150G Stocking Help.....

[trapidz]

Hi i need some help/advise on the stocking i have.
i know i may need to split the fish up at somepoint so i have a tank ready.
got 4 tanks so i have no worries about that.
 
in my 150G 6' 2' 2'
 
1 parrot cichlid.
1 male green saum.
1 green texas.
1 firemouth.
1 blue acara (going to move in the 55g)
1 stripy dorah catfish
1 spotted dorah (i think thats what there called)
1 senegal birchir.
1 yoyo loach.
1 sailfin pleco
2 breeding bn's ( going to move to 55g also)
 
my question is that setup ok.
 
also if i can i was hoping to get some more fish?
 
maybe up the yoyo loaches up to 6??
 
any advice welcome

 

[Wills]

Is a 6x2x2 not a 180gallons or are you working in UK gallons? I find it just easier to go with US gallons when determining stocking
 
The fish look pretty good to me Only thing I would say is if you are keeping big bruisers like a Tex and a GT watch the Firemouth as they might not be able to put up much of a fight long term if things took a turn for the worse. I would stick with the larger cichlids around the 10 inch + mark with those two in there. Adding the Yoyo Loaches should be fine as well as they are pretty fast fish and hide well as well.
 
The Striped and Spotted Doras you refered to are a relative of the wood cats and are called Platydoras nice companions for cichlids again because they hide a lot but they also get to a good bulky size so stop becoming snack size pretty quick
 
If it were me I would move out the fish that are not staying and be planning your long term stock list
 
Wills

 

[trapidz]

yes i got another tank for the firemouth thats not a problem. i have a few tanks to move and play with.
what would you say about the long term stocking. (what would you suggest if it was you)
 
and yes UK gallons i did say 150 gallons lol
 
thanks for the fast reply

 

[Wills]

Murrayjane has a really similar stocking to you in a slightly smaller 6 footer. He has a Festae and a Syns with his GT and Tex and I think similar plans apply to this tank - big cichlids and big tank mates
 
So if we trim your tank down to
 
1 x Male Green Saum
1 x Green Texas   -   is it Herichthys Cyanoguttatus or Herichthys Carpintis? Does it have big spots all over or just around the face?
6 x Yoyo Loach
1 x Striped Dora
1 x Spotted Dora
1 x Senegal Birchir
1 x Sailfin Pleco
 
And then look to add in some big Centrals and Souths that can handle the rough and tough that a GT and Tex will dish out... You know I am starting to wonder if the Yoyos are going to do better in one of your other tanks if you have space. The rest should be fine though.
 
Im really really struggling to come up with ideas for this tank - what cichlids do you like? I was thinking along the lines of maybe an Oscar, trio of Geophagus Brasiliensis, and some kind of Veija maybe a Regani or Zonatus - depending on gender and type of your Texas an other type of Herichthys might be nice like H.Deppi which get big blue blotches on the face
 
Wills

 

[trapidz]

hi hes a "Herichthys Cyanoguttatus" texas.
and the fish i like are like, severums, jack dempseys, jaguars. i like oscars but now had them for too long want to stock something different.
so yeah fish around them or something simular.
 
what geo's you got in mind. as i do like them

 

[Wills]

Right - I'm not sure a Severum would fit with these two in there already when they are all grown up and I'm 50/50 on the JD as they are not as tough as sometimes made out... The Jag could be a good option or it could be a bit over powering for the other two.
 
What about something like a Vieja Regani?
 
From the Geophagus I was thinking something like Brasiliensis or sp.Bahia Red. I dont think anything from the Surinimensis group would be any good as they would be a bit too calm for the other two. Though I have just seen a great video of a GT with a group of Tapajo Red Heads.... They are just so slow growing though and the GT and Tex will vastly out grow them in speed.
 
You could do with a school of dither fish in there as well - any ideas what you would like? Maybe a school of Auralis Barbs if you dont mind mixing continents. If you can get some large Rainbow Fish they would work nice as well. Or Bueons Aires Tetras, Blind Cave Tetras all work as well.
 
Wills

 

[trapidz]

should i try the jack dempsey + jag? as i really do like them....
as if not i have more tanks to move the fish if they dont get on.
 
how meny brazilians do you recon?
 
is there any common barbs ect as my LFS is rubbish with getting some fish in lol.
blind cave fish i no they have them but wont they get killed?
how meny blind cave fish do you recon?

 

[Wills]

I think Blind Cave Fish could work when fully grown they are a pretty big fish getting to 8 to 10 cm - If you search for a guy called Lee Nutall he has some fantastic blogs about his CA cichlid tanks and it makes for great reading and ideas for scapes and tank mates. Where abouts are you from maybe someone can help source some different fish? Failing that think any large barb or tetra but not so large as Bala Sharks or Tinfoil Barbs and not so timid as something like a Denison Barbs
 
I think the JD and Jag might work but i would get them both young and get the JD first and try and find the smallest (but not snack size) Jag you can as they grow at a hell of a rate
 
The other thing that could work would be a Salvini
 
For the Brasilinesis depends on what other fish you go with a pair could fit quite nice or if you went for just these and the GT / Tex a group of 4 would be good or a trio? The tank is big enough to handle it  
 
Having the spare tanks is a real asset for you here - I would have a back up plan were you can isolate a fish really easily if possible with these big fish its always a risk it can end in a fight and someone needs separating.
 
Wills

 

[Murrayjane]

Very cool ideas for your stock. I would definitely remove all cichlids that are not going to be able to handle the abuse. Fire mouth and blue acara. Had to remove mine a while back when i introduced my Green Terror. As for additional cichlids, I would endorse the Syn, Dempsey, Jag, or Salvini. I wish I had the 180(us) I would get an Ornate bichir.

Provided that the cichlids are all juveniles, you could try getting a number of these species and see which ones you prefer (based on appearance, personality and individual compatibility) as they grow.

- Murray

 

[trapidz]

my green terror and parrot are the biggest as my firemouth, ill look see if they have any jags and JD's or any salvinis when i go to the LFS as there going to be the smallest fish in the tank ( but love watching them grow.)
 
very excited to go to the fish shop now to see what they have in

 

[Wills]

Cool sounds like a good plan Just be careful not to impulse buy too much!!! If your not sure of a fish leave it or if you have a smart phone, have a google Thats saved my bacon a few times in the past lol!!
 
Wills

 

[trapidz]

yes if agression does start i can put a few more tanks up no problem and yes will do. thank you wills been such a great help

 

[trapidz]

hey guys an update on my stocking now.
 
6' 2' 2'
 
1 jaguar cichlid (15")
1 parrot fish (8")
breeding pair of BN plecos
1 sailfin pleco
1 salvini (4")
1 firemouth (5")
1 Green Terror (6")
1 blue acara (5")
1 yoyo loach
6 blind cave fish.
sengal birchir.
 
how that sound