Acarichthys Heckelii - Anyone Kept These ?

[hamfist]

I just picked up a pair of these from my LFS, as tankmates for my severum, assuming they were fairly "standard" temperament for geophagine-type fish. Yes, I know I should have done some homework before I bought them, but they just looked so nice !

Anyway, internet wisdom on them seems to be rather variable .... and it's all down to aggression to con-specifics. All sources seem to agree that they are generally fine with other species but not good with each other. One source says that you really can't keep them together at all once mature, as they will simply kill each other. Others state that they are aggressive to each other, but a good-sized tank and plenty of hiding places should be fine for a pair.

So, has anyone actually got any experience of these ? How worried should I be keeping a pair ? I'm seriously thinking of returning one of them.

BTW, the heckelii are currently about 3" (TL) and the Sev is still a baby at about 2". Tank is an 80 gallon, with plenty of bogwood.
Planning to upgrade tank once Sev approaches full size.

 

[Wills]

Hi, these are one of my favorite fish they are gorgeous! Like you I have read on the net the reports of aggression and the issues that arise from them, that said though I have seen them working well in big SA tanks with things like Uarus and Geophagus as well. Some websites you see them being branded as horrific aggressive fish when in reality they were being kept in set ups with normal comm fish like small tetras etc.

My opinion of them is that they are actually not as bad as the easy to find comments on them on the internet would reveal. They are quite a rare fish at times and kept in stupid mixes by novices that go wrong however when kept properly they are quite compatible, there are a lot of people in the elite groups of cichlid keepers that have a lot of success with these. However they are probably one of the more aggressive cichlids in some situations so they could become nasty but I think its something for you to watch out for. A reason I think they are so aggressive at times though is because of the massive breeding territory they claim in the wild usually at least 3 meters square however in a tank this wont happen that often because they dig and build a cave network under the mud in the river to lay the eggs and brood the fry and they cant do that in the tank so even if you do get a pair they wont be able to breed properly however this could result in issues between the male and female. Perhaps something to consider is to watch out for the genders of the two and aim to keep the female?

Wills

 

[Glenbo1981]

I had a male for a while, It got kinda nasty so i sold him on, i think they look a bit like a Altifrons but not as pretty.

 

[hamfist]

Excellent info. Thanks.

I'll just keep an eye on them for the moment. They seem to enjoy each others company at the moment, with just some very good-natured bickering. Still too young to sex them of course.

Did anyone say that these things are GREEDY !!