Cockatoo cichlids, how many can i put in my tank?

[Cocka2]

hi all, i have got some cockatoos a few days ago and was wondering how many is okay to fit in my tank.. i have 1 male, 3 females in there right now.. they are small right now and a little bit of aggresion sometimes between the females. also have a pack of zebra danios and tiger barbs. do i have space to put in some more and can i do it without making the fish more aggresive? tank is a 46 gallon bow front

 

[Mike Wise]

My rather conservative rule is 1 square foot (900 sq. cm) of bottom area per apisto. It really depends on how your tank is decorated and if you want them to successfully reproduce.

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,
I've found that you can add up to at least 7 females per male if:

• Floor space allows, and
• you have lots of caves and cover.

These are some of mine in a 2', it had many caves and big tangles of moss as well as the plants in the photo. The main fish is an old female, the male is facing the camera on the left, " younger females are towards the rear with the Black-neon Tetra (a suitable "dither"), and the Pristella (an unsuitable one).

Have a look at ApistoBob's pages, he is a member here and full of goof advice. http://www.dwarfcichlid.com/Aquarium_care.php

I've never had success with adding another male to an existing tank, although I have had males grew up together to be sub-adult without blood-shed occurring.

Also your "dithers" will become a problem when your fish breed.

cheers Darrel

 

[Bunnie1978]

Have a look at ApistoBob's pages, he is a member here and full of goof advice. http://www.dwarfcichlid.com/Aquarium_care.php

Yeah, ApistoBob is a total GOOF!!!