Keyholes & German Rams?

[RobD]

Okay, saw some Keyholes at the LFS last week, and I haven't been able to stop thinking about them. Did some reading, and I think I want to add a couple of them to my tank. Problem is, I have 5 female German Rams in my tank currently. Would I be getting into problems with Keyholes, seeing as they are bottom/mid dwellers as well? Will the rams leave the keyholes alone, or will they be considered territory threats? For instance, the rams leave the cories alone, even though they are both bottom dwellers.

Tank is a 46 gallon bow-front filtered with an Eheim 2026, 30% water change every weekend. My numbers are all fine, not showing signs of overstocking. I'm starting to get some real plants in the tank - those WalMart bulbs (both types), some kind of grass, and some Anacharis.

Current inhabitants are listed in my signature.

 

[Cichlid-Man]

Well, you might see a scuffle or two. This could be a chance to maybe return some of the female rams and trade them for a couple keyholes. You could even shoot for a male ram also. I'm not sure that, that isn't to many rams in one area, being all female i guess has worked on your side. Personally i'd try and get 2 pairs of rams and maybe a pair of keyholes. I'd trade 2-3 of my rams in for them...if it were me.

Its hard to say if you will really run into any problems. Cichlids tend to be different, like humans they all have different personalities. Some might nip, or they might live in complete peace.

 

[RobD]

Yeah, I had always wanted just two pairs. First I ended up with 2 females. Tried again, got a male and a female. One female died, replaced with two more females. Had a few egg layings, but after a few days the female ate them all up. Then the male died. Tried one more time with two I thought were male, and they ended up being females. They killed off one of the newer females by keeping her in the mid/high area of the tank. Result: 5 females that have formed alliances, similiar to the Survivor show. In other words, "We're your buddy now, but tomorrow you better go find a new spot to live". Walk up to the tank and say "Boo", and they form a tribe. Comical, which makes me like 'em even more.

As for trading them in, the LFS is an hour drive one-way. Four of these rams came from the LPS (stock similiar to WalMart, but at least species get their own tanks). Neither really does trade-ins, more like "thanks for the free fish". So I really don't want to part with them for free. My tank at work (35 gallon hex) already has two females rams, and I could probably move one into it.

But it sounds like I could get a pair of Keyholes, which is all I want to do. Anything more than that, and I'd be way overstocked. I'm at ~60 inches of fish in this 46, and a pair of Keyholes would add 8". At least I was smart and bought a decent filter!