Time For A Rethink

[Confish]

my tank has started to go wrong i know you will say told you so but i wanted to try anyway thought with a 4 foot tank it wouldn't, my stocking is 2 jewels and a convict but my jewel attacked my other jewel so had to re home him to a member on here which im glad about. but im now thinking of doing abit of a re stocking i really like severums and rams but i really do love my convict as ive had him for so long and was the first type of cichlid i kept my tank is
48" x 20" x 16" just abit annoyed and frustrated because its ok size tank but it only has 2 cichlids in lol

 

[Glenbo1981]

I would go for a tank similar to what i have now but with less Severums ...

Rotkeil Severum (because these guys max out at 8"... standard Efaciatus Severums...ie Green, Gold, Red Spotted can get to 12")
Blue Acara
Pair of Bolivian Rams
8 x Shoaling fish (something bright, colourful, won't fit in Adult Severums mouth...would avoid Barbs because they are nippy, and Tetras would fit in the 'Amazon' theme with the rest of the fish)

And offload everything else

Obviosuly don't rush out and stock all at once...

I would stock it like this...

Severum first (you could probably get a Rotkeil off this forum somewhere, i will be selling some in a few months, Star is breedign them etc)

Then grab your Rams (don't get Germans, they are a pain in the nutz, despite looking pretty...unless you want the hassle of keeping them in permantly warm discus like water)

Get a small Blue Acara next...don't worry about sex (i bought mine in December at 1" and it is now 5"... so they grow pretty quickly)

Grab your dithers at any time.

For Plants, attach some Anubus to bog wood...mine has doen pretty well, if the Sev starts to eat it, trim off the eaten leaves, let the roots/Rhymzone stay in the water and let the leaves poke out of the tank for a while, they grow rapidly like this, my Anubus Bartoni has got gigantic in a month or 2 using this method because they are not a true aquatic plant, they are a bog plant, meaning they can live in and out of water.

 

[Confish]

hey thanks for the advice and ye i like the look of your setup and ye i was thinking exact same thing wth the acara replacing my convict great minds think ... what dithers are you thinking of? i like the look of cardinal tetras but im guessing there too small? also would my odessa barb be a problem then and my dora catfish and clown pleco would there be any bottom dwellers? also with the plants do you just need light and thats it ? ive never kept plants before and im not keen on the idea of co2 and all that jazz im a student so no real funds p.s i really want a Rotkeil if it looks like your avatar the ones on google look abit dull my fave severum part form rotkeil is the super red spotted so nice cheers again

 

[Glenbo1981]

With the plant i mentioned, you don't need anythign fancy, just light, they are near indestructible...just very slow growing in water, and very quick growing with the leaves out of water, either way, very hardy and suitable.

Odessa barbs would be ok, i wouldnt personally pick them because they don't suit the theme, but its up to you

Yeh the catfish will be fine....not 100% about the Dora tho, don't they eat small fish? (ie barbs, rams), i don't really keep plecs and catfish etc because they freak me out lol!

Yeh Cardinals would be to small, you would need a higher bodied Tetra or Barb.

Rotkeils go through different stages and constantly change colour, the one on my Avatar is a Male, they will go darker...lighter etc, just make sure you get a Rotkeil and not one of those fake Rottys Heros. Appendiculatus (Orange neck) because they get huge.

Red Spotteds will also get huge, near double the size of a Rotkeil.

 

[Confish]

thanks for the in depth advice would the plant be able to live in gravel or does it have to be on wood? ye i might get rid of everythink except the catfish and clown pleco (but i hate getting rid of fish ive had since day one aka tiger loach )
also what sort of tetras are we talking as i think the with the barbs it would be too much red with the sev as well? also could i keep 2 sevs? also how much would you be selling your sevs for?

 

[Confish]

anyone else got any suggestions ?

 

[Wills]

Kind of agree with what Glen is saying about the smaller species of severum I have a Heros Severus the true severum which again is smaller than the common efascticious in my 65 but I sometimes worry that the tank is too small for her.... I guess its just down to personal guides in a way but yes it is acceptable.

Have you considered other south americans like a group of a smaller geophagus species like Pindare? Or a group of Guinacaras, though slow growing as adults they look amazing utterly stunning or cupid cichlids as they get a decent size as well - you could probs do a group of each of the cupids and guinacaras mix them with some disk tetras like flame of bleeding hearts and your catfish and that would be a pretty awesome tank IMO.

 

[star4]

Young Rotkeils are more drab than adults, but its worth getting small ones so you can watch their colour change as they grow up. Ellioti are a nice mid size cichlid 5-6", more peacefull than the firemouth. Have you looked into keyholes or festivums? they are pretty. Not kept festivums so not sure if they are ok with a convict, but I have keyholes and ellioti with a single female convict.

 

[Confish]

cheers for the suggestions i like finding out more fish ye i do like the ellioti more so than a firemouth not too keen on key holes or geos i dont like white bodied fish i guess i need to see them in real life as im only googling ones i have not seen im very keen on rotkeils think thats what i want as my main fish. what tetras can go with a sev ? or any other dithers really ? and could i have two?

 

[kaivalagi]

I'll be getting about 8 silver Hatchet fish for dithers soon I think, hopefully this weekend fingers crossed, they stay at the top and look different...I'll be adding sevs later on and they'll be A okay with them.

You could add 2 lots of dithers but be concious of the space requirements...

 

[Confish]

they do look well interesting i think id just got for the one type but have it like said 8 do you think i could have 2 sevs? with the first stock list that glenbo and i were speaking about? cheers everony 4 the help

 

[Wills]

I think it would work best as

1 x Rottie Sev
1 x Blue Acara
4 x Bolivian Rams
8 x Dithers
+ catfish

Kind of similar to what my tank is now but Im growing out my geos and have a nic rather than a BA but as the geos grow the bigger tank comes - you wont need to worry with that though with rams.

Wills

 

[Confish]

ye i think i will be going for this stocking just need to look out for some nice dithers. and some where that sells true sevs i know star and glenbo are selling some in the future but im not sure where they are too me im in midlands leic. what other types of acara is there? and would only bolivian rams work?

 

[meguro]

u could have apistogramma spp. instead of bolivian rams

the choice of acaras would be pulcher, latifrons, coeruleopunctatus. or you could try to find some of the rarer acara-like fish such as krobia spp.

 

[Wills]

Star 4 is in birmingham and there is an LFS there that begins with a C cant remember it but its a good one and I know they have krobia in and they are gorgeous if you can get there