Firemouth Questions

[netcode]

Hey I have a 65 gallon tank and it feels very empty.. so i was looking at adding some cichlids. the lfs recommended the firemouth. I currently have 8 tiger barbs 6 serpae tetras and 1 id shark (which i am getting rid of). Are these compatable with the firemouth?

Also i read that a lot of cichlids like to dig. Well i have a lot of plants in my tank and i wouldn't want to have cichlids swimming around uprooting all my plants.. plus i have pea gravel which is quite big for a digging fish.


any help is appretiated! thanks

 

[chumanji]

Hey I have a 65 gallon tank and it feels very empty.. so i was looking at adding some cichlids. the lfs recommended the firemouth. I currently have 8 tiger barbs 6 serpae tetras and 1 id shark (which i am getting rid of). Are these compatable with the firemouth?

Also i read that a lot of cichlids like to dig. Well i have a lot of plants in my tank and i wouldn't want to have cichlids swimming around uprooting all my plants.. plus i have pea gravel which is quite big for a digging fish.


any help is appretiated! thanks

I have 5 firemouths in my tank along with the exact same fish as you described. And the firemouth dont seem to brother them at all. They might chase each anothera bit, but still not as much as other cichlids. The only time my firemouth dig up the gravel is when they are breeding. (2nd round for me this year) And they do it around the rock they pick to lay eggs...so only plants there are affected.

 

[saboy]

Firemouths are ok with plants, they dont eat them, but will dig around, as chumanji says the breeding spot, so you make potencial areas when they would lay eggs away from the possiblity of uprooting plants


You could go for keyhole cichlids, they lay on a rock or something similiar, not agresive at all, except a little when breeding.

Sajica cichlids are also a really good choice, they are much nicer than keyholes, and dont mess with plants I think. but they might dig.

 

[netcode]

thanks for all the feedback. I think I am going to end up buying the firemouth cichlids. Do you have to keep them in pairs? or can you just buy males? etc.


Also i hear cichlids are territorial. will this be an issue with a RTBS?

 

[saboy]

I think you can just keep 1 , or 2 males/females

 

[skiltrip]

I have one firemouth, he's been happy without a mate for about 3 years or more in a tank with a redtail shark, synocat, pleco, and african yellow lab.

 

[Boids-n-more]

Every Firemouth i have owned has not been overly aggressive. I like to say they don't start much trash but they will finish it. Adult mature males are a thing of beuty also , there color really comes out and there long slender fins are a site to be reconed with. You won't be disapointed with that choice of fish.