Jack Dempsey with African cichlids??

[Urnesha]

Hi all,

I recently bought a 30 gallon tank and decided to move away from my usual live bearers (I have platies and guppies in my 2 smaller tanks) and instead go with cichlids. The tank came with a Jack Dempsey that was about 3 inches long at the time. I added 4 African cichilds - 2 electric blue ahis, 1 lab electric yellow and 1 red zebra however I'm starting to think that this was a bad idea.

All four African cichilds were about 2 inches when I bought them. A couple times (I've had the tank about a month now) I added small feeders. The African cichlids do not fight among themselves but all of them are being picked on by the Jack Dempsey which has EXPLODED in size over the last couple weeks! He's now almost twice their size and is constantly harassing them. I feel sorry for the poor fish.

I have an empty 20g tank and I'm thinking of separating them but can't decide what the best mix is. Would the Electric Blues be fine with JD once they get a little larger? Should I take the JD out and put him in the 20g by himself? I read that they can get to 10inches! Is this common?

Help!

 

[ibr3ak]

You should decide which you want to keep (jd's vs africans) and get a larger tank. Both mbuna (haps especially) and jd's will outgrow your 20 and 30 gal tanks.

 

[mostlycichlids]

I agree.

 

[Urnesha]

Thanks for the responses guys.

I absolutely can't afford a new tank right now. If I put the Jack Dempsey into the 20g by himself, how long do you think I'll have before he outgrows it? I should be able to buy a bigger tank in a few months.

Same question, I guess for the 4 Africans.

If a tank is large enough I JD's ever be kept with Africans?

 

[ibr3ak]

If the jd is still a small juvie you could keep it in a 20 for a couple months until you get something bigger, just keep in mind that they grow rather fast.

Try not to mix new world with africans, the water chemistry is different, the diet is different and the way each interprets the others aggression is also different.

 

[Urnesha]

Okay thanks for the info. I might have to look for a home for him then as I can't buy two large tanks. Pity though cause he's gorgeous.

 

[Pittbull]

Yeah if you want to stick with African Cichlids and keep the 2 small tanks i would get rid of all the fish you have now and do Tanganyika shell dwellers both of those tanks are too small for those fish you have chosen..

 

[jbn7474]

I have a 90 gallon with a female jack with mixed mbuna and they get along fine. I read that jacks are diffrent than south american cichlids as the rivers and lakes are harder in central america, where the jack comes from. I have also seen others that mix cons with africans too. Its a risk, but I have a pretty mellow jack and the mbunas just ignore her. So its been done here with success and have had this setup for about a year.