Can I have 3 convicts in the same tank?

Question

I have a 39 gallon tank and I have 2 convicts(male & female). They are young and havent breeded yet but I want them to. I am wanting another color convict to put in with them. Is this possible? If so, what gender should it be? And can It breed with it's opposite as well? Thank you for your help

Answer 1

No; convicts are monogamous (they form bonded pairs and are loyal to each other) and a third convict may be ostracized and attacked by the bonded pair when they are protecting their fry.

Answer 2

39 is big enough to have 2 pair of convicts, so long as you have something to eat the babies they produce in another tank. They will reproduce like mad. Place caves in exact opposite corners of the tank for them to breed in. Ideal materials are cheap terra cotta pots from craft store, or flat rocks shoved into the gravel at an angle. You can add a visual barrier in the middle like a tall fake plant if they get too quarellsome.

White & pink convicts mate very well with black & grey convicts. They're just like red head & blonde haired humans.

I wouldn't introduce an odd man in male or female. The weaker of his/her sex will just die after fighting for mating rights. Or worse, the monogomous pair that forms will kill him thinking he's a threat to their babies. Convicts almost always kill the odd fish out.

The best way to do it is to get 6 even sexed young ones from the store, let them develop pairs, and then remove the ones that didn't pair up well & resell them to the store.

Since you have a pair in there, the best way now is to try and find a pair in the store who are mating. You can tell who they are since they'll be the only ones in the tank free swimming & not huddled in the corner. They may forget who each other are when transplanted into your tank, but they'll resume mating in a few weeks most probably.

BTW, your convicts will breed very soon. They're about as easy as guppies to mate.

I've got 2 pair of convicts in a 36 gallon bowfront that all breed like crazy. There's 4 caved areas in the tank built up of terra cotta pots & plates, utah ice, and some strange flat rocks from Estes that are red & gray. They're non-stop entertainment. They'll quarrel over territory dragging a java fern in a tug of war trying to mark off what denotes their territory line, but they never seem to attack each other. They just get all showy & puff out their gills. Occasionally they'll move their babies to another cave.

Answer 3

i have a 40 gallon tank currently with 4 convicts in it.

so basically i have 2 pairs.

i bought the black convicts hweni first got my tank.

and the other 2 like months later.

i bought them in pairs and i suggest that you do the same.

ALSO do you have any other fish in the tank?

Answer 4

And they say American has a problem with overcrowding in jail cells!