african butterfly fish

[brody]

to start i didnt know where to put this so i put it here

anyway my question is will a butterfly fish be okay in a tank with 2 festive cichlids and 9 harlequins ive heared they eat small fish and what is the minimum size tank for them?
many thanks to anyone who answers

 

[misterking]

They should be fine with the festive cichlids, but the harlequins are likely to become lunch. Minimum tank I'd suggest a 20 gallon. Ensure a tight-fitting cover, these are notorious jumpers.

 

[brody]

thanks for the info do you think if i buy it small it will just get use to them being there?

 

[misterking]

Even when small.. they've got surprisingly large mouths. You could try it, but you'd have to separate if you notice any mysterious disappearances.. Having read about, people seem to have different experiences. I guess if you feed him well on meaty foods (frozen bloodworm for example), you might be ok. It'd just need very close monitoring.

 

[brody]

will a butterfly fish try and eat a small female blue ram or a molly?

 

[Newman]

it will eat anything that is small enough to BEGIN fitting in its mouth. even if the fish isn't small enough to swallow, this will not discourage the butterfly from trying to eat it

 

[sushi*roll]

they are pigs, and carnivores so yes