Gary's Cichlid Aggression Scale

[GaryE]

I've kept and bred a lot of Cichlids. Last night I was talking to a guy with a Tanganyikan tank who was telling me of his disasters mixing species from different regions when he was new to this. Today there's a thread with the same problem.

So, after 40 years enjoying Cichlids, here is a loose guideline sketch of Cichlid aggressivity levels. The fish have individual traits and there are individual species with different aggression levels involved, but this is a guideline I go by.

At the top are the most aggressive in my experience. They are ranked from most aggressive down. Yes, there are exceptions.


Lake Victoria Cichlids
A notch down, Lake Malawi mbuna
Then Malawi peacocks
Then Tanganyika
West Africa - larger Cichlids,
Central and North America
Central African (because they are often small)
Asian
larger South American
smaller South American
smaller West African

And beware of all predatory species, who have their own rules. Fish eating 'piscivores' should be a warning in themselves.

 

[connorlindeman]

I've kept and bred a lot of Cichlids. Last night I was talking to a guy with a Tanganyikan tank who was telling me of his disasters mixing species from different regions when he was new to this. Today there's a thread with the same problem.

So, after 40 years enjoying Cichlids, here is a loose guideline sketch of Cichlid aggressivity levels. The fish have individual traits and there are individual species with different aggression levels involved, but this is a guideline I go by.

At the top are the most aggressive in my experience. They are ranked from most aggressive down. Yes, there are exceptions.


Lake Victoria Cichlids
A notch down, Lake Malawi mbuna
Then Malawi peacocks
Then Tanganyika
West Africa - larger Cichlids,
Central and North America
Central African (because they are often small)
Asian
larger South American
smaller South American
smaller West African

And beware of all predatory species, who have their own rules. Fish eating 'piscivores' should be a warning in themselves.

Many problems would be solved if people just kept cichlids from one place separate from another.
For example, its best not to mix lake victoria cichlids with Tanganyika cichlids. The stores never tell people that.

 

[Back in the fold]

Species only aquariums. Species only.

 

[Archerfish]

Very helpful. Thanks, GaryE!