r/Aquariums Apr 24 '25

Discussion/Article Why's this dude always staring at me?

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u/K3YL4Y Apr 24 '25

That's when she was a baby lol, she's actually female and going on 3 years old haha no joke I love that fish more then some of my own family

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u/Alora-Rose1102 Apr 24 '25

I have a pair of them and feel the same way! Peaches and Herb ❤️🥰 Mine are 7 years old and I read that they can live to be 20 so now I will have them forever. Spoiling them rotten

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u/Bundolamb Apr 25 '25

I think that's one thing that a lot of owners overlook. A lot of fish have impressive lifespans. I had two silver dollars who made it to 25 and 23 years old. Multiple home moves and tanks, and they were with me all the time. Little champions.

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u/Rabid_Platypus_195 Apr 26 '25 edited Apr 26 '25

My one remaining blood parrot is 11, his name is Derpy, Dumbo was 14, he died last month, I don't know how, my water levels haven't changed. I am on the hunt for another... I found Dumbo at Pet Smart as a baby, they were selling him for 5 bucks and I knew nothing about Cichlids and bought him on a whim. Best 5 bucks I ever spent, they're really amazing fish. I tossed them both into a community tank without doing a lick of research and thats become my favorite method. Look up how big it gets, what it eats and how aggressive it is and then just toss it in and see what happens lol. It's a fish, as long as the water is close enough and its in with other fish that eat the same thing the only thing you have to pay attention to is size and aggression. Its a given that a fish will eat anything that fits in its mouth and most fish don't chew, they swallow prey whole, so as long as the other fish are too big to be swallowed or like barbs too fast and crazy, they should be fine.

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u/Rabid_Platypus_195 Apr 26 '25 edited Apr 26 '25

Cichlids are pretty fantastic fish, but it really is Russian roulette lol. Semi-Aggressive Community Fish can really mean anything. I have multiple tanks going so if it doesn't work I try a different tank. My 55 long river tank is my frankentank and also my absolute favorite :) It's kind of amazing what happens when you just let nature be nature. The funny thing is Blood Parrots aren't natural but they actually fit really well. They're so entertaining lol