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firemouth!55 gallon?

8K views 14 replies 7 participants last post by  Christople 
#1 ·
hello who ever ponders past this i have some questions about fire-mouths and their compatibility with my tank mates?

- i have a 55 gallon that is home to -
- 10 harla rasboras
-6 odessa barbs
-6 silvertips
-6 guppies
-6 cories
- 1 pleco
i was wondering about adding a centerpiece cichlid. i like firemouths in particular would there be a chance if i could add one?

if not maybe some angels?

something gennerally easy to find, at a lfs? :)
 
#4 ·
If you add a small, 1 or 2 inch Firemouth, you should be okay but there is always a risk of him eating the smaller fish. Some other cichlids you could go with are Cupid Cichlids, Keyholes, Bolivian Rams, and you could also try a species of Gourami
 
#5 ·
It is possilbe some fish could be eatin if they are small but that's with any fish. I would say try a small one. Keep him well fed and buy him young I don't think it will be a problem. But the fish ElectricBlueJackDempsey suggested will defiantly be a better fit.
 
#6 ·
I would not recommend a Firemouth with those small fish. While it is "peaceful" for a cichlid, it is still a cichlid, and at 7 inches should not be housed with fish other than appropriately-sized ones. The Odessa Barb is the only fish listed that should be suitable.

As for angels, they should be in a group of 5+ as they are shoaling fish. A 55g is fine for this, although the active Odessa Barb are not good tankmates. And the guppies will be eaten for certain once the angels are mature.
 
#9 ·
They were referring to the name of the person not the fish
 
#11 ·
Yea sorry for the confusion. 7" is a bit of a stretch for firemouths. Males top out at around 6" and females4-5" and that's including their fin trailers. I do agree there are better options but firemouthi are not that bad givin its a 55 gallon and its a solo fish. In my noob days I had a meeki coexist well with an angel, some black skirt tetras, bleeding heart tetras, and cory catfish in a 29. Every cichlid is different which is why I said try it if he really wants a firemouth. Heck I have seen red devils coexist with platties and mollies.
 
#10 ·
i have seen some geo's that i liked but i dont really remember the name it was some tapajos red head idk would that be compatible, or at least could you name some more common geos that could work in my tank?
\
 
#12 ·
Red Striped Eartheater (Geophagus Surinamensis )

Pearl Cichlid (Geophagus Brasiliensis)

Red Hump Eartheater (Geophagus steindachneri)

Oiapoque Eartheater (Geophagus camopiensis)
 
#13 ·
^ A comment about eartheaters. People keep them as they want but they usually prefer to be kept in a large groups. Keeping a eartheater by itself would be like keeping a frontosa or mbuna by itself. It just isn't what I would recommend. Except for the 'pearl cichlid". They are a bit different and I would keep that guy by himself if you got him but they get quite big and can be a bit on the aggressive side.
 
#14 ·
I had a firemouth in my 35 gallon b4, about 3 inches long with a variety of tetras and rainbows and he would chase my fish around a lot and nip at them so i ended up returning him. Then again u have a 55 gal so if u buy him small he might be ok, you might want to go with a dwarf cichlid instead like a geo or pair of german rams or kribs.
 
#15 ·
I like kribs and I have a pair that is guarding there like week old fry for a while.
 
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