[01722]

I have had a Parrot fish in a 26 gallon take for a couple years. At 3.5", he is outgrowing the aquarium, and started to become aggressive towards his smaller tank mates in such cramped surroundings. I've purchased a 60 gallon tank and I'm interested in filling it with Malawi fish. I've seen videos of overstocked tanks with Malawi and Parrots cohabitating, and from what I've read they can exist in comparable water conditions. I was looking for advice on what kind of Malawi would give me the best chance to be housed with the Parrot? I figure on the Parrot being the largest fish in the tank as his temperament would likely be better than a Mbuna or whatever I'd put in with him. I've never had an African Cichlid tank before so I'd like to avoid the especially aggressive and less hardy species. Breeding in the tank isn't a priority for me. I'm more interested in color variation amongst the species and manageable aggression. If the Parrot doesn't work out with the tank, I'll have to get rid of him so any helpful advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Aquatic Alex]

I cant help very much with specific species but I would perhaps try to do some peacocks since haps get quite large and mbunas are more aggressive. Hope this helps

 

[Aquatic Alex]

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[DJRansome]

It would not be an ideal mix, but many have seen it on you tube. Do you know the scientific name of the parrot? Is it the hybrid that has the human "cosmetic" surgery? Sometimes they get picked on by Africans because their tails (if any) don't function efficiently for escape and their mouths can't really chomp for offense.

Your's is being aggressive to other fish in the 26G though, so can you provide more information?

 

[BC in SK]

Do you know the scientific name of the parrot?

Since it is a man made hybrid, the fish does not have a scientific name. It is pretty obvious, with a reference to having seen it on you tube, the OP is talking about the common blood parrot. It is a fish with obvious RD/midas ancestry and my understanding is that mitochondrial DNA has been looked at and shows that the maternal line does indeed, originate from RD/ midas. There is good evidence that the blood parrot likely originates from some type of RD/midas X synspilum cross, though this is not a proven fact. It is a deformed short bodied hybrid; not sure what the reference is to "cosmetic surgery" as that would be nothing too common in the hobby, at all.

 

[DJRansome]

Thanks BC. Would you mix them with peacocks? I thought on this fish the tail was sometimes altered to give the fish more of a heart shape?

Regarding the scientific name question...I thought there was at least one pure fish with common name parrot and I did not want to jump to any conclusions, but I did assume we were talking about the blood parrot.

OP is looking for more responses, so thanks for the discussion.

 

[BC in SK]

Would you mix them with peacocks?

Well, I very much doubt I would ever own a blood parrot so I wouldn't be mixing it with anything. I under stand their appeal, but me personally, not into deformed fish.
I think if you would mix them with any Malawi, you would probably want less aggressive Malawi. It might be possible that they are sufficiently different enough that they would not pay too much attention towards each other, though I've certainly never tried it. In principle, it is no different then the mixes in my tanks.

Regarding the scientific name question...I thought there was at least one pure fish with common name parrot

Yes, the South American cichlid Hoplarchus psittacus is sometimes called a parrot cichlid, but most people refer to it by it's scientific name or call it the "true parrot". Not a common fish in the hobby, nor are their videos of the fish in over stocked Malawi tanks, as the Op mentions. It is a big cichlid, prone to hole in the head (possibly because it requires soft water), that is unlikely to be kept in a 26 gal. and only be 3 1/2" , 2 years from purchase.

I thought on this fish the tail was sometimes altered to give the fish more of a heart shape?

That is called a heart parrot. Don't think it is too common.
There are others with the word parrot as part of their common name, such as a Jelly Bean Parrot (simply a short bodied 'pink convict') and King Kong Parrot (very expensive and usually ordered from the far East; has a normal mouth but is also thought to be the product of a Midas/RD x synspilum cross).
Generally when some one refers to a cichlid as simply a parrot, they mean a blood parrot.