Introducing a new Cacatuoides to an establish tank

[MattW]

Hi all,

New to the forum so forgive me if I make any mistakes! I'm struggling to introduce a third female to an already established tank, reason she was introduced separate to the other two was because when I purchased them they actually sold me a male in place of a female (it was one of those 'sleeper males') who began to exhibit some male behaviour when in the tank, long story short after a a few days I went to replace this male with a female - this has however caused me some trouble getting the new female settled.

So after introducing her later she doesn't seem interested in hiding, even after being in the tank for the past 2 weeks - I'm assuming this is because all the territory is taken by the established females, and instead normally sits in a front bottom corner of the tank even when she is picked on. It's for this reason i'm getting a little concerned.

The tank is a 125L planted tank with a total length of 80 cm and 35 cm front to back, the two established females have setup on either ends of the tank, each behind the largest rocks on each side while the male dots between them. On the right side and in the middle there are coconut caves with entrances only big enough for the females and not the male, however the two on the ends of the tanks have instead dug their own caves under plants and hang around there instead. I was hoping that the new female would establish herself in the middle of the tank given sight to the middle is blocked by the large rock formations either end of the tank, especially around the coconut cave - she does sometimes hide in the red plants up front, this is a new trend so i'm hoping she is starting to establish.

Spoiler: Picture

I'm just wondering if any one had any tips on doing this, so far I've read the best thing to do is rearrange decor in order to disperse territory like a fresh start, this however isn't really an option for me given the plants are beginning to establish - I have tried moving some larger plants such as the amazon sword in the back right and the Rotala however this doesn't seem enough to cause any change (most of the sparring is between the new female and the right side female). I'm starting to think this setup, especially the hardscape, isn't really suited to the 3 female setup and I want to be fair to the fish - if this simply wont work then i'll look at re homing the new female. The new female sometimes hides in the middle coconut cave however soon after is back out in the open, most of her hiding I've found to be done during the night.

Could someone let me know if i'm going about this completely wrong, if they recommend any alternative methods or if they'd suggest this simply isn't going to work given the open nature of the front of the tank. I'm aware the tank hardscape is for the most part split into 2 sides so maybe that is my problem, as far as the short plants in the back right they have only just recently been trimmed to bush them out more - a few days ago they were at the top of the tank.

Many thanks everyone, I'd appreciate all the suggestions
- MattW

** On a side note pretend the algae isn't there, i'm currently fighting an up hill battle , also I apologise for going on for a while - I have a tendency to make long forum posts with too much detail! Didn't want to leave anything out though **

 

[Mike Wise]

Based on the behavior of the newly introduced female and the size of the aquarium, I think you are right. The other 2 females have already claimed the entire tank for their territories. One might be successful if the 3 females were removed, the tank re-decorated with much, much more structure, and then all 3 re-introduced at the same time - but I doubt it. Personally, I think that your tank is too small to house 3 female territories. My suggestion is to re-home the new female.

 

[MattW]

Based on the behavior of the newly introduced female and the size of the aquarium, I think you are right. The other 2 females have already claimed the entire tank for their territories. One might be successful if the 3 females were removed, the tank re-decorated with much, much more structure, and then all 3 re-introduced at the same time - but I doubt it. Personally, I think that your tank is too small to house 3 female territories. My suggestion is to re-home the new female.

Many thanks for the reply, really appreciate the advice.

Did think that was the case, to be honest I never really thought about the open space on the front, I think its just enough distance to prevent fighting between the two females on either end however I have seen the left-side female venture out into the middle to bully the new female when they see each other. As I mentioned the health of the fish is the priority, given I can't rescape as of current I think it's best to look at re homing, at least it's a lesson learnt!

Cheers
-MattW