Green Terror

[dave76]

I have never kept cichlids before, I have read mixed things about green terrors, I am quite interested in getting some. I currently have a cycled 55 gal aquarium with a pictus catfish, two chinese algea eaters, and a striped raphael catfish, How many terrors should I get and will the fish I have hold up to the terror?

[dcallen]

Hi,

I have never had any personal experience with keeping Green Terrors but what I do know is that are very agressive, and with your 55 gallon tank I would put only 1 Green Terror in the tank, putting 2 would require a much larger tank say 125 gallon minimum and a 150 or greater would be better as they are very territorial and need a lot of space. I don't know if your cats will be safe or not, I'll leave that to the more qualified members. Just my 2 cents worth. Good luck with your tank.

[dave76]

also if anyone in the area knows a good place to get green terrors or other cichlids please elaborate.

[demon_surfer]

green terrors are fairly common, your LFS should stock them...petsmart does carry them too. other than that do a google search for green terrors and see what comes up =o

you can also try tangledupincichlids.com though they have a minimum purchasing limit

[dave76]

I have read that to find a breeding pair you should start with like 4 or 5 of varying size, is this correct?

[ScottoMacD]

Originally posted by dave76
I have read that to find a breeding pair you should start with like 4 or 5 of varying size, is this correct?

Cichlid breeding selection is always complex. You can't just throw a male and a female toether and hope that they will breed. Yes it has happened with it is the exception not the rule.
The reasoning for the buying of multiple fish is to let the eventual couple choose and pair off. This will increase the chances of spawning. Once they have paired off You will have remove the other fish or chances are they will be killed by the new pair.

As for the varing size sure why not? As long as the size factor and differences isn't huge between biggest and smallest there should be no problems.

Your best bet to find a breeding pair is to get them all as juveniles and let nature take it's course.

I cheated a bit with my breeding JD's. I bought them as 4 - 5 inch juvies. Took the most domiant male from the store and then took 3 females. Threw them in a tank and had a pair in less than a week. Moved the other 2 females to my other tanks. Not before a couple of serious beating one night though. I had my first brood 5 days later.

[dave76]

The reason for varying size(that I read) was that it was hard to tell the difference between juvnile males and females since they would not have a nunchal hump.

I was also interested in JD's but I read they they were more hyper aggressive and did not have as much personality as the green terrors

[ChilDawg]

Originally posted by dave76
I have read that to find a breeding pair you should start with like 4 or 5 of varying size, is this correct?

There better not be a large variation in size, or else aggression will lead to attrition. It is recommended to get six juvies, as this somehow mathematically almost guarantees a match (more than just male to female...) and allowing them to pair off as they grow. I believe that nine would virtually guarantee a match...at least, that's what relevant lit. tells me.

[dave76]

After I get a pair, would the 55 gallon tank be enough for them?
I have a friend that has a JD and a couple of others in a 40 gallon, they fight sometimes but do not kill each other. Is this because they are different kinds and are not breeding?

[ChilDawg]

I believe 55 is the minimum recommended to keep a single GT throughout its life, so you might want to think bigger for breeding.

[demon_surfer]

GTs can get over 1 foot long so a 55 is a little small for even just one larger specimin...most of the people i have talked to recommend a 75gallon for a single..i would say at least a 90 or 100 or so for a pair

[ScottoMacD]

It is very rare that you will get a Terror to grow over 10 inches.
Very Rare.

Like everything else in life it happens, but not too often.
I have seen a huge 12 inch male. He was a monster. But he also had spent his whole life in a huge 400 + gallon tank. Another rarity.

A 55 would work nicely for a single fish.

My 9 inch female synsplium is in my 55 living very happily.

[dave76]

I purchased 1 green terror last night, after the disorentation of moving wore off he seemed to be right at home in my tank, I had build a cave for him before hand. He is a juvinile but this has not stopped him from staying true to his namesake, he has harrased every fish in my tank with the exception of my pictus, which is still much larger than him, but he runs him off when he gets near his "cave" but the pictus runs the GT off as he nears the tree stump i have for the catfish. Thank you for all the advice u guys gave me yesterday.

[Cypherman]

GT's are not that aggressive, save for the hyper aggressive fish you occasionally find among all cichlid species. Mine did like to remain dominant though and would assert himself if he felt challenged. As for mating, I just introduced the male to the female's tank and it worked out quite well, although doing the opposite might be risky if the female isnt ready.