What to do with Angelfish trio?

[Xiv Xyv]

I have 3 adult angelfish, 1 male and 2 females, in a 56 gallon tank. Last week, two of the angelfish had eggs, and the third was constantly being driven into a corner. The eggs hatched, the babies all disappeared in a day or two, and the three fish started getting along well. Now, it seems the tables have turned, the second female has won the attention of the male, while the first is being driven away.

Sooner or later, one of the fish is going to end up dead. The best solution would probably be to rehouse one of the females, but I rather like both. Is there any way three angelfish can survive together?

I was thinking of buying 3 more angelfish, in the hopes that the aggression would be spread out a bit. I'm not sure if 56 gallons is enough space for that many fish, though. I was also considering putting some sort of structure in the middle of the tank, and hope the breeding pair will leave the other side alone.

Any advice?

 

[ImACoolguy]

When angels pair off, that's it. All others need to be removed or they will just get harassed.


Caleb

 

[Xiv Xyv]

Thanks Caleb! That's a shame. One more question, which female should I keep? The one that laid the last batch of eggs, or the one that's currently hanging around with the male?

 

[ImACoolguy]

Thanks Caleb! That's a shame. One more question, which female should I keep? The one that laid the last batch of eggs, or the one that's currently hanging around with the male?

I'm not a breeder (cue Andy Sager!) but if I had to guess I'd keep the one he spawned with.


Caleb

 

[unstopaBULLFish]

There are such thing as angelfish breeding trios..


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice

 

[Andy Sager]

I'm not a breeder (cue Andy Sager!) but if I had to guess I'd keep the one he spawned with.


Caleb

Beetle juice here. I thought I felt my name get typed.

To the OP, here's the deal: Trios do happen where all three fish spawn together. I've had them happen and still get them happening. HOWEVER, they don't always last. Case in point, I moved to FL back in the 1970s with a breeding trio of Angels and they continued as a breeding group until they died off. I currently have a breeding trio where the 2 females and the 1 male all spawned at the same time together. It only happened once however. Since that first spawn, each female has spawned separately with the 1 male and sadly, always only a few days apart so the second spawn never has really good results ( which I assume is from the male's lack of recuperation from the previous spawn. ) In my case. the 2 females are sisters so I don't know for sure if this has anything to do with their behavior but now the 2 females do more "barking" than biting and there is a lot of posturing but no real damage as each female spawns. FYI, This is all happening in a 20 gal long tank with nothing more than a plastic plant in the middle of the tank and a sponge filter. In a similar situation, I documented in another thread ( Wigglers at last!!!!) a trio spawn where I suspected the 2 females were related ( based on the store I got them from) but after the first spawning together, one of the females was then rejected by the male and did some considerable damage to her so she had to be removed. ( She is now breeding with another male while the other 2 are still a breeding pair.) So you take your chances on them ever getting along. I usually suggest not trying to keep them all in the same tank. Which leads me to....
....adding more fish to a tank with a breeding pair of Angels is more like a death sentence to the new fish. It rarely works out. Breeding is a whole lot different to a socialized group. Angels do live in a hierarchal society but breeding is a different story. All other fish in the tank are at risk of being killed by the pair.

So to answer your basic question of Can they ever get along? The answer is maybe. No way of telling for sure. If you do try, I suggest using some type of sight breaks in the middle of the tank and put breeding sites on both sides of the tank so that the fish can choose where they want to spawn while giving the other fish plenty of room to get away from the pair. ( FYI: with my trio, the females both breed on only one side of the tank even tho they swim all over the tank. )

Hope this helps.

 

[Xiv Xyv]

My females are sisters too, bought them from the same spawn. I'll try my luck with keeping all 3 fish. There's a ton of java moss in the tank, I'll try to shape it into a wall of some sort. Thanks for the advice everyone!