# New Project: 300 Gallon Vieja Display



## TheDude84 (Nov 11, 2014)

Hey guys. I'm new to your forum but not keeping cichlids. However I don't have much experience keeping large communities of them. I have normally kept pairs or solo fish.

I recently set up a 300 gallon display tank in my living room; it is 96"x24"x30" (I think it's 30" tall, not hugely important though). I plumbed a Fluval FX6 into each overflow (2 overflows) so I have a huge amount of filtration on this setup. I realize I have broken the "interweb rules" as far as stocking goes; what I did was order a couple of as many Vieja species as I could locate at one source. At this point I have a tank full of little 1"-2" Vieja's. At this point my stocklist looks like this.

Veija Guttulatus (1") x2
Veija Zonatus (1") x2
Veija Regani (1"-2") x3
Veija Breidohri (2") x2
Veija Heterospilus (1") x3
Veija Synspilum "Belize" (2") x3
Veija Melenarum (2") x2
Veija Coatzocoalcos (1") x2
Veija Maculicauda (1") x3

I am wondering about some opinions on how this is going to progress. I'm new to Vieja's and at this point my vague plan is to remove females as I can ID them to try and keep aggression to a minimum. What do you think I'm looking at being able to keep long term, quantity wise? What other words of wisdom do you have for me? What is a good place to sell off the problematic individuals as they get ornery? I'm hoping that the amount of fish will help disperse aggression similar to the way an African setup works; I realize these are much bigger fish, don't blow me up about that.

I realize some of you will disagree with my decision to stock my tank this way, that is fine. At this point this is what I have and any constructive advice would be more than appreciated. I look forward to seeing what you guys think.


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## Deeda (Oct 12, 2012)

Welcome to C-F!!!!

I can't offer any advice on your choices for stocking but I'm inspired by the size of the tank and would love to see some photos of your setup. Check out the link in my signature for how to post pics on this forum.


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## SoBlue98 (Nov 8, 2014)

I don't have any helpful input here either, but I can say that sounds like it will be a beautiful setup. You should definitely post pictures so everyone can see.


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## Iggy Newcastle (May 15, 2012)

There's no guarantee that they'll get along of course, but starting them out together as juveniles is good. If I wanted a male of each species, I'd start with more than 2 juvies to cover my butt. Adding a sub adult/adult male down the line could prove difficult. Regani has a rep for not showing it's best when jot dominant in the tank; just something to bear in mind.


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## CjCichlid (Sep 14, 2005)

As Iggy stated, you can't really predict how a community will coexist. Something that works for one person may turn out to be a complete disaster for another. There are however a few things that can help turn the odds in your favor. Having adequate tank space obviously dictates a lot and should be at the top of the list. Other things like introducing all the fish at the same time, letting them grow up together, tank scape, considering species/conspecific aggression, ect can help as well.

You have a large aquarium, however you also have a long list of large growing cichlids. I think aiming for an all male tank will definitely help diffuse some aggression, so I'd stick with that game plan. However, until they all begin to mature and show their true gender and personalities it's really just a waiting game.

Now, how about some pics?!


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