# thinking of getting blue acaras need advice



## jamesman_1994 (Jun 23, 2009)

hey havent been on in a while so am a bit rusty  
but i am thinking about trading in my oscar for some acaras and a camer tank
i love my oscar but he/she is just not enough color for mum and dad and they want to get more colourfull fish =/ so i was thinking about getitng some blue acara seeing as they are much camer cichlids 
i was wondering what dithers i can have in the tank (i was thinking a variety of teteras)
btw have 3 flying foxes in the tank with the oscar (couldn't catch them so i left them in the tank when i got the oscar) a good 6 or so months on and they are still there, i thought he or she would have eaten them by now but nothing has happened 
just thought i would let you know about that and check if any of you have had similar occurances
fyi the tank is 55g
thanks for any advice =]


----------



## jamesman_1994 (Jun 23, 2009)

and any other suggestions on small/ medium cichlids i could put in a tank wiht dithers 
with some nice colours


----------



## jamesman_1994 (Jun 23, 2009)

since i am looking for small cichlids would kribs and blue acaras be alright together
any other suggestions for small cichlids would be great 
i am totally restocking the tank really so i have so many possibilities =D


----------



## FedEXguy (Feb 24, 2005)

Small(er) and pretty 

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/r ... p?genus=11


----------



## jamesman_1994 (Jun 23, 2009)

thanks 
well i have done a bit of reasearch and i am thinking i will get blue acara's 
i was wondering what dithers would be nive to have with them. thanks


----------



## Chromedome52 (Jul 25, 2009)

First, there are several species that make up the "Blue Acaras". The most common in the hobby is, of course, _Andinoacara latifrons_, or at least that's what we've been calling them. These are actually from Northwestern South America, not Central America, and conditions should reflect that: slightly softer water and lower pH. They are pretty adaptable, though, and will likely adapt to whatever you give them.

I would not mix Acaras with Kribs. Mixing Cichlids from different continents rarely works out. They usually have different recognition behaviors, and an appeasement move by one might be seen as an aggressive display by the other. Also, I think in this particular mix the Acaras are more active and "boisterous" than the Kribs, and would probably intimidate them even without outright aggression. However, I once had a large pair of Kribs spawn in a 55, and several larger SA Cichlids, large catfish, and a couple of others were all shoved into 1/3 of the tank when they brought their fry out of the cave.

In a 55 gallon tank I would probably go with a shoal or a school of 2.5" to 4" Tetras, but I'm not sure what species are available to you. I am aware that Australia has serious limitations on the species they allow into the country. They should probably be fast swimmers, like some of the _Astyanax_, or deep bodied types, like Bleeding Hearts. You'll want 10-12 of a schooling type, a couple less if they are shoalers. If you can get the Columbian Red and Blue Tetras they would be a great choice.

Tetras to NOT use: Rummy Nose, Cardinals, and Neons. The first two are blackwater species that tend to be delicate in the wrong water, while Neons prefer cooler conditions than they are usually given. Glo-lites are cute, but may be too small and tempting to the Acaras. Black Skirts can get big enough, but they are just so darn ugly at full size (the pretty black of the young fades to a dull silver-grey). Buenos Aires Tetras get up to the 4" max size, but can be very aggressive, even toward Cichlids!

If you need some catfish for algae control, I'd probably use Bristlenose Plecos or _Chaetostoma _species. Big enough to be safe with the Cichlids, but small enough to not outgrow the tank.


----------



## dwarfpike (Jan 22, 2008)

Well, one of the blue acaras does come from central america ... just not the commonly seen ones. I kept serpae tetras with mine, they were large enough and fast enough not to be lunch ... and the red offset the green/blues of the pulchers nicely.

I'm not sure I would try another cichlid in with them if you end up with a pair though. My pair used the entire 36" length of my 40 breeder, only leaving a tiny space for another cichlid in your tank if they follow suit.


----------



## Bkeen (Mar 13, 2009)

Just do a couple of the Pulchers and some Columbian Red tetras, they'd offset the colors of each other.


----------



## jamesman_1994 (Jun 23, 2009)

thaks 
yeah i have 3 bristle nose cats, they dont make a big differance to th algee cleaning =/ 
chromedome52 you are so right! there is very little variety for any fish and they are over priced. there is a possibility tho that i might be moving back to america so if i do i will have so many more options! 
my plan is to go to my LFS and trade in my oscar for some blue acaras and by some dithers, hopefully schooling fish. i was thinking giant danios or what ever they are calld but they are 4$ each here so if i get 10 that is $40! hopefully there are some cheaper large tetras
was wondering, should i get about 4 acaras to get a breeding pair. 
thanks


----------



## jamesman_1994 (Jun 23, 2009)

just wondering would a blue acara and a FM go well together. because i have owned fire mouths before and they are fin to have. but i do want the acaras to breed for their great breeding colors. i am tied between the two 
if i get them small would it be possible to have the two species grow up together? or would there be desputes? 
if they are not compatible i am leaning towards the acaras, but if there is a great looking firemouth i might get him or her (but i am doubting that because it is rare to get one with great color here, all the good color has been bred out ......) 
thanks for the advice =D


----------



## jamesman_1994 (Jun 23, 2009)

if you had any ideas for a small community tank, it would be much apreciated as well 
(some salvinis also caught my eye) and was wondering if it would be alright to have one of them in the tank or if i should just stick with more timid cichlids


----------



## jamesman_1994 (Jun 23, 2009)

would a pair of acaras and a salvini be compatible if i had good decoration


----------



## PfunMo (Jul 30, 2009)

I'm finding rainbow cichlids (herotilapia multispinosa) to fit in quite well in my community tank. Not sure if they are on your list, though. I will tell you about them and see if they might fit. Very tame, do not grow large and tolerate others quite well. Very adapable on water parameters. They have a yellow/black pattern which changes dramaticly when breeding. I have a 75 gallon with 6- rainbow cichlids and started with 5 black-skirt tetras as dithers. I am finding no agresstion to need the dithers. Since I have added an odd assortment of smaller fish that do not fit other tanks as well. Now there is one lemon tetra, 7 green severum -3/4 inch each, and a handfull of guppies. An albino brislenose does cleanup. Rather an odd group but they all seem quite happy other than the lemon tetra. The rest of his group fell victim to handling errors and he does not seem to find his comfort zone anywhere without a school. At some point the severum may get too large but that seems quite a way off. The largest rainbow is 4 inch and seems to bother nobody at all.


----------



## jamesman_1994 (Jun 23, 2009)

yeah i will look into the rainbows
but any advice on the salvinis and acaras or firemouths would be good as well.
i am leaning towards salvini and acara but i am not sure if that will work


----------



## gcollin (May 7, 2010)

i love acara's and they are a nice addition to any tank, you should get them


----------



## Chromedome52 (Jul 25, 2009)

Salvini are the prettiest DEVILS you will ever meet. They are small, but one of the meanest CA cichlids I've ever kept. In other words, no, I would not recommend them with Blue Acaras.


----------



## jamesman_1994 (Jun 23, 2009)

would they be able to go with FM's 
or would it be possible to go with a breeding air of them??
how about 2 acaras and a fm? just looking at the possibilities 
maby a nice community tank would be great....... 
i really like the salvinis acaras and Fm's so i am just lookign for maby a combo of them 
would 2 FM's and a salvini be alright?? or maby 2 fma and 2 salvinis 
and any other suggestions on some nice medium sized cichlids..........
thanks again


----------



## jamesman_1994 (Jun 23, 2009)

did a little more reasearch on the salvinis and soem suggestions for tank mates were convicts and Fire mouths 
what would be the best mix up using those fish?? acaras seam too delicate for the fish i would like to keep with them =[


----------

