Pirannah Cichlid

[Ndavis]

Actually it's not a pirannah cichlid it's a convict cichlid. It has killed everything that has been put in the tank with it. Only other aggressive fish with the help of the pet store has been put in the tank. It even killed an algae eater and a snail. I'm tring to find out whether it is a male or a female. Black stripes with an orange to gold color belly at times. Earlier today I went to see it and it had blue lips and fins. Can anyone help me out here?

 

[Cichlid-Man]

Female

Males get larger and have no orange belly. They will get defensive. Only bigger tougher cichlids can handle their pressure.

 

[Flex26]

What size tank do you have?

I have a single female convict with 7 zebra danios and I have not had any problems. Not even when she layed eggs. Of course, I have a 29g and the danios are amazingly fast. So, the fish do pretty well at staying out of each other's way.

Cichlid-Man disagrees with my set up. But I haven't had any problems. Nor do I anticipate any problems. Aside from the occasional temper flare up, it almost seems as if my convict has accepted her tankmates.

 

[J'sRamAir]

What other fish did you have in there with it?

 

[Ndavis]

Is this a male or a female?

 

[Cichlid-Man]

That is a female. Males do not get that orange color on their belly.

 

[Ndavis]

Thanx for the info Cichlid-Man. Now that I know I have to get a male, any suggestions for size? bigger or smaller than the female? Just realized that you had already answered that it was a female sorry about that. They will have a 15 gallon tank for the time being till I can find a bigger one unless I can get away with the one I have.. Also what should I put in the tank besides the fish, ornaments/ plants for hiding the babies so they don't get eaten?

 

[Brockway]

A broken half of a ceramic pot works well. If its just convicts, the parents definitely won't eat them. They are awesome parents. And I doubt they'd let any other fish in a 15 survive if you had a mated pair.

 

[UKSouth]

Males are are quite alot larger than females when adult (up to around 5"), they prefer some rockwork in the tank and should do fine with anything fast enough to keep out their way. In a 15 gallon though they would be best kept alone and will need a 30 gallon at some point.

I have kept Cichlids for 20 years and Convicts were the first cichlids I ever bought. They do breed like rabbits but I have a soft spot for them and may well give them another go one day just for old times sake.