I have seen many SA/CA cichlids who are very shy and always hide in caves and pots and others who swim around the tank and never hide. I was thinking of starting a SA/CA tank, and I want a cichlid that shows himself! I want to be able to watch it eat without having to turn off the lights and be able to see it show off it's colors all the time. I was wondering if anyone knows of a good way to raise an active happy cichlid. Should I add some silver dollars? Should I not put any hiding places in the tank? Should I have more than one cichlid in the tank? This is just something I would like to know before I start my tank. Thanks.
Cichlid Personality
- Thread starter GT3050
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ive actually never heard of a cichlid hiding from me, and ive never heard of them only comin out at night, but i have some suggestions i guess.
add dither fish of some sort. make sure they are fast and able to get away from the cichlids. the dither fish will give the cichlid a sense of secrurity because they see other fish out.
you must have caves for cichlids to go in! dont have a bare tank. they need to know they have someplace to hide if need be. this also gives them a since of secrurity. its also closer to there natural habitat.
adding other cichlids may help, if you have a big enough tank and compatible species, or they will just fight constantly.
oh, and can you tell me what cichlids you had that were timid? i would like to know because ive never had any.
add dither fish of some sort. make sure they are fast and able to get away from the cichlids. the dither fish will give the cichlid a sense of secrurity because they see other fish out.
you must have caves for cichlids to go in! dont have a bare tank. they need to know they have someplace to hide if need be. this also gives them a since of secrurity. its also closer to there natural habitat.
adding other cichlids may help, if you have a big enough tank and compatible species, or they will just fight constantly.
oh, and can you tell me what cichlids you had that were timid? i would like to know because ive never had any.
I have personally never owned any cichlids; although I am starting a cichlid tank ver soon. 
I have just seen tanks where the cichlids just hide and almost never come out. I have seen a tank where a few Jacks just hid in caves and never came out and I very surprised to see this. They were about 4" or 5" and each seemed to have its own cave where it lived. Someone else told me they had a jag which until fed feeders never came out of their caves.
I have just seen tanks where the cichlids just hide and almost never come out. I have seen a tank where a few Jacks just hid in caves and never came out and I very surprised to see this. They were about 4" or 5" and each seemed to have its own cave where it lived. Someone else told me they had a jag which until fed feeders never came out of their caves.
Thats odd never really seen a timid cichlid unless they were sick. I own a Jag and they are very agressive. You dont mention what tank size you got or going to get. Also do you want to have plants in there this is asked since most cichlids destroy plants there are exceptions though. Do you want aggressive or peaceful fish. How much you willing to cough up to buy a fish???
Hiding places are required for all cichlids as it gives them a sense of security and makes them feal more secured which reduces there stress level which lowers the chance of diseases.
Hiding places are required for all cichlids as it gives them a sense of security and makes them feal more secured which reduces there stress level which lowers the chance of diseases.
I was thinking about getting 2 Blue Acaras and putting them in a tank messuring 36x12x18, (33 gallon). I would probably use an Aquaclear 300 and 150 to provide them with good filtation. Thanks for the replies everyone .
.my firemouths are kind of shy. When I approach they tank they go behind a dense area of plants. After a couple of seconds I can see them peaking around and then they come out. Cichlids, or any other fish, can be shy if water quality is bad, or bad conditions in general. If they are new to the tank they will be shy.
Cichlids are known for their intelligence, owner responsivness, and personality, so it varies from fish to fish, but in general, if the cichlid is in teh right conditions, it won't be too shy. Pet shops aren't known for keeping good care of fish.
Cichlids are known for their intelligence, owner responsivness, and personality, so it varies from fish to fish, but in general, if the cichlid is in teh right conditions, it won't be too shy. Pet shops aren't known for keeping good care of fish.
acaras should work. there not overly aggressive and they dont get real big. i have one, but i dont have 2 in the same tank.
i got 5 blue acara and tons of babies. my blue acaras breed like crazy.
when i feed my blue acaras they come up to the top of the tank and stick their mouths out of the water and i try to just drop food in but their mouths are too small for it to work effectively. but they love to be hand fed.
when i feed my blue acaras they come up to the top of the tank and stick their mouths out of the water and i try to just drop food in but their mouths are too small for it to work effectively. but they love to be hand fed.
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