Cichlid Fighting

[mackay55]

hi today I bought 1 male cichlid rainbow fish to add to my tank.I have 1 male firemouth cichlid and 12 red eye tetres 
 
 
when I added him to the tank the firemouth keeps going up to him flaring his red gills and sort of nipping him.
 
I moved all the  ornaments and bog-wood and rocks around but didn't really make a difference.
 
I tried catching him so I cant put the fm in a bucket but I cant catch him.
 
 
anyone got any ideas on what to do  

 

[hobby5]

What is the size of your tank? Add as many hidding places as possible, also break the line of sight as much as possible. Then sit and wait. If it is getting too rough remove either one of the cichlids (preferably the fm).

 

[mackay55]

I have a 4ft tank juwel rio type.

 

[mackay55]

ok i managed to get the firemouth  in my 15 litre bucket how long should i live him in there i can put a air line in there if that would help 

 

[hobby5]

The airline would not harm
 
How long is hard to tell, but give the rainbow some time to get to know the tank, maybe feed him once and then add the fm back tomorrow afternoon or when ever you got time.

 

[mackay55]

once i add him back to the tank if he still does it should i buy more cichlids to spread the aggression

 

[Midas]

No I don't think more fish would help the situation, definitely get an air bubbler into the bucket and make sure the temp is ok for him.  If they still fight after re-introducing you may have to find a new home for him.

 

[hobby5]

They will fight for sure. You need to give them time to settle the hirarchy. I wonder why you bought single cichlids at all?

 

[Wills]

How are things today?
 
What is the capacity of the tank?
 
How long was the firemouth the only cichlid in the tank?
 
How big is the firemouth and how big is the rainbow?
 
I have much more success with adding tiny youngsters to a tank with adult cichlids than adding adults or sub adults. They grow up knowing the older fish is boss and the young fish are not a threat to the adults.
 
Im wondering if you could add more cichlids to spread the aggression out or some kind of larger dither fish so obviously it depends on the size of the tank.
 
Wills

 

[mackay55]

i added the fm today its pretty much the same as yesterday 
   
my tank is 
Volume: approx. 350 Litres
Aquarium Measurements: 121 x 51 x 66 cm
 
the firemouth has been on its own for about 2 mouths with the 12 red eye tetra
 
thay are both the same size fm a little bit bigger 
 
i can go to my lfs today to get more should i get more cichlids or some silver dollers 

 

 

[hobby5]

Don't get new fish! Giving the rainbow some hiding places is the much better option.

 

[wrightt3]

I had a similar problem with my FM and Angel.
To solve it I basically made a wall out of plastic plants to separate the tank into two halves. This gave each fish a distinct territory and the aggression stopped. I've had the two for two years now with no problems since. Just give the Firemouth some time to get used to the new fish and it should sort itself out.
Best of luck

 

[Wills]

Ah right cool so a decent sized 4 foot by any rate then
 
Scape can have a lot to do with it - having decor/ plants (real or fake) that break line of sight will help a lot, wood tangles that can be stacked can help but be careful that the fish do not swim at it and damage them selves (I have had this problem)
 
But adding fish can also help, the reason I wanted to know the tank size was so we could chat about whats best. Firemouths are gregarious fish and do well in a group to form a social hierachy and when one is isolated in a tank like this the nearest cichlids that omit the perch type behavior so actually adding more cichlids to the mix could help but equally dither and/or target fish can help also, these are fish that act as a spectacle to the other fish in the tank and work to either distract and calm the fish or distract and take a slight hit instead of the cichlid taking a hit.
 
Not sure what to suggest, it depends on what other fish you like really Im wondering about if you add more red eye tetra to make like 18 if that would work with a well structured scape would help fix the aggression problem.
 
Wills

 

[bullit]

wouldnt get any silver dollars, get to big. if hes only flaring and the odd nip then i wouldnt worry about it to much.

 

[star4]

Not everyone is going to agree with me, but personally, I would add more cichlids, it spreads the aggression. In this case the firemouth is going for just one rainbow, if you added more rainbows then the firemouth cannot single out just one. In my experience it seems colouration has a large part to play with aggression issues, my elliotti (same family as the firemouth) would always be at loggerheads with my rainbow (although my rainbow is a mean little blighter), yet once the rainbow was moved to another tank the elliotti never bothered with any other fish, Breaking up the eyeline of the fish with plants wood etc does help, but with some cichlids they will still actively seek out that one fish they have a beef with. My experience with the thorichthys family is they are mostly all flare and display, but can stress other fish to start off with. I would go with 3 more rainbows and maybe think about a larger cichlid, possible a green severum, and some pictus cats for the bottom.