Electric Blue Rams

HI I bought a pair of EBRs in March of tis year. They were small 7/8 inch. I do not know if they were M&F. They are in a 37 gal.tank. Angels, tetras BNP 3 swordtails are there tank mates. The tank is fully planted which are growing like weeds. Water parameters are spot on. I never seen any bulling. They were eating. After three months 1 died. I have no idea why. The others in the tank look good. But I remember seeing 1 ram not as colorful as the other a week before I think that was the one that died. The rams never grew. I bought them from a vender at a cichlid show. I saw the guy who I bought them from at the last show before the summer break. His EBRs didn't look as good as the ones I bought from him. Anyone have problems with EBR? How big should they be? If I bought a couple more from a different mom and pop fish store. Do you think the one in the tank will get along with the new ones? Thanks

 

Read online that most ebr are inbreds, and most are having a hard time keeping one. Why not try the usual gbrs or gold rams.

 

Most of these fish are mass produced in fish farms leaving them weak and fragile. You'd be lucky to get one to the year mark. I have one that has grown pretty well for ebr. They have the potential to reach 2"+.

 

EBR's, Gold rams, and blue/german blue rams are all the same species. This species is notably fragile and i've seen people mention that the alternate color strains (EB and Gold) are even more fragile. These fish can be inbred and stuffed full of hormones to get a higher quality color. Unfortunately that diminishes the quality and makes them harder to keep healthy.

 

Its the reason why I bought my from a breeder hopefully its a bit more hardy. Breeders price was three times more than the lfs.