# Malawi Peacock Attacking Venustus Cichlid



## DeanG13 (Jan 17, 2010)

I have an assorted cichlid tank which includes two oscars and various africans. My malawi peacock constantly harasses my venustus cichlid and chases it around the tank nipping at its fins. The malawi hardly ever gets a good bite, due to the venustus' speed. Occasionally the oscars get into the act and gang up on the venustus. I've tried moving the decorations around in the tank and creating more hiding spots but nothing seems to help. Anyone have any suggestions for alleviating this issue or giving my venustus an upper hand in this seemingly never-ending struggle??


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## smellsfishy1 (May 29, 2008)

The only way to solve this problem is to properly stock the tank.
Some of those fish will have to be removed and rehomed, some fish species just don't go together.
Also, keep in mind the limitation of the tank size, some fish just get too big for small tanks.

From your current stock list, and this is without knowing your tank footprint, I would say take your pick between peacocks or the oscars(s).
Oscars get large as well as Venestus.


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## Fogelhund (Dec 3, 2002)

What is the size of this tank, both volume and dimensions?

What are all the inhabitants, numbers and size.

Thanks


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## DeanG13 (Jan 17, 2010)

35 gallon, 30" X 18" X 12", well filtered, inhabitants are:

African Jewel (3") 
Albino Oscar (4") 
Tiger Oscar (5 1/2") 
Malawi Peacock (4") 
Venustus (3 1/2") 
Syno Catfish (3 1/2")

Who stays, who goes??


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## Fogelhund (Dec 3, 2002)

Well, to properly house these fish, you would need a 6ft aquarium. So, either you purchase a 6ft long aquarium, or they all go, as none of them are appropriate in a tank that size.

If you choose to stick with the aquarium you have, we can recommend some fish that would be more appropriate.


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## DeanG13 (Jan 17, 2010)

Hmm, thanks for your help...


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## Geddonight (Aug 7, 2009)

That's a little harsh... I think the 35 would home the jewel cichlid well. The Oscars are right out, and the Venustus gets rather large, too.

Oscars really deserve a six foot tank (100 gal +)

My guess is your peacock is a Eureka Red, as they're more rambunctious than most.


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## DeanG13 (Jan 17, 2010)

Thanks Geddonight. Workin on getting a new home for the Oscars as we speak. Any idea if the Malawi Peacock will start messing with the Jewel once the Venustus is removed? Thanks for everyone's replies.


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## Geddonight (Aug 7, 2009)

Got a picture of your peacock? There are literally over a 100 species, so figuring out which it is can be helpful (some, such as the maylandi are more peaceful, while others like the Eureka, tend to be more rambunctious).


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## DeanG13 (Jan 17, 2010)

I do have a picture, I still need to post one more time before it let's me post an image. Picture coming soon.


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## DeanG13 (Jan 17, 2010)




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## DeanG13 (Jan 17, 2010)

That's a fairly recent picture of my Malawi Peacock.


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## Geddonight (Aug 7, 2009)

Ah, well... not a eureka. Looks like an OB hybrid:

http://cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=1372

It falls under the same "mildly aggressive" status as the Eureka. So I have a feeling it'll keep aggressive towards other fish--especially ones smaller than it. In such a small tank, your Jewel may have no place to run.

If this is what you mean by your jewel http://cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=1348, then it's not going to be a sizeable fish--4 inches, which is a full 2" shorter than the peacock's max size.

Hard to say, but my gut says they won't mingle well. Try it, and keep a spare tank ready in case one of them ends up the loser.


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## DeanG13 (Jan 17, 2010)

Indeed you are correct, both descriptions are spot-on. Looks like some relocating will have to be done. Thanks again for your help.


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## wedrnkbeer (Aug 6, 2005)

This OB's are crossed with Mbuna. so no surprise if you may have gotten a hyper aggressive peacock there as well.


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