What Type of Fish Are Green Terror Cichlids?

Green terrors are cichlids -- members of taxonomical family Cichlidae, one of the largest vertebrate families. At least 1,650 cichlid species are known, and it's known that more are unknown -- estimates vary between 2,000 and 3,000 species altogether. Within family Cichlidae, green terrors can be typed at a variety of levels.

  1. Taxonomy

    • Taxonomically, green terrors belong to the perch order, Perciformes. Within this order is the family Cichlidae. Cichlids are known for parental care and aggression. Green terrors, in the genus Aequidens and of the species rivulatus, exhibit both of those Cichlidae traits to varying degrees. While green terrors are more aggressive than most tetras, they are not particularly aggressive for cichlids.

    Diet

    • You can also define green terrors by their diet. Green terrors are omnivores, capable of eating both meat and plant material. For a staple, you can feed them prepared cichlids foods like dry cichlid pellets. You can get cichlid pellets at most pet shops. Green terrors also benefit from green food. You can feed them pellet-foods rich in spirulina, or grocery store plants like blanched spinach. At the same time, green terrors relish meats live or frozen fish -- from the pet shop or the grocery store -- cut to an appropriate size for them.

    Distribution and Habitat

    • The habitat of green terrors also help define them. Different groups of cichlids vary based on their geography in terms of comparability and water chemistry. Green terrors live in coastal rivers and streams on the Pacific side of South America. South American cichlids generally prefer softer water chemistry than African or central American cichlids -- and they tend to not get along with cichlids from these other areas.

    Tank Mates

    • Green terrors, despite their names are considered "large community cichlids." This means you can keep them with other South American cichlids of similar size. Keep in mind that some cichlids from South America may get very aggressive and pick on green terrors. The one caveat is that green terrors tend to fight with other members of their own species. Do not try to keep more than one pair of green terrors in the same aquarium. Green terrors will even fight with blue Acara cichlids since they look similar.