Tank Mates for an Electric Blue Jack Dempsey - 75 Gallon tank

[Jacque333]

Hello Everyone!

I was Hoping that someone could give me some ideas for tank mates for an Electric Blue Jack Dempsey (Male) in a 75 gallon tank. He is about 4" and is currently in a 90 gallon with an 8" regular Jack (Male), 5-6" male convit, 6" African Featherfin Catfish, and 5 Tiger Barbs (about 2.5-3"). I'm Planning on re-homing the Convict due to aggression from the regular Jack, who currently ignores the EBJD, but I want to move the EBJD first so he dosn't get the brunt of the aggression.

Here are some of the options I have right now (this list is for options only and not what I plan to put in):

Angel fish (heard they might be a good candidate)
Severum
Firemouth
Festivum
School of Tiger Barbs
Green Terror (heard of people keeping these with EBJDs, but I'm not convinced they are a good match)
Catfish (any type)

Open to suggestions, but would like to keep it to Central/South American Cichlids. Ideally I would like to have the EBJD and maybe 1 or 2 more cichlids

Thanks and I look forward to all the suggestions!

[stalefish83]

If you're looking at a 75 gallon I would steer clear of anything else that will get over 6 or 7 inches. A firemouth would be a good choice. Honduran Red Points are awesome and I think would make a great match. You could conceivably get away with one of each with the EBJD. Maybe a school of rainbow cichlids with the EBJD as they stay at or under 4", you could do with about 5 of those guys.

[stalefish83]

If you're looking at a 75 gallon I would steer clear of anything else that will get over 6 or 7 inches.

Some may call this a little conservative... (and they may be right)

[Jacque333]

Thanks for the reply Stalefish. The Firemouth is on the top of my list, but I think the Honduran Red Points look a little too much like Convicts (the females even have the same red bellies) to me. Is there any other medium sized Cichlids that could work? What about the Angels or Festivum? Thanks!

[Legion]

I would think you could put some nics in. Or maby I'm wrong

[stalefish83]

Nics are another option. Once they color up they are amazing!

I've never had any experience with angels, but I've done a lot of research on American cichlids, have looked at a lot of tanks and I have never seen anyone mix angels and jacks. It seems like an odd pairing to me, I don't think angels would survive a jack.

I can't really speak for festivum's either, but they may fair better than angels. Someone else may have chime in on that.

HRPs are the same genus as convicts, but they're generally not as mean (each fish has his own temperament, of course).

If FM's are on the top of your list you should look at some different thoricthys fish, like the eliotti (T. eliotti)

[Jacque333]

Wow the Eliotti looks awesome! I was at petco yesterday and the had an electric blue acara. Would one of these work?

[Legion]

36807Scientific Name: Hypsophrys nicaraguensis

Pronunciation: hp-sf-rz nk--r-gwn-ss

Common Name(s): 'Nic', Macaw Cichlid

Geo. Origin: Nicaragua

Diet: Omnivore

Gender Differences: Dimorphic

Breeding: Substrate Spawner

Temperament: Mildly Aggressive

Conspecific Temperament: Aggressive

Maximum Size: 10"

Temperature: 76 - 80°F

pH: 7.4 - 8.4

Water Hardness: Hard

Difficulty: 2





Photo Credit: Kostas Mixalop

Images:

Comments:
Females are much smaller, growing to barely 2/3'rd's the size of adult males. This species is considered one of the most popular New World cichlids kept in the aquarium today. A true 'Classic'! It's reliable and peaceful disposition, combined with an outrageously bright coloration will insure this cichlid remains a favorite with Cichlid-Keepers everywhere.

[Jacque333]

How fast do Nics grow? They seem a little on the large side. Beautiful fish though

[showmebutterfly]

Wow. That is a beautiful fish!

[Legion]

I think 2 or 3 years before they are full grown. I had some for a long time and they got to 8 inches. They never got to 10

[Jacque333]

How aggressive were the ones you had?

[Legion]

There not at least mine weren't

[Jacque333]

Ok so after some thought and a little research I have come up with a few options.

Option 1: EBJD, Electric Blue Acara, and a Pictus Catfish

Option 2: EBJD, Nic, and a Pictus Catfish

The Pictus is tentitive in either option, but I would like a catfish so if someone knows of a differnt type that would be better suited please let me know. I'm leaning more toward option 1, but I'm not committed yet

I am open to any other suggestions that would go good with an EBJD. Thanks!

[stalefish83]

I think both options have equal merit... that's going to be a tough one!

Going with option 2 would keep you in the CA family (the acara is SA, but still a really cool fish! I have one in my "CA" tank)

Just to chime in about the nic, I did have one that was overly aggressive, but it singled out my FM. Was totally fine with everyone else, but HATED my firemouth (I ended finding another home for the nic, sad as it was to see such a beautiful fish go)

I don't think there will be any problems with a Jack, though.

I don't know about catfish, but from what I've about the pictus it seems like a nice choice.

[Jacque333]

Thanks for the reply Stalefish. I will probably go with the Acara since i have never seen a Nic at any LFS in my area.

What about a small school? Will i be able to put one in there with everything or will i have to ommit the catfish?

[stalefish83]

You might be able to get away with a few Rainbow cichlids. They like to be in groups and could be OK with as few as 5. You'd probably want to ditch the cat if you did that, though. The Rainbows would stay under 5", and they are a CA cichlid with a mild temperment.

A school of something else might be OK, as long as it's not small enough to become lunch, maybe some congo tetras? It would be a little cramped though, so keep track of your parameters and as always keep on your weekly water changes.

[Jacque333]

Thanks Stalefish. If i did a school of anything i wouldn't put the catfish in

Water changes are not an issue. Believe it or not i actually enjoy doing water changes

[cm12setx]

Skip the pictus cat fish, they perfer to be in shcools of five or more.

[fishmommie]

Hold on to your hat. In my 90 gal, I have a 2+ year old EBJD with a yellow sev, 2 blood parrots, a geo and 7 male congos they've grown up together and are, for the most part fully grown.
the only aggressive fish in the lot is the yellow sev and that's only upon occasion. The blud and the yellow really look great together
Depending on how you feel about BP's they would work great with your EBJD - but I realize they are not for everyone.

If I had a 75, I'd consider an EBJD, congos and a pair of kribs. Lots of color and variety.

Sounds like you've got some pretty good options going already
We'll need photos, of course :o)

[Jacque333]

Ended up going with the electric blue acara. Pics below are of the tank first set up (no fish) and the two fish in there now (had already cycled filets. 2 aquaclear 110s)

Thanks for all the help guys373753737637377

[Slaphppy7]

Pretty fish!

Have you considered a background for the tank?

[Jacque333]

Im on the fence regarding a background. Any ideas?

[Slaphppy7]

Oh, a simple plain BG would make your aquascape and fish really stand out....something as simple as a black piece of posterboard, cut to fit and hung on the back...might need two for a 75G

[Jacque333]

Hmmm. I'll look into that. I think a black background may actually do the trick

[Slaphppy7]

It's a cheap and easy way to see if you like it...which I'm betting you will

[showmebutterfly]

Nice tank and beautiful fish!

[fishmommie]

tank looks great but i agree, a black background will really set it off and hide all those cords.