# female convict cichlids in my community tank?



## Zane_uverworld (Jun 19, 2011)

ello luv




lol im new here  and need some advice on my fish :fish: her name is thelma and she is in my community tank with 4 platy 2 molly 4 khuli loaches 1 clown loach 1 gourami 1 apple snail 2 cories she seems fine so far. it's been like 2 days. the gourami nips more than she does! she was moved from a 20 gallon long because louise (another female convict) was bullying her! Do you think she will be alright? i feel like she feels their pain because she was a victim of domestic violence. Cichlid on cichlid hate crime. Also any tips on picking out a male convict cichlid at petsmart? the guy who works their knows about as much about fish as well.. a rock thats in a bowl of bleach.


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## e048 (Dec 23, 2010)

usually cichlids can only go with other cichlids, how many hiding spots do you have?. aggression is expected with cichlids, I had a inch pleco get torn to shreds by 3inch cichlids


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## LoriL (Jun 19, 2011)

I'm new here too, but everything I've read says you almost never put convicts in community tanks. A female would be pushing it depending on tank size, hiding spaces, sizes of other fish..... but definitely not a male and especially not a mating pair. They'll kill everyone else. I've also read 55g is a minimum for convicts. I currently have a 55g with 1 male convict, 2 female convicts, and 1 female green terror. They do pretty well together although occasionally the male C and Gr terror have their differences.

Good luck


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## Zane_uverworld (Jun 19, 2011)

hey thanks for the answer guys  and thelma she who is in the 55 community is doing better than i expected she has yet to do any thing to any fish. Not even the guppy. i do think i have the shirley temple of convict cichlids. i'll keep you guys posted. And it's a 55 gallon tank. with a moderate amount of places to hide. i don't think im overstocking and all fish have room and than some.


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## Hansolo (Sep 10, 2010)

Females will have shades of pink on there bellies, very faint especially in young fish. Males don't and will just be grey and black.


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## khoa456 (Sep 15, 2011)

I have a female convict in my community tank too. It is 26 gallons and it seems to do ok in it. It only bothers the cory because they both scavenge. I already had it it there for two months. i will be moving soon to cycle my 40 gallon


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## Ladayen (Jun 20, 2011)

As agreed above convicts aren't community fish. Even a female will almost certainly turn aggresive.

PS. Clown Loaches can grow to 18" and are shoaling fish, meaning they need to be in groups. A 125g+ tank is recommended to house them. Perhaps see if you can rehome. Cory's are also shoaling fish and need to be in groups. You can do 2 different species with 3 each or 1 species of 6.


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