Big Angel Fish

[LMOUTHBASS]

hey guys got a question -
i got a 55 g with a couple of young angel fish that are prob 3-4 inches or so - i think they're still juveniles but def not babies anymore - anyhow i got another one that is prob in the 4-5 inch range and is slightly bigger than my biggest one in my big tank - this guy is just finishing quarantine in a 10 g - which is obviously far to small for him - my problem is i have tried to move him to the big tank a few times and it has been unsuccesfull - once he gets in there he thinks it fight time - he harrasses every other angel in the tank - so i move him back to the 10 - but the 10 is just to small n i know he shoulnt be in there - is this normal for him to act like this? will he try to kill the other fish? or is he just establishing his territory - i know angels are nippy with each other but he seems a bit over the top compared to what i've seen in the past!
thanks, LMB

[OrionGirl]

Fairly normal. He's the biggest, so is trying to establish dominance over the smaller fish already in the tank. You'll have to decide if you want to risk it, as he could kill the other fish, or could just chase them around a bit and then ignore them. Hard to say--if you have a couple days where you'll be around to monitor them, I'd get a tank divider, and split the tank for a few days. This way they can see each other, but not get to each other. They can get used to the site of each other, and then it's less likely that they will be as aggressive.

[JSchmidt]

I think the tank divider (for at least a couple of weeks) is your best option other than getting a second big angel fish. It's hard adding angels to existing tanks. These fish don't seem like they're that tough, but they can easily harass smaller tankmates to death.

Good luck,
Jim

[silentskream]

i'd go with the tank divider too. seems like it would be your best bet.

on another note, how big do angels get?