Thoughts on males in same tank

[Steve]

I know the basic "rule" on an all male peacock/hap tank is only one male of each species (or similar looking even) per tank. I have read a few places that you can get away with two males of the same species in an all male tank if the tank is big enough. Anyone have any first hand exp with keeping more than one male of each species in a tank if it is large enough?

I actually have two full grown 6" full color males (both are colored up real nice) Protomelas sp. "Spilonatus Tanzania" in my all male 55g tank and outside of slight aggression between the two everything have been fine for the past few months. One of them will be going into the 265g tank soon though.

Basically why I am asking is because I want to see if I would be okay with two males of some of my favorite ones in that tank such as venustus, red empress, and Dimidiochromis compressiceps. Or is it like anything else where it all depends on the personality of the individual fish.

[Sean]

I've pulled it off before. One of the males will always end up being colored and the other one not so much, or it could even take on the look of a female. They don't always kill each other but they will fight for dominance. Where did you get the protomelas spilonatus Tanzania?

[jcunningham0295]

I think it can depend on the species.  I know for Venustus I don't think I would do it even in that size tank.  I would stay away from two of the same species of the predator cichlids.

[Steve]

Where did you get the protomelas spilonatus Tanzania?

One of them I got from Chris (Loon36) whom use to post here a lot, and the other I got from Pete (frontboy7). Pete I know originally got the one I got from him from Boesters in IL, Chris I'm not sure where the one I got from him originally came from.

Here's a pic of them together in my 55 I just snapped a minute ago. They get along pretty well in there together. Amazingly they both stay colored up almost all the time. Every once in awhile the top one in the pic will be a bit brighter than the one below him, but they usually stay about the same looking color wise.

[Sean]

Wow, they look awesome!

[djlamonica]

I imagine it would work similarly to breeding groups with multiple males.  There be a Dom fully colored and sub domsvarying in color.

[bernokarl]

I had two male German red peacock cichlids it did not work for me one got picked on hard , I removed the less dominant one . Note : I added them at separate times and they were both mature 5"plus

 

[Marty]

One thing you can do is place rock work or decorations to break up sight lines within the tank to create different "territories". Sometimes that will reduce aggression because the fish will claim an area and not the entire tank.

[Saulosi77]

Wow both fish are nice and colored.  My experience is it can be done but usually the dominate fish will display more color. 

[Sean]

Let me know if anything happens and you need to get rid of one of them