Hi All. I Need Some Advice From Experienced Fishologists.

[wickedvoodoo]

Hey all.

Real quick - so I joined up here to try and get some help, maybe save myself from making a mistake and biting off more than I can chew. My partner's brother want to sell his aquarium, I think he bought it on an ill-informed impulse and is regretting it. He has offered it me for a very good price. HOWEVER, the tank is inhabited by a few fish that I know little about, hence me getting a little worried, I fear they are going to be neglected and would very happily rescue them, but I don't want to go in uninformed myself and find myself with a problem.

Background info. I'm a reptile guy generally, I keep geckos. I haven't kept tropical fish for a long time (had some small schooling fish when I was younger) but I do currently have one aquatic friend in the form of a axolotl. Very different husbandry to tropical fish I know, but at least I understand nitrogen cycling, the importance of filtration, and techniques for cleaning the tanks etc. So not a complete bright-eyed newbie, but not one wise on fishology.

I read a bit for myself, and I understand these fish to be cichlids, one of them an Oscar. The others... I am not sure. If you guys could ID, roughly age, and sex these from my rubbish blurry pictures I would be very grateful.

So yeah -  from what I read, Oscars get quite big and they live for a long time. Which I think might be okay, providing the other two aren't gonna get too huge too. The tank I would buy is a decent size, didn't have a tape measure on me but it's definitely both a good bit longer and it's taller than my Lotl tank and that is 120L. I will have to go back round with a measure and get the proper numbers at some point, but I estimate it's gotta be 250 liters at least. The fish don't look overcrowded in there to my untrained eye.

But I think they are still young and I am aware these fish have different behavioural needs to the aquatic amphibian I am used to. Is it gonna be way too small once these guys grow? This will be the last tank I have room for in my house, I don't want to find myself regretting adopting these guys if I can't provide any enough room for them down the line.

Also, and apologies for my ignorance here, but are these guys even good tank mates to begin with? I have read a little on cichlids, they are terrirorial it seems and can get aggressive. But without knowing the sex and type, I feel the wealth of information out there is a little overwhelming and I could do with a few pointers to direct my research. I'd like to take these animals on, but only if I can be comfortable I'm not doing a terrible job of it.

So many thanks in advance for any advice you can give! Should I take the plunge and become a fish keeper, or is this a massive headache waiting to happen?
 

-Martin
 

 

 

 

[Chad]

 
...Oscars get quite big and they live for a long time. 
 

That is correct. Even in captivity they quickly grow to a foot or more in length. They will continue to grow more slowly after reaching this size. They are also large bodied fish in terms of weight. 
I feel a tank of at least 70 gallons and 4 feet in length is appropriate for this particular fish. Though there are fish that can live well with an oscar I generally feel they do best in a species tank. 

 

[wickedvoodoo]

So I had a little help ID'ing the other two and am advised they are probably a Nicoraguan and a Pearl cichlid. Along with the oscar this seems like it might be too much for the tank? Is it doomed to end in fighting? Would plenty of decor help, allowing plenty of cover/shelter?
 
Or is it just a case of too much fish, even for what seems (to me at least) a pretty large aquarium? The tank in question looked to be at least four feet long, maybe pushing five. It was defintiely taller than my Lotl tank too, probably at least two feet high.

If its just a case of too much fish, then I face a different problem, and that is how to rehome the fish responsibly, so I can start over in the tank with new fish. Not sure I'd be able to find a new owner for these guys though. I want to take the tank on, because it's an aweosme deal money-wise, and because these guys are gonna end up neglected if they stay where they are. I don't want to just move that problem to my house though, I want to get it right.

 

[Chad]

Even though the tank may seem large to you it's actually much too small for an oscar. You're looking at more like 250 liters for that fish to have a nice healthy life. There are many ways to rehome a fish that work well. You can find someone locally to trade with, a shop that gives store credit, or do what most of us here do and buy another tank!

 

[Munroco]

Starting with a set population will limit your choices for the future, especially with an oscar. There arent many fish you can keep with oscars and most of them will be similar size and temperament. IMO you would be better rehoming him/her if possible. The bottom fish looks like an aquidens species maybe curviceps or metae or possibly a port acara. Middle fish - Geophagus of some sort maybe?