acara and geophagus ideas?

[lilRia]

I'm the one looking to put something in my 75g planted... there is still nothing in it but the two BN plecos and two pictus cats! after much indecision I'm thinking I'd like to do some colorful acaras and geophagus. any ideas? all though welcome as I'm totally new to cichlids!

 

[mchambers]

I've always felt that you need a six foot tank to hold geophagus comfortably, so I've never kept them. Maybe others with experience will weigh in.

 

[jonclark96]

You could keep red head Tapajos geos in a 75, but I would think that geos would disturb planted tanks when they sift the substrate for food. A good option may be some of the dwarf acara species like laetacara would be a good fit.

 

[Becca]

Biotodoma cupido. You're welcome 😉

 

[lilRia]

Biotodoma cupido. You're welcome 😉

ahhhh!!! so cute 😍

 

[mchambers]

ahhhh!!! so cute 😍

Yes, they’re great, but not easy to find.

Keyhole cichlids would work and are easy to find in LFSs.

 

[Freakgecko]

Completely agree with Jon. Geo Tapajós would work in a 75 (would be tight) but not the best fit for a planted tank. With that said, I keep a group of guianacara daycra in a planted tank (on eco complete) so it’s doable. That group has been there for at least a couple years, maybe 3. Spawn routinely, but have buried several crypts lol

 

[Becca]

Yes, they’re great, but not easy to find.

Keyhole cichlids would work and are easy to find in LFSs.

They're not the hardest to find, either. Check in with Londontowne Tropicals to see if they'd special order them for you. I know JLW has managed to get them for me in the past, too. They're also really great in a planted tank - they look and behave somewhat like Geos, but don't dig stuff up.

 

[mchambers]

They're not the hardest to find, either. Check in with Londontowne Tropicals to see if they'd special order them for you. I know JLW has managed to get them for me in the past, too. They're also really great in a planted tank - they look and behave somewhat like Geos, but don't dig stuff up.

I assume you are referring to Biotodomo cupido, and not the keyholes. Batfish has gotten them for me in the past, and I've also gotten some from The Wet Spot, but that involved overnight shipping, so wasn't cheap.

My point was just that I've never seen them in a local store or at an auction. Special order or Wet Spot/Aquabid are your only options, and may not be what someone new to cichlids wants to do.

 

[Becca]

I assume you are referring to Biotodomo cupido, and not the keyholes. Batfish has gotten them for me in the past, and I've also gotten some from The Wet Spot, but that involved overnight shipping, so wasn't cheap.

My point was just that I've never seen them in a local store or at an auction. Special order or Wet Spot/Aquabid are your only options, and may not be what someone new to cichlids wants to do.

Yeah, Cupidos. I guess they're not a "beginner" cichlid, per-se, but I don't usually think of Geos or Acaras as beginner cichlids either. Guianacaras or Keyholes are both pretty easy to keep, so they would be good beginner fish. Bolivian Rams are another one that comes to mind. They're not super small, but they don't get huge and are fairly forgiving.

 

[lilRia]

thanks, guys! I've been looking at the threadfin, yellow, the regular blue and the electric blue acaras. I've only seen the EBA in stores, in photos it seems like the regular ones are more colorful. I do quite like those guianacaras! I was looking at the tapajo geophagus as well as the winemelleri as centerpieces... I'm not married to the idea of having one though! since I cannot cram them all in, would you mind giving me some stocklist ideas? thanks 😊

 

[Freakgecko]

thanks, guys! I've been looking at the threadfin, yellow, the regular blue and the electric blue acaras. I've only seen the EBA in stores, in photos it seems like the regular ones are more colorful. I do quite like those guianacaras! I was looking at the tapajo geophagus as well as the winemelleri as centerpieces... I'm not married to the idea of having one though! since I cannot cram them all in, would you mind giving me some stocklist ideas? thanks 😊

Remember that most of the eartheaters require groups to feel comfortable.

Krobia xinguensis is an interesting acara that stays relatively manageable in size and wouldn’t decimate plants to my knowledge. Not super easy to find though, but easily one of my favorite acaras. Incan Stone Fish is another interesting acara, with a Latin name that’s pure insanity. They could be a fun species to work with. I see them on lists from time to time, not at anywhere local though

 

[DiscusnAfricans]

I think the winemelleri get big if I'm thinking of the right ones. As Kyle said, I'd pick one type and go with a group; whether thats guianacar, biotodoma, red head geos, acaras, etc...

You can still keep your pictus cats and BNPs. Beyond that I'd add a group of schooling fish big enough to not be eaten, whether larger tetras, danios, etc. I think at that point you'd have a well-stocked tank.

 

[Freakgecko]

Yeah, I have a general stocking list for peaceful South Americans that scales up with the tank size. For a 6’ tank, my pattern is (including my real life stock list in my 180):

1 large cichlid/pair of larger cichlids as centerpiece (uaru)
6 medium cichlids, typically social species (geo Tapajós red head)
2 borderline dwarf cichlids (burjuquina vittatus, yellow throat acara)
1/1 pair of dwarf cichlid (ivanacara adoketa, single male who is a bully)
1 or 2 schools of tetra (lemon tetras)
Group of peaceful catfish (hoplo cats, can’t recommend these guys enough)
1-2 plecos (Royal pleco).

For a 75, I would scale it down (examples for species in Parentheses):
One medium pair of centerpiece cichlids (krobia xinguensis, aequidens pulcher either reg or electric blue, cleithracara maroni, biotodoma cupido, etc)
6 smaller social cichlids (guianacara would be good IMO)
1 school of tetras (penguin, panda, lemon, emperor, kerri, rummynose, etc)
2-3 catfish or school of cories (hoplo cats are always a good choice, porthole cats would work as well)
1 pleco (avoid the larger guys, nothing over 8” IMO)

That stock list will provide variation, and as long as you are decent at water changes will be just fine. Hopefully that helps a bit.

 

[lilRia]

that is super helpful, thank you!!