unwanted fish.. should i take it?

[dieanna]

I was offered a "parrot fish" by a coworker, I'm assuming he means a blood parrot. In the 55 gal, I have 3 blue gouramis, 3 red-eye tetras, and 3 cories. I'm planning on selling my pleco to a store due to him getting too large. Would this be a wise move or should I stay clear of this fish? Thank you.

[DeFeKt]

nothing ventured nothing gained..

[Zagz]

I don't think it would be a really good idea to keep this fish with your current setup as I believe they are a cichlid. There seems to be a fair amount of controversy about them being a cross breed. I also believe they can get to be about 8" in lenght. It is possible that your coworker does not mean a blood parrot as there are other types of parrot fish. JMO.

[dieanna]

I'll talk to him tomorrow and ask him for a picture. And find out exactly what it is. I think he's been keeping it with cichlids, so I'm not sure. I'll post when I find out more details.

[TankGirl]

Yes, this is a cichlid, and they can get up to 10". This fish may or may not work out with what you have, but I'd recommend against it. You can house them with smaller fish, but we are talking about larger, tougher, faster fish than what you have, like congo tetras or silver dollars. I fear the gouramis would lose their feelers and the red-eyes would, well, lose. I don't think the cory cats would be a problem, as they stay on the bottom.

[RoK]

I'd say stay away; I've seen them be quite aggressive.

[FawnN]

I would have to agree. Cichlids in general are aggressive, some more then others and they are very unpredictable.

[severum mama]

Of course, it depends on the fish's personality, but I would say that other than the gouramis, it would probably be fine. I believe that only the "king kong" variety of parrot grows to 10 inches; the regular ones will probably max out at about 8. I keep 2 of them and mine are not nearly as aggressive as they used to be (the attitude adjustment came around after they moved in together). I keep mine with barbs that are about the same size as red eye tetras, and I have had no problems at all; I just wouldn't keep them with anything smaller. However, they can be aggressive, like I said it just depends on the individual fish. If you're interested, I can tell you that they are a fun fish to keep and have tons of personality, and they prefer to be in at least pairs (but even numbers only). If you want this fish the best bet would be to rehome the gouramis and get the parrot a friend (which can be difficult to do if both aren't purchased at the same time). Try to find out why the person needs to give the fish away- is it too aggressive or is it getting picked on? I have had to rehome my parrots for both reasons. There are pics of mine in my gallery if you want to see them.