# Vieja Zonata - tankmates?



## goatcrapp

I have a medium zonata - approx 6-7", in a 55G all by his lonesome. The various tankmates i have tried, including a 5" oscar - were picked on too much. I acquired this fish in this state, at 5-6", and he was not well socialized.

I do not feed him live food, save for ghost shrimp as a treat every now and then. 

Is there anything i can put in there as a suitable tankmate? I was wary of putting a larger oscar in, for fear that the zonata would then be picked on.. but the tankmate needs to be able to take care of himself, from what i can tell of this fish.

What about detritus eaters - a large pleco, etc to help keep the tank tidy?

Could my water conditions be causing it to be aggressive? PH is 7.2, temps around 76-78. water changes weekly. medium sized pea gravel substrate. (of which he is a land mover - he creates piles in the tank that would rival a decent wrecker's duty. lol)

Again - I am just kind of winging it with this fish - keeping him alone in this tank (i have a 170G community cichlid tank filled with fish that all but 3 would become dinner for this beast) and mimicking the water conditions he was kept in by the previous owner. If he is to be kept alone, thats fine too - he is very active, healthy and entertaining.. especially at feeding time ( he seems to wiggle in anticipation lol) - but obviously a tank with a single fish in it can be rather boring. Decor in the tank is limited to a few well rooted, weighted plants, and some caves.

Information on this fish is rather lacking, or at least from what i've seen. (no one local at any of the "good" fish stores has even heard of them)

Thanks in advance for any info, advice, etc!


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## Lisachromis

Many Centrals are very territorial and have the size to emphasize this. Your 55g is actually too small to add anything in with a large cichlid that's used to having a whole tank to himself. I don't see why he can't stay alone in the tank. 

Your water is not making him aggressive. He can reach about 10" total in length.


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## slyv

Depending on the personality of the fish,you could try a larger pleco and a few Rainbows.Just make sure to give the Pleco a cave of some type for refuge.The Rainbows are a hit or miss although personally I've had alot of luck with Vieja's and Rainbows.No other cichlids in a 55 though.Tim


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## goatcrapp

thanks for the advice!

if indeed it is just too small for other tank mates, then thats just the way it will ahve to be. I'll try a large pleco - if he doesnt work out - it will be fine in the other tank... so we'll see.. Another large/aggressive cichlid obviously wouldn't work well in my main tank so that's out.

another thought i had - how can i sex the zonata? the possibility of adding the opposite gender entered my mind, to see if they'll breed.. but in a 55g, i doubt it. would this even be advisable, or would the fish be equally as agressive among their own, cross gender, as they would with any other large fish in the tank?

thanks again!


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## driftwood

i'm in the same boat with my Vieja Breidohri. Only mine is in a 100 gallon tank. i was able to add of all things a pair of Archentrus Spilurums, go figure. Your tank is to small to add any other cichlids to but you should just let the Zonata grow, i think you will really like that fish but you might want to think about getting it a bigger tank down the road.


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## Jason_S

I would suspect any potential mate would likely be killed. I've been told that zonatus can be the most aggressive Vieja/Paratheraps species which says alot considering bifsasciatus, fenestratus and maculicauda are pretty aggressive themselves. I also agree that eventually your zonatus will be better off in a bigger tank. These guys can get big and I wouldn't be surprised if they could grow a bit larger than just 10".


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