I have a 20 gallon fish tank with 3 cichlids, what other pet’s can I keep with them?

Question

Info:
20 Gallon tall fish tank
3 electric yellow cichlids, 2-3 inches, 2 males, 1 female
Java Fern and Vallisneria Jungle plants
20 gallon Aqua Clear Aquarium Filters
1 aquarium heater

Which type of pet can be added?
Fish
Frogs
Turtle
Toads
Newts

Answer 1

The electric yellows will get to be about 6 inches long. That should not be a problem for that size tank. What will be a problem is that you have two males.

Cichlids are very territorial and the dominant male, which will be determined by contests of strength and endurance, will not tolerate the loser of the contest in such a small tank.

What you should do is take the loser back to the fish store and try to trade for another female. Then sit back and enjoy the mating rituals and raise the fry.

You really need to add some hiding places for them because chcihlids need to have a small cave that they can call their own. I use 2 inch pvc pipe cut to about 7-8 inches. If you want to cap one end, you can, but it is not necessary.

As far as adding something, fish would be the only option. It would need to be what is called a "dither fish". That is a group of schooling fast moving fish that swim back and forth in the upper area of the tank. This constant movement helps to calm the cichlids because as long as other fish are out and about, they feel safe and will not hide all the time. I usually use giant danios or Buenos Aires tetras.

A word of caution, a 20 gallon tank is kind of small for cichlids. However, you have chosen one of the least agressive of the Lake Malawi fish. If you get another female and lose the extra male, there shoud not be a problem with the three cichlids and 5-6 giant danios if you have a good filter and do your weekly partial (30-40%) water changes religiously.

Also, cichlids are usually pretty rough on plants. The Java fern will be OK because its' leaves are tough, but the val will probably suffer some abuse.

Good luck.

Answer 2

You have a fine set-up there. I wouldn't suggest adding any more fish or pets for the sake of cleaning too often and overcrowding. If your cichlids are not of the dwarf variety, then they can get pretty large, and you may have to upgrade to a larger aquarium. As long as your fish are doing fine, you probably shouldn't change anything because more pets can disrupt the water chemistry too...ammonia, nitrates, all that chemical stuff produced by fish.

Answer 3

Cichlids are not very friendly fish so I would not add any other fish because they might fight and more then likely your cichlids will kill the other fish. you could put a clear divider in your tank that would seperate the fish and then on one side keep your cichlids and the other side put your more tame fish.

Answer 4

Sorry but you can not get anymore fish. Your tank is already really overstocked. You need at least 35 gallons to properly house those fish.