Baby pair of back nasty cichlids- need advice!

[Tawny88]

Hello
I recently just purchased two male and female black nasty cichlids. They are babies, approximately 2 1/2 inches long at the most.
The male is a few centimeters shorter than the female. This factor does not seem to make a bit of a difference when dealing with the male nasty temperament.
I will say it’s a painful experience having to watch your brand new baby female beautiful fish get chased around 24 hours a day and have to go up to the top of the tank for refuge.
I have utilized several different mechanisms for properly acclimating a Cichlid such as this species with other cichlids of their size/temperament.
Even though my male nasty couldn’t be more than six months old he appears stuck in his ways-
his behavior that is. I have removed him twice for a 24 hour period of time. I have rearranged the decor. I have put a mirror up. I have added a pair of convicts to distract him and nothing thus far has made a noticeable difference.

I was unable to purchase these fish anywhere local, so they were shipped out from another state so it’s not like I can just exchange him. This leads me to believe I need to come up with a solution to make these two get along and to ensure that my precious little female isn’t bullied and stressed to death.

Can anyone with experience please provide me some input and direction as to how I could best attempt to get the two to coexist in a conducive manner
Thank you in advance

 

[A201]

I think if you substantially beef up the hardscape the female might survive.

 

[tlindsey]

You may have to place a divider between the two.

 

[Toby_H]

Consider a divider or separate tanks...
That's not to say they can never live together, but there needs to be a way to let her rest and catch her breath.

Adding the Convicts was a good move. I had a male Trimac that was very tough on his lovers. I had 3 females that rotated through his tank. I also had a few Convicts in the tank that he was dedicated to eating (they had tunnels they fit in that the Trimacs couldn't).

Good luck.

 

[duanes]

I agree with usng a diveder to keep the apart until mature
My first attempt I stated with 12 and the female kiilled all
I next added 8 more, and the female killed all but one.
The one she spawned with for the next 5 years.

In Hispaniola, they are the only endemic cichlid on the island.
This should give you and indication that they don;t play well with other cichlids
I find if they can't kill the others, they get intimidated, become diseased, and end up falling into into a quick death themsellves.

 

[troublesum]

You are going to need a minimum of a 6 foot tank to have any chance of success of keeping these cichlids