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Cichlids are the most aggressive fish species. Some cichlids are more aggressive, some are less. So arguably this is not suitable to keep snails with cichlids.
Cichlids are not active snail eater fish. But this can be eaten because of its small size. Big-sized cichlids like jaguar, blood parrot & firemouth will eat snails (not intentionally) but small-sized cichlids may not touch snails if they grow together. Small cichlids like German blue ram are the most suitable one to keep it with snails
But still, there is more knowledge you need to know about cichlids before putting a snail into a cichlid tank. You have to know the nature of each cichlid.
Don’t worry! Here I’ll help to guide you about the cichlids and snails. The aim of this article is to know the compatibility of snails with cichlid fishes in an aquarium. So let’s dive deep into the topic
Here is a quick list of the compatibility chart of snails with cichlids
Snails are compatible with
- Bolivian ram
- German blue ram
- African cichlids
- Discus
Snails are not compatible with
- Convict cichlid
- Kribensis cichlid
- Oscar
- Cockatoo dwarf cichlid
There are other types of cichlid fishes too but here we’ve not mentioned their names just because of their big size (Jaguar cichlid, firemouth cichlid, blood parrot cichlid, and so on). Here we’ve mentioned some special types of cichlids that people think are compatible with snails. So we’ve done research on it and presented the real data in front of you the real data.
Read more:- Types of cichlid fishes: Complete & definitive guide
Read more:- Assassin snail vs nerite snail: Everything about compatibility
Can I put snails with Oscars?
Oscar fish is a very active and aggressive fish species. This is territorial too. But actually, this is not aggressive what people think. This fish eats anything that fits in its mouth. Oscars grow up to 18 inches long. So snails are definitely not compatible with Oscar definitely. But you can keep snails with juvenile Oscars.
If you think that your snails will not fit your Oscar’s mouth then you are wrong completely because adult Oscar will attack snails frequently as this is a peaceful species. This will increase stress on snails and ultimately these will die. After that Oscar may eat those snails. So if you have Oscars they don’t think to keep snails into that tank.
Can I put snails with the convict cichlid?
Convict cichlids are considered the most active and aggressive species among all cichlids. The size of convict cichlid is comparatively small (adult convict cichlid 4.5 inches). But snails are helpless in front of the convict cichlids. This may not eat the snails directly but snails may not live comfortably if you keep them with convict cichlids. You must avoid juvenile snails to keep in a convict cichlid tank.
Read more:- Is goldfish compatible with cichlids?
Can I put snails with the discus?
Discus is a peaceful cichlid fish. If you want to keep snails with cichlids, the discus fish may be compatible with it. Discus is a medium-sized cichlid fish. Its average size is 5-8 inches. But as discus is a sensitive fish so you should not keep any type of snail in a discus tank. Nerite, apple and assassin snail may thrive with discus.
Read more:- Does Hillstream Loach Eat Shrimp? A Compatibility Test
Can I put snails with the German blue ram?
German blue ram is not a big or medium-sized cichlid fish. The average size of this fish is approx. 3 inches. This is a peaceful type of fish. But this becomes aggressive if it is kept in a small tank. So if you keep snails with German blue ram in a medium-sized (20 gallon or more) then both species will live happily together.
Can I put snails with the African cichlids?
African cichlids are not active snail eaters. They may be aggressive fish species but they will not eat cichlids by finding them. African cichlids are mid-sized fish so that they may eat snails just because of their smaller size. As a food snail is better for African cichlids. So, African cichlids will never mind eating snails. Juvenile snails are strictly not recommended to keep with African cichlids. Pond snails and apple snail are compatible with the African cichlids
Read more:- South American VS African cichlids: Don’t buy before knowing the information about it
Can I put snails with the Bolivian ram?
Bolivian ram is a small-sized cichlid fish. The size of this fish is approx 3.5 inches. So this is theoretically not possible to eat snails for a Bolivian ram. But Bolivian ram can eat juvenile snails easily. But if the tank is big enough then Bolivian ram will not bother about the snails. So snails are compatible with the Bolivian ram.
Can I put snails with the cockatoo dwarf cichlid?
Cockatoo dwarf cichlid is not compatible with snails. This cichlid is an aggressive and small-sized fish. The maximum size of this fish is approx 3 inches. Despite its size, this cichlid is the most aggressive and if you keep a snail with it then it will nip its antennae. The snail will be knocked out by this cichlid. You should avoid this cichlid to keep snails in their juvenile condition also.
Read more:- Snails Appeared in Aquariums? 7 Effective Ways to Get Rid of It
Can I put snails with the kribensis cichlid?
Kribensis cichlid is comparatively better to keep with snails in a fish tank. Kribensis cichlids are not so aggressive against snails. But there is a possibility to nip the snails’ antennae by kribensis. If the tank size is small then there are high chances that your snail will die because of kribensis cichlid. This cichlid actually doesn’t eat snails. But apple and mystery snail is compatible with kribensis cichlids.
Read more:- The growth rate of cichlids: Exclusive researched information
Conclusion
From this discussion, I can conclude that snails are not regular food for cichlids. But if a big sized cichlid gets a small and weak snail in front of its mouth then it will nip its antenna or eat it all. You can keep snails with cichlids but make sure the species are mentioned on the top. Don’t make the mistake to keep both in a small tank. In a small tank, your snail will be knocked out definitely by any type of cichlids. But this is better to keep baby cichlids with full-grown snails together in a tank.
So best of luck & happy fishkeeping 🐟