Lab with firemouth

[mostlycichlids]

I have a yellow lab I am moving to a 55gal and A firemouth I have to move because of some agresion with cons. I was thinking of trying them together in the 55 gallon the lab is 3in and the firemouth 1.5 in. what do you think can this possibly work? I know the hardness of water is different but the lab has been in medium soft water sense I have had him and done pretty well. Maybe some other fish later as well.

 

[atc_ben]

(I replied to this in the General Freshwater section too.)

Some people will have issues mixing an african and a central american cichlid in the same tank on account of them requiring different water parameters (pH, hardness). I once had a firemouth and a yellow lab in the same tank for a few years and both fish did great. In fact, whenever I added anyone new to their tank, they both bullied the new guy while they ignored each other. I would worry about the difference in size though. Both of my fish were the same size when I put them together. A 3in. yellow lab will be a handful for your 1.5in firemouth unless it's just really full of p*ss and vinegar. A 55gal is plenty of space for 4.5in of fish to get away from each other though. I would try it, but keep them monitored for aggression issues.

Edit: That wasn't a yellow lab, but an orange zebra. My bad, but I would still try it.