Topic: over stocked 180

[adamsfish]

just got a new 75 gal tank as i'm currently over stocked in my 180.Got 1 texes,1 gt,2 cons,2 jds,1 rd,1pleco,1 firemouth, and 1 striped raphel catfish. Just found a new home for 1 jd,What do you guys think i should put in the 75? Would i be pushing it if i put the gt,1 con,and firemouth in their? Also would i be able to add a pleco to the 75 also?

[JC]

I'd keep the two JD's and put them in the 75 with a pleco. Then I'd give away one of the cons and leave the GT, one con, Texas and Raphael in the 180

*EDIT*
Btw, I meant that if the JD's are indeed male and female. Two males could cause problems.

[adamsfish]

think they are both male as they are fighting each outher alot

[Gerry]

I think you might be ok with your first idea of 1 Gt, 1 Fm and 1Con along with your Pleco.
 
That leaves you with 1 Rd, 1 Texan, 1 Con, 1 Jd and a Striped Ralph in you 180.
 
Thats quite a combo in the 180, not sure how that will work when they get big. (no experience with Rd's or Texans)

[Ezekial]

I would put the JD, FM, and con adn pleco in the 75.  That combo might be your best bet but i'd make sure it's the female con you put in there. 

That leaves you with 1 GT, 1 RD, 1 Texas, 1 con, and a striped Raph.  This leaves you with the 3 most aggressive cichlids in the bigger tank with the male con who should be able to take care of himself.  I would think this option could work but from my experience with RD's, he'll be the one that dictates how things are going.  They can be nasty.

How big are these fish and how long have they been together?  That will make a difference as well. 

[adamsfish]

The texes is about 9 inches and rd is around 5 to 6, but the most agressive fish is the gt. The rd is really quite mellow, for now anyways

[mrbigfish]

Yeah I guess if I had to move something it'd be the 2 JD's and pleco into the 75.

[adamsfish]

now i'm down to 1 jd

[Ezekial]

The texes is about 9 inches and rd is around 5 to 6, but the most agressive fish is the gt. The rd is really quite mellow, for now anyways

From what i've heard of Texas cichlid's I'm surprised yours isn't causing trouble.  Maybe it's a female.  I think RD males are worse than the female so you may have lucked out on that one too.  RD's will usually develop an attitude somewhere around 6" so your's is either at that stage and just isn't going to be super aggro or is approaching that stage.  GT's can be nasty too (there are named green TERRORS) though i wouldn't necessarily put them in the same category as RD's in general.  It could be your GT is a male and is exerting his dominance while you have a female texas and RD.  Of course i'm purely speculating.  

Yeah I guess if I had to move something it'd be the 2 JD's and pleco into the 75.

He got rid of one of the JD's so that should help quite a bit.

BTW what size is the GT?  

[adamsfish]

gt is about 6 inches,so is the rd

[JC]

Whoa! I totally missed the RD and FM 

[Ezekial]

Most cichlids hit an "adolescent" stage where they kind of develop an attitude.  For many of the bigger ones like the GT's, RD's, O's, and Texas cichlids it is usually around the 6" size so that makes sense for your GT.  

I'd still go with the set up i mentioned before.  It splits up your fish well in terms of aggression and keeps things pretty balanced.  Of course i'm praising my own opinion so take that with a grain of salt.

[Dan]

Once that RD grows up, your probably gonna have all kinds of aggression problems, as most RDs do not mix with any other fish well at all. I would seriously consider taking him back and then, working out a scenerio, of what some of the others said.

[adamsfish]

their is no way i could take him back,he is my fav fish.If he really turns into trouble guess i'll have to get him a tank of his own. Hard to say how he is going to be i know they have a bad rap,but i think this one is going to be fairly mellow.

[Ezekial]

They can be mellow it's just not likely.  As long as you know what to expect and have a back up plan (like getting a bigger tank) then you have the right attitude about it.  There are no guarantees with fish aggression so it is possible you'll have that rare mellow RD.  I hope you do and your tank works out well.  Good luck.