First off, thanks everyone for the feedback.
Secondly, I'll address some earlier concerns brought up by Katie, and then I'll move on to IDunnoWhy's questions...just to keep things roughly in chronological order.
JW addressed most of Katie's concerns, so there isn't a whole lot for me to add. This is where a video would be extremely helpful, because it lets you witness all of the intricacies of the tank dynamics firsthand. It will allow you to get a 'feel' for how these fish are living out their lives.
I will post one later today, so stay tuned!
IDunnoWhy said:
When you feed those guys, do they all eat together?
Feeding time takes place in much the same manner as you described of your severums. The oscar is first to start nabbing up pellets and any other food offerings, but the convict quickly follows suit. Convict 'cleans up' after the oscar quite a bit by collecting a large portion of the food that the oscar spews out of his gills. These two are often side-by-side when feeding, and the convict does the classic sideways/tilted submissive position whenever the oscar approaches. Occasionally he'll dart off if he feels the oscar is looking particularly menacing, but mostly they seem to co-habitate quite peacefully together.
While this is taking place, the salvini slowly approaches from behind his flower pot. He colors-up a fair bit, sticks himself out plainly in the open, and nabs pellets from the surface of the water. Oscar and convict ignore him for the most part. Sometimes the convict will give chase, but the salvini always has a chance to feed a fair bit before this happens.
Meanwhile, the firemouth can be seen quickly darting out from his cave and scavenging-up any bits of food that happen to drift nearby. For the most part he does remain hidden though, as a great deal of food scraps often end up drifting into the cave without him having to leave in order to feed. Once in a while the oscar and/or convict will catch a glimpse of him sneaking out, and they'll give chase. However, he always ducks under cover well before they can get close.
All in all, neither the oscar nor convict really prevent anyone else from feeding in any way.
IDunnoWhy said:
Do you find the fish chasing constantly? or is it more subdued in there than that?
Much more subdued. And again, the video will show this better than I can describe.
Essentially the oscar and convict can be thought of as one unit. They co-exist peacefully, and the convict freely submits to the oscar whenever they get 'too close' together. It is now quite rare that I will see the oscar give any sort of chase in the convict's direction.
The salvini ventures out into the open more than he used to.
He is a fair bit smaller than the oscar and con though, so he does keep his distance. Oscar appears to have mostly given up on chasing him, but the convict will end up chasing after him most of the time. When that happens, the sal simply gets out of the way and/or ducks for cover, at which point the con moves about his business.
The firemouth stays in his cave 99% of the time.
Occasionally I'll see him venture out to the nearby rockpile to scavenge, but he promptly retreats whenever the oscar and/or convict approach. As a result, the firemouth and salvini have about zero contact. I am envisioning moving the firemouth before too long because of his apparent reclusiveness. In the long-run I have my doubts that he'd be able to hang in there with his other tankmates. In time I think the oscar would completely ignore him, but he may not be so fortunate when it comes to the con and sal.
IDunnoWhy said:
any plans for dither fish to spread the aggression?
...Do all 4 of those fish have the same dietary requirements, or do you have to supplement individual fish?
Nope, no plans for dithers.
I just don't think they're necessary based on what I'm seeing in this setup.
All of the fish in this tank share pretty much the same dietary requirements.
The oscar and convict mostly eat pellets. Salvini comes out and nabs a pellet or two as well. I also include flakes to help supplement feedings, as I find that they tend to get down to the bottom quicker where sal---and especially the firemouth---are able to scavenge on them.
Keep your eyes peeled for that video I promised! *DRUMMER*
BV
