Tropical Fish Forums

[Ladidah]

Hello all. So basically, I recently spotted some Bolivian Rams at my lfs, though they were labeled as 'Ruby Clown Cichlids.' I had been looking for them for months with no luck, so you can imagine how excited I was to see a whole tankful. I grabbed one, and after QTing it, it has been in my heavily planted 20g tank for about 2 weeks.

I purchased just one because I wanted to see how this species would fare in my tank, and whether there would be any aggression issues. It's tank mates are - 1 dwarf gourami, 1 BN pleco, 5 platies, and a handful of baby platies. No fighting, except the occasional nip at feeding time and all fish seem healthy and active.

My question is, knowing that once the batch at the lfs is gone, and it could be who knows how long before I get another chance, is it better to get another Ram now? I went to the lfs this weekend to pick up some things, and there were 3 (about 7 before) remaining. I was slightly wary against getting two since I'm not quite sure about the sexes, and I've read that two males can get aggressive towards one another. I think mine is a female. So, should I bite the bullet, and grab another before they are gone?

[diademhill]

Try and pick another female.
You can always add a male if you get a larger tank.

[Ladidah]

Thanks, diademhill. I decided that it would be best to get another. The ram seems a bit lonely. She keeps trying to be friendly with the gourami, but he wants nothing to do with her.

I'll head to the lfs on Monday. Crossing my fingers, and hoping I don't end up with two aggressive males.