons would be a good bet except they would probably pair up with the Jack Dempseys. If you have a pair of JDs already then you could add a male Con. Lots of hiding places will help.
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