Lion Head Cichids -Are They Community Fish?

[fishnovice]

Saw some lionheads advertised and am seriously tempterd. A few questins
1.Would they be OK in a community tank with 3 angelfish, apple snails and assorted livebearers> Worried angels may attack them
2. I'd like a breeding pair. Do they breed easily and how do you tell sexes apart?

 

[england]

Lions are beautiful cichlids, best of in a species tank imo esp if a pair, there quite hard to come by esp round my way,so if i were you id rehome the rest and keep these guys, yay

I had one until it jumped ship,he was quite agressive towards my ticto barbs and some other fishies in the tank,

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

Lionheads will look after themselves, any aggressive Angelfish will very soon learn!

They get territorial around their home on the tank floor and will chase their own kind and other species away, to a distance of about 8" or so normally. I have what appears to be a pair bonding in my group of four and they now sometimes chase the other two Lionheads away upto >24" (half my tank length).
Generally though, when not breeding, they are pretty well behaved as cichlids go and their lack of swim bladder means they do well to be anywhere but the tank floor.

Youngsters are not so easy to sex, that's why I bought a total of four over two purchases. The initial one was thought to be a female, but then was quite feisty with the new three so was then thought ot be male (especially given its relatively huge dorsal fin that goes beyond the caudial fin), while in the presumed pair the male is rapidly developing his characteristic hump... SO I'm not sure what sex the original one is now!
Its usually considered best to get a batch of four and then see what developes over time regarding getting a pair, possibly resulting in the excess being rehomed to a new tank of yours or passed on the another fish keeper.

 

[fishnovice]

Don't have room for yet another tank(have 7 tanks already including turtles!)They will have to go in with guppies mollies swords and angels if I get them. Should I go ahead and get them?

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

Something that has just dawned on me that I did not mention is that they need a is relatively high current with plenty of airation and a temp around 23/24Cood (higher oxygen saturation possible, just like that needed for "Hillstrem Loaches."). I'm talking something in the region of 8x the volume of your tank (I have 2000 litres per hour turnover via the Juwel 1000 pump and my Eheim 2078), which you need to talk over with experienced Molly/Guppy/Angelfish keepers, as this vital current for Steatocranus may be a huge issue for them.

You could concentrate plants around the "calm corner" of the tank, to act as a further "wind break" to absorb some of the water energy, leaving enough space in that quarter for all the other fish to get some respite from the flow.

My gut feeling (not read anywhere) is that your Angelfish will be the most upset with a current, due to their windsail-esque disc shape. My Humphead Glassfish do seem a freak of nature in that respect (on top of their spine extension humps!), in that they thrive in flowing Myanmar (Burma's new name) water.

I think you need to be sure that your other fish will be happy before buying, or have a "plan b" ready eg. a Clearseal 30"x15"x12" for £33 at Pets At Home could house two Lionhead youngsters; a ~£51 36"x15"x12" could house at least three youngsters (but I suspect the "odd" fish will need to be re-homed once a pair form).

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

Any updates?

 

[fishnovice]

My community tank has 2 filters -a small one and a powerful one with a spray bar with 5 jets. I keep all my filter outlets above the water for aeration. Fish have got used to the currents, even angels and tiny guppiescope well and have learnt to avoid filter outlets. Will this be enough for the lionheads? Would love to have them but won't get them unless I am 100% certain they will be OK wiht my other fish. Current fish should always have priority.
Was planning to get them on Thu if they are still avaiable as it's a private breeder not a pet shop and he only had a few
For got to mentionI also have 3 young BN currently 2-3in with tails who will have to remain in that tank as I have big plecs in the others.
Decision time -should I go ahead wiht the lionheads?

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

Give us your tank size and the pump output of your filters and any powerheads you currrently have, which your current fish are happy with

Which has just given me a thought... You could possibly buy and set up a powerhead right at the base of the tank, giving any Lionhead some more current and memories of the Zaire river, without it affecting the mid and high levels too much. Lionheads will normally choose a cave in the quiet corner of the tank, if you set up the flow to go clockwise or anti-clockwise around the aquarium.

My developing pair did this and the female decided to dig out and set up camp at the bottom of my Rio240, under the edge of the integrated Juwel 1000 chamber! I'm hoping she is simply guarding eggs and is not stuck for now...

 

[fishnovice]

So I could drop the small filter pump to the bottom of the tank to provide lionheads with a current and still have filtration? It's a Juwel 80cm tank with built in filter but I'm currently using a spare filter within the Juwel filter cannister as I broke the bottom of my Juwel powerhead and not sure wht spare part I need. Tried emaling 2 online stores for advice in choosing correct part and neither replied.

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

As long as you still had a filter or powerhead still rippling the surface well for aeration, a small second filter pump would be fine at close to the tank base, for extra current keeping Lionheads happy (and hopefully still keeping the mid and higher levels relatively calm for your current fish).

 

[fishnovice]

As long as you still had a filter or powerhead still rippling the surface well for aeration, a small second filter pump would be fine at close to the tank base, for extra current keeping Lionheads happy (and hopefully still keeping the mid and higher levels relatively calm for your current fish).

OK You've persuaded me! i'm getting them if they are still available. The small filter is a fluval 1+, the big temporary one is actually meant for a 4ft tank so it's very powerful

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

Set them up at least one cave (or plant pot) per Lionhead in the calm area of the tank, ideally with a good boundary between them as a line-of-sight barrier, which they will use to define territory to each other. You might possibly be able to introduce three youngsters and then hopefully you will get a pair, at which point the "third wheel" will probably need a now home with you or another keeper.

Good luck!