Oscars and african cichlids?

Question

can they survive together in the same tank over time

Answer 1

Depends on what "african cichlid" are you combining with the oscars though its mostly a NO.

Oscars are also South American cichlids. As such, they need different water requirements than most Africans. Technically, oscar should have his own tank in order for him to thrive. This isn't because he'll get picked on, but because he likes water in the 7.0 range or softer.

One reason I will NOT recommend it is the Africans are a lot faster and more maneuverable than the oscar. If he is a baby they may kill him. Oscars only have teeth in their throat and their mouths are soft. If they start attacking him he will probably not be able to fight back. Think F14 vs C130 (or any fighter vs transport plane for example).

Second reason, they don't understand eachother's body language. Communication diffuses problems especially when they are trying to sort out their pecking order. The africans WILL learn not to face off with him and will peck at his fins & tail when he isn't paying attention.

Third reason, diet differences. Depending on the kind of africans you have they may not supposed to be eating the things the oscar eats, and trust me, he can't keep his food to himself. They are very messy eaters and the africans will eat whatever is expelled from his gills.

Answer 2

NO. Oscars grow to 12 inches where as most of the african cichlids found in petstores are mbunas from lake malawi and only get to about 4-5 inches wich means the oscar can eat them.
Then there is the water issue. African cichlids are from hard alkaline water where as oscars are from soft acidic waters.
Mbunas are vegetarians, feeding on algae and other vegetation, that however doesnt mean they wont eat small fish but it does mean that on a diet of just meaty foods, ur gonna kill them.

African cichlids are far more territorial in my opinion and from your other question, you have a small tank of 30 gallons and your gonna have a disaster if you dont seperate the fish y ou have.

Answer 3

It has been a long time since I've had fish, but I did have these together with no problems. Oscars and most African cichlids are on the aggressive side and seem to be able to hold their own against each other.

Answer 4

Its really a gamble. They are both aggressive fish. I think it would be possible if you bought them when they all were young. But if you buy one that is considerably larger than the other, then chances are the smaller of the 2 will be eaten.
Everytime I've bought 2 types of agressive fish at the same time, I've had no problem. Its when you have aggressive fish in your tank already, and try to add a smaller fish (of any kind) to it. Some survive, some dont.

Answer 5

NO I tried it the africans destroyed the oscar in about 20 seconds what a waist of money on the oscar because he died cichlids are from africa oscars are from brazil they dont mix well

Answer 6

This all depends on the size of the tank and African Cichlids like to have hiding places. I have had them in the same tank before. People at the fish store will tell you anything. I was going in there once to buy black tetras. The woman asked what was in the tank and I was like Convicts, Africans, Jack Dempsey and she told me they would eat the tetras. I'm like "I've had them in a tank together for over a year" and she's like "they haven't found them yet". you can make a lot of species work in a tank given enough room and like I mentioned "places to hide".

Answer 7

Oscars need to be kept in a tank by themselves,as they'll eat anything else smaller than them.

Answer 8

oscars are very aggressive, if the other fish has been in the tank longer they may be okay, just keep a close eye on them

Answer 9

it's a risk but if you get them at the same time and size they maybe ok but I would not recommend