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55gal. Plants w/ large plecs, and JD.chiclids

Posted: 11 Jan 2009, 05:34
by yeattsca
Is it posible to have a large Green Taro plant in a 55gal. tank with jack dempsys and a few larger placos(2x8")? :?: My tank looks like iraq(no joak) exept under water. :lol:

Re: 55gal. Plants w/ large plecs, and JD.chiclids

Posted: 11 Jan 2009, 11:34
by sidguppy
IMO Jack Denpsey's are way too big for such a small tank

with JD it's not size that tells, it's character.

and it's character is too big for a 55 :wink:

Re: 55gal. Plants w/ large plecs, and JD.chiclids

Posted: 11 Jan 2009, 16:12
by yeattsca
Thanks for the info, I have been told this before and probibly should go ahead and sell them, byt they are still farly small and are getting along, so I think I have a little more tme.

What would you suggest for my tank(chiclids). I also have a small sun cat.

Re: 55gal. Plants w/ large plecs, and JD.chiclids

Posted: 11 Jan 2009, 19:57
by Richard B
What about a group of Etroplus?

Re: 55gal. Plants w/ large plecs, and JD.chiclids

Posted: 12 Jan 2009, 00:37
by yeattsca
Richard b, What type of cat is that in your pic?

Looks Pretty Sick :ohyeah:

Re: 55gal. Plants w/ large plecs, and JD.chiclids

Posted: 12 Jan 2009, 00:41
by Richard B
- a truly stunning, rare & expensive catfish from Lake Tanganyika.

Re: 55gal. Plants w/ large plecs, and JD.chiclids

Posted: 12 Jan 2009, 09:18
by sidguppy
Beware of the Etroplus; I've kept this tiny Asian cichlid and pound for pound it has more character than the African Hemichromis-group (Jewel Cichlid, Red Acara and the 5 Star General cichlid)

it's already a feisty little nipper all by its own, but once they have fry, a pair can and does clear out a 55 pretty fast

and yes, that's homegrown experience.
I had a great pair, unfortunately the male developed a swimming bladder disease and in the end I had to euthanize it :( because it had to spend all the time lying sideways on the sand.....they stuck together till the very end!
talk about dedication.....the female wouldn't leave his side, not even when he was too far gone to swim up for food. she defended him against all the others, even against the 7" Paratilapia male in the same tank. (by then I had removed it from the small breeder and placed them in my 315G madagascar tank, no I don't put a 7" Paratilapia in a 55G)

I've been bitten by them when the male was still OK. they had spawn after spawn and the only other fish surviving that amount of agression was a very nasty Ancistrus.
I had to remove all the others after a few deaths.

your baby Suncat will have the chance of a snowflake in Hell once Etroplus starts to breed.
btw the Suncat reaches twice the size of a fully grown male Jack Dempsey, and it's a shoaling/grouping ocialfish to boot.....it needs a large tank to do well, nd at least 3-4 members of its own species.

if you start with a group and a pair forms the agression goes completely off the handle as well. they don't play nice at all.

the tank in wich I bred them was a 55G!

apart from all that :twisted: :lol: it's a fish well worth keeping. they're very visible, the breeding behaviour is fascinating and the changes in bodypatterns and color can be squid-like. little chameleons.

I like this fish. :wink:

Re: 55gal. Plants w/ large plecs, and JD.chiclids

Posted: 12 Jan 2009, 16:58
by yeattsca
How big do Etroplus get? And are u saying that I can Keep them in a 55g tank? If so how many? :?

The story with my sun cat is, that when I first was starting out with my aquariums, I saw him in a petsmart, had no ida what type he was, and had never seena fish like it. So naturaly i bout him(he was the only one they had, the guy said somthing about a mixed up shipment). He has grown to about 6.5" and is suprisingly healthy. Reacently i had been told sun cats need to be in groups, so not wanting to over croud my tank I only bout 1 more. This one had a deeper body, and knowing a litlr about outher cats, I asumed and hoped it was a femail. As soon as I got her into the tank she went right over to him and they have seemed to realy enjoy each outher since.
But I don't know if that tends to change. I know it did with my JD's twice, One moment they wer fine, the next fighting, and then it was over. And since you seem to know what ur talking about I thout u might know? :)