First Convicts

So I have other cichlids. Oscar and jack Dempsey in my other big tank. But I recently got my small tank. 20 gallon long cycled and decided to get convicts. I went to the store and got 2 small ones. Luckily for their size I could pick out a female and male fairly easily. But my question is will they automatically pair up ? Or should I add another female or 2 for options. I'm kinda hoping they will pair up naturally. And how long will it take for them to start breeding. Their small maby 1inch ish.

 

You're planning to upgrade the tank I hope? 20 gallon is not enough space for two convicts to live, let alone reproduce. They max out around 6".

 

Agreed with above. I wouldn't permanently house 2 convicts in a 20 gallon long.

They are probably the easiest cichlid to breed, and will do so as long as there is a male/female. They can breed at a surprisingly small size aswell (I had a female breeding under 2" TL). Convicts were the first fish I ever bred/raised years ago, and I think they were a first for many people. Super easy, and they are excellent parents.

 

You can put only 1 convict unfortunately. But there are other cichlids out there that can!

 

OP wasn't asking how many they could fit in the tank... but if that were the question, a single adult convict is too big for this tank.

 

Eventually their going to get moved. I have a 120 running with my Oscar. A 75 gallon running with my jack Dempsey in now and a empty 55 gallon which was the grow out tank for them waiting for the convicts . The convicts are like 1 inch. I think they will be okay for a little bit till I get my 55 gallon a new filter and cycled. Then I'll use the 20 gallon long for fry

 

Eventually their going to get moved. I have a 120 running with my Oscar. A 75 gallon running with my jack Dempsey in now and a empty 55 gallon which was the grow out tank for them waiting for the convicts . The convicts are like 1 inch. I think they will be okay for a little bit till I get my 55 gallon a new filter and cycled. Then I'll use the 20 gallon long for fry

That'll work. If you live near Modesto C.A. I'll give you some convicts.
Just curious, why do want to breed convicts. They're so common they're basically a burden. Every LFS has an aquarium devoted to orphan convicts.

 

I've never bred fish but I love watching the mating process and how good of parents they are. I figured I'd try convicts first and then try to breed my jack. The guy at the fish store said when they get fry in they feed them to larger cichlids that are their. Idk if that's a good idea. But I've fed my Oscar minnows before but I don't know if I like the idea of feeding baby convicts cichlids to another cichlid. I'm not sure about that idea. But I guess if left in the tank the parents will eat them anyways so maby just the same as to another fish. I'm not sure about the idea. It wasn't till after I bought my convicts and started growing them that my fish store told me this. And they wouldn't take the fry. Before I got them he told me they would.

 

I know this is an "old thread" now but just wanted to let you know, convicts rarely eat their fry - they're one of those cichlids that are great parents, like kribs. Sometimes stress gets to them and they eat them, but it's not too common. Not like livebearers, or tetras who eat their own eggs. So don't rely on them to keep their own population in check, lol! Also, I used to breed livebearers as angelfish food - I think using cichlid fry or something similar would probably provide more nutrition than feeding minnows, or Lord forbid feeder goldfish. I could be wrong though. Regardless it would be healthier if you were in need of live food. You shouldn't feel bad for "the babies" - if you want to keep large carnivorous fish and provide them with stimulation via hunting for their dinner, you'll have to come to terms with sacrificing some lesser fish. It's not cruel or anything, just the food chain. It would be crueler to allow your tank to overpopulate, if you think about it.

Best of luck with whatever you do. I loved watching my kribs raise their babies and would love to do it again someday when I'm ready to set up more tanks in a bigger house. I saw a pair of convicts with their fry at a local pet store recently and it had me itching for more cichlid babies

 

The pair recently spawned and I have them in a 55 gallon now. And growing out a male jack Dempsey growing and a Victorian hap in with them. Their all about 2 inches. The jack ,hap , and female con. But the male con is 3inches. The jack and hap pick off a couple here and there. But eventually when the babies get bigger they gonna be Oscar food. Like u said it's a lot healthier raising you own live feeders. And I have a normal male jack 2inch growing out for my 5inch pink jack so I'll hopefully get fry from them too. So my Oscar could have a very healthy diet of live fish. He'll get all the nutrient from the fish cause I feed them pellets and a wide variety of other stuff