Smallest geophagus

[k0olmini]

Whats a small geo that people here like and what are their care requirements? 

[anewbie]

As a general rule all geo prefer a soft sand like substrate (larger substrate can damage their gills as they shift through it looking for food); as SA fishes most prefer soft acidic water though I think there might be some central american species that do well in harder alkaline water. One of the smaller species is  Geophagus parnaibae but these are not so common. A commonly available and not too large geo is Biotodoma cupido. Like many geo these have an extremely low tolerance for 'dirty' water and require very clean water with decent flow. They do best in soft acidic water (ph below 7; hardness around 3 gh or lower); they prefer to be kept in a group of 5 to 8. A 75 gallon aquarium should be fine but 125 is always nicer. The important thing is an aquarium with lots of floor space; height is not so important. 

Like most cichild food should have a fair amount of plant matter as well as meat. 

Edited November 23, 2022 by anewbie

[BlueLineAquaticsSC]

Mikrogeophagus altispinosus, Bolivian Ram. I recommend them all the time since they are one of my favorite fish I’ve ever kept. They have also always been very hardy in my experience.

[anewbie]

On 11/23/2022 at 4:47 AM, BlueLineAquaticsSC said:

Mikrogeophagus altispinosus, Bolivian Ram. I recommend them all the time since they are one of my favorite fish I’ve ever kept. They have also always been very hardy in my experience.

But they are not geophagus so off topic to this thread.

[k0olmini]

On 11/23/2022 at 2:47 AM, BlueLineAquaticsSC said:

Mikrogeophagus altispinosus, Bolivian Ram. I recommend them all the time since they are one of my favorite fish I’ve ever kept. They have also always been very hardy in my experience.

I see. Still in the earth eater category 

[Fish Folk]

Although not typically considered Geophagus proper, I’d agree that Bolivian Rams deserve a good consideration. They behave a lot more like Geos than German Blue Rams, enjoy filter feeding sand as mentioned, etc.

Other Geos just get BIG. We kept Threadfin Acaras, but they really outgrew our tank space after a couple years. 

[Biotope Biologist]

Came here to say the same thing as @Fish Folk. I think the smallest geophagus species still gets to about 8.75” in length so you are better off with a different cichlid with similar characteristics…

 

if size is an issue. 

Edited November 23, 2022 by Biotope Biologist

[anewbie]

On 11/23/2022 at 9:23 AM, Biotope Biologist said:

Came here to say the same thing as @Fish Folk. I think the smallest geophagus species still gets to about 8.75” in length so you are better off with a different cichlid with similar characteristics…

 

if size is an issue. 

There are several species that stay around 5 inches - not small. There are serveral dwarf cichild that are a bit closer to geo behavior - well closer than bolivian rams but their overall behavior isn't really the same. 

 

I mentioned  two species that trends close to 5 inches or smaller; one could argue that cockatoo are pretty close to geo - certainly the males have the large shovel like mouth for shifting sand but i wouldn't push the similarities any more than Bolivian rams (which i personally dislike). The problem with this discussion is we don't really know why the op mentioned geo to begin with - is it the overall behavior or the shape of the body. Nor does he mention the tank size or water parameters (hard/soft/...). I take it on face value he wants small geo; but most geo prefer a decent size shoal so the tank is going to have to be modestly large - absolute min. for a group of cupid (for example) would be 75 with a 125 being much better - or a custom aquarium that has the floor space of a 125 but shallower.

 

However op might have a 500 gallon aquarium for all we know - of course if his water is liquid rock he should be looking at something like Elliot's Cichlid which isn't a geo but certainly looks like one (also gets around 7.5 inches) 😉

Or the op might have no interesting in buying fishes at all he might just want to know the smallest species of geophagus....