Severum bully: rehome male or female

[drt]

Brought 2 severums to my 70 galllon partially planted tank they share with bosemanian rainbow, acara and ramirezi.
First they were getting alone pretty well, the male grew much faster than female and became a bully.
I can rehome one of the severums to another tank to stop bullying and allow the female to grow I hope when she's strong enough bullying will cease.
Which one do you recommend I rehome temporarily male or femal
I am considering rehoming the female as the male is in breeding size I might well breed them in the new tank once the female is ready

 

[Sinister-Kisses]

First, are you absolutely POSITIVE you have a male and female? Severums can be very difficult to sex.

Secondly, if your aim is to get a breeding pair, my advise would be to rehome them BOTH, and then purchase a group of juvenile severums, 5-6 or so, and let them grow out together. They'll naturally pair off once they reach breeding size, and then you can rehome the rest. FORCING a pair of cichlids very rarely works out, especially long term. It goes much better and smoother when they are able to actually CHOSE their mates.

 

[ryansmith83]

Unpaired Heros are usually a bad idea. They do best in small groups of 4 to 6 or more. Anything less usually leads to a lot of conspecific aggression.

Even breeding pairs sometimes have disagreements and turn on each other. I’ve had males slaughter and murder females. I stopped keeping single pairs per tank and instead let them spawn in a community with other Heros.

 

[drt]

I thought they were rather docile fish like discus when I first got them, they were same size, there was no bullying, once one outgrew the other bullying started.
Breeding isn't a priority no worries here, my other question, if I rehome one of the severums till the other one can catch up growth and be of close size, will bullying subside since the small one will be able to defend himself ? or I am better separating them once and for all ?
And back to the first question: if I want to separate then regroup which one should be rehomed the bully or the bullied ?

 

[duanes]

As others have said, there are certain cichlids that don't work well kept in pairs (there are many, in fact).
No matter what changes you make, trial separations, temporary rehoming, whatever, 90% of the time when reunited, the same problems re-arise.
These social type species need a group of same species to disperse and spread aggression around.
Thorichthys, and Cribroheros, from Central America, certain Geophagines, and Heros from S America, and Paretroplines from Madagascar all fall into this social structural, hierarchal group.
9 out of 10 times when an aquarist tries to keep them as pairs (especially in small tanks (anything under 6 foot long) the result is almost always aggression problems.
The only time these social types work in pairs, is when a mated pair specifically chooses each other from within that social group and decides to go off and spawn on their own.
Just because a humane decides a male and female are suitable for an arranged marriage, doesn't mean the cichlids agree

Cichlids have elaborate rituals, and contests they use to decide if a partner is right or not, and death for one "not" considered suitable is often the case for one or the other, if not deemed the perfect match.

There is a book, I consider a must have, for any serious cichlid keeper, that spells all this stuff out in great detail.

 

[Midwater]

there are certain cichlids that don't work well kept in pairs (there are many, in fact).

Not just cichlids, most aggressive fish work well in groups, on their own, but never in pairs.

 

[neutrino]

I thought they were rather docile fish like discus when I first got them

They can be but aren't always. They're variable in temperament, meaning experiences differ from one person to another-- I haven't had near the aggression issues some mention here, and I've kept them nearly 30 years in various configurations and numbers, including breeding pairs-only in communities with geos, angels, etc, and I knew someone who kept breeding pairs by themselves in 120 gal tanks without any issues. It also means your experience with one individual, pair, or group doesn't guarantee what the next one will do.

Also, docile fish behavior when they're new in a tank isn't necessarily predictive of what they'll do once they feel at home in the tank or after they grow some.

my other question, if I rehome one of the severums till the other one can catch up growth and be of close size, will bullying subside since the small one will be able to defend himself ? or I am better separating them once and for all ?
And back to the first question: if I want to separate then regroup which one should be rehomed the bully or the bullied ?

Possible, but not guaranteed or necessarily likely. Gender could be a factor-- if one is male and the other female and if at maturity they then take a liking to each other...