r_nichols7
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
I have 55g cichlid tank w/ 2 yellow labs, 2 cobalt blue, 2 johani and 2 arautus (the most aggressive of the bunch) 2 plecos, 2 columbian sharks (gift but they need a new home) and a bumblebee cat.... I too had a problem with aggression but let's not loose site of the fact that in the fresh water world, african cichlids are an aggressive species.
Kudos to the up-size... but keep in mind, there is a difference between over/under stocked vs. crowding the tank. Cichlids need to be crowded to REDUCE aggression (however, they will always be aggressive). With that said, the ratio between male: female will also aid in aggression.... All male tank will calm things down if there is no competition for the ladies and a 1:3 ratio will result in the same.... but a predominately male tank with a couple of females will result in fights to the death!!
As for the plecos... if they are common plecos, you’re gona need a bigger tank with a min 48" long and the deeper the better (they can grow very large) and if the tank is too small, they will develop spinal deformation over time.
The yellow labs... black on the underside (pelvic.and annul fins) egg sack patterns on the annul fins and a nice bold black dorsal fin = male.
Kudos to the up-size... but keep in mind, there is a difference between over/under stocked vs. crowding the tank. Cichlids need to be crowded to REDUCE aggression (however, they will always be aggressive). With that said, the ratio between male: female will also aid in aggression.... All male tank will calm things down if there is no competition for the ladies and a 1:3 ratio will result in the same.... but a predominately male tank with a couple of females will result in fights to the death!!
As for the plecos... if they are common plecos, you’re gona need a bigger tank with a min 48" long and the deeper the better (they can grow very large) and if the tank is too small, they will develop spinal deformation over time.
The yellow labs... black on the underside (pelvic.and annul fins) egg sack patterns on the annul fins and a nice bold black dorsal fin = male.