CichlidFish.com - Fish That Think.

HI eveyrone

I have a 12cm gold oscars, AND i was wondering if i could keep it with these particular cichlids-  1 electric blue,  4 convicts, 4 red jewels and a red empress...

I am thinking of putting them in togther after the cichlids reach about 10cm in length all in a 4 foot tank

will it work??

Hi, Skater, and welcome to the forum.  That 4-foot tank, is it a 55, a 75, a 90, or what?  My immediate reaction is that you're pretty crowded in there already once all your fish get to be full-grown and try to establish territories.  Also, though not absolutely crucial, Oscars generally prefer somewhat different water conditions than the other fish you list.  I'd suggest waiting till the fish you have are all grown before adding anything else. 

hey Dan

yeah its 55gal, yeah i know it will be crowded, but i mainly want to keep the oscar with 1 electric blue and 4 jewel cichlids mainly, are those togther fine? you said the water conditions are different for both these fish? in what way?

thanks

Hi, Skater:  The electric blue is a fish from the African Rift Lakes, and in the wild inhabits waters with a fairly high pH (more base), while the Jewels, also African, come from waters more neutral or slightly acidic, as do most of the South Americans, such as Oscars.  Having said that, it's also true that most of the fish we buy in pet shops have been captive-bred for generations, and are not as sensitive to slightly different water quality than they would have been if they were wild caught.  I have seen Malawi cichlids kept with Central & South Americans, so it can be done, but you ought to know that it isn't ideal. 

The other drawback to your scheme is the available space.  Cichlids are quite territorial, and if there isn't enough floor space for them to carve out territories, warfare (with casualties) is usually the result.  Jewels have a well-earned reputation for this, especially if they pair up and start breeding.

The Oscar will eventually grow to about a foot long, and over 2 lbs, which will put a heavy bioload on your filtration system, and Oscars start getting quarrelsome in that size tank at around 7". 

It just sounds like a few too many fish in too small a space.

Oscars ARE cichlids! If other cichlids can fit in the oscars mouth it will become lunch. Just keep that in mind. Oscars arent neccessarily aggressive. they're more opportunistic. keep them well fed and they wont fight (aside from courting).