First cichlid in 3 years - T ellioti

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Hendre

Hendre

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Jan 14, 2016
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So after the absolute horror that was a salvini I took a break from cichlids for a few years, but owing to several losses last year my 75 gallon stood mostly empty with a lonesome synodontis, and a bichir in growout. I started eyeing this little fellow at my LFS and snapped him up on lockdown special ($2.50 I think) to trial him with the bichir, and so far the little guy has been very mild mannered! Can't wait to see the fish grow up, already quite fun to watch :D
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For now he's chilling in a 15g growout with the bichir till he's a little larger, then big tank time. Glad to be back in the cichlid game!
 
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As expected the cichlid is a bit of an ass around food. Nibbled on the bichir for a few seconds to no effect. Is sometimes successful in the chase but it isn't too serious, I just sprinkle food all over so everyone gets
 
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This is a shoaling species in nature, so "might" do better in a group of 3 or 4 (or more), and could be much more comfortable, rather than keeping it as as a lone individual.
This of course depends on tank size, but if it can be done, the dynamic of natural behavior as a group would always be interesting.
A friend had a shoal of about 8 in a 6 ft tank, housed with a shoal of a dozen Poecilia velifora (sail fin mollies, found in the same habitat in nature) as dithers, and the tank with amazing.
The name ellioti these days, is usually considered a "junior synonym" for a few other Thorichthys that are different enough from the standard meeki, to separate them from being called fire mouth.
So in actuality could be aureus, maculipinnis or any of a few others of the genus. As it grows and shows true colors, it may be interesting for you to do the detective work to find which.
 
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duanes said:
This is a shoaling species in nature, so "might" do better in a group of 3 or 4 (or more), and could be much more comfortable, rather than keeping it as as a lone individual.
Click to expand...
Unfortunately there was only one available, had there been more then a group definitely would be interesting!
 
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Thorichthys species look best in a group in a big tank as they interact interestingly with flare gills with one another, but adults are not shoaling cichlid like angels, festivum or discus. They are territorial and a group in a small tank can hurt one another. Elioti is most aggrissive among T species. I currently have two adult elioti in a 125 g, and raising 4 T aureus juvies from Rusty Wessels stock. The two look alike except that aureus have blue streaks on their tail fin.

I don’t have much luck with T species before as they were susceptible to bacterial infection, and hopefully this time they will make it and reproduce for me. They are beautiful mid size cichlid peaceful to other fish and only mildly aggressive to one another.
 
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