I'm hoping this is just a phase with the smaller ones, but Orfe are kinda dicks. As in, I've seen more mellow cichlids.

So, I had a few bigger ones in the outside pond (4, from 6 inches out to a foot), to take care of mosquitoes. They were pretty well behaved, mostly hung out at the top. I had to keep a net on the pond to keep them from jumping out, but that's sort of a theme with the top feeding bug snatching out of the water type fish.

So anyway we had a pretty major power outage a few weeks back, and all but one of them kicked it. Some replacements were acquired, (and don't get me started on what a pain that was) and after some quarantine time the three new ones were introduced to the one smaller one. In with them was a few shubunkin as well. The new ones Have been bastards. Right absolute bastards.

They've been fighting, picking on each other, and have gone so far as to rip the face off one of the smaller shubunkins. Oy. So I have them all separated now, and well, hopefully they'll mellow out, or something.

Sounds like they are/were a handful. How are they now, mellow out yet or still dicks?

By themselves they're nippy and seem to like to argue, but it also seems like they can take their own abuse.

I'm pretty sure they'll mellow out some down the road. The original lot were twice the size of these guys, and were much more calmer. I'm hoping anyhow.

Are you planning to reintroduce them later again or keep them separate? I assume you are keeping them with themselves for right now.....

They're going to have to be reintroduced into one of the ponds at some point. I don't have a big enough third tank or pond to put them in, unless I want them to be Snappy Snacks.

So they can grow out some and either go back in with the koi and goldies, or I've been tossing around the idea of seeing if once they get big enough if they could get along with the pacu.

Yea, it's an odd combination, but I do know someone in Florida that has some pacu and koi in a pond outside and they get along fine.

Nice....best of luck when you get them reintroduced or whatever you decide....I am going to be building a pond here in the next six months or so in my girlfriends back yard. I might just have to consider the pacu idea. Keep us posted though I want to hear about how they do..I have never kept orfe before.

That would be cool, I didn't know where you were at would stay warm enough year round to keep some pacu outside.

The best I can describe them is Orfe are a weird mix of koi, arowana and tin foil barbs. The juvies are kinda plain looking (like minnows with black splotches), but the adults are large pretty golden orange color.

They're fine in cold water, and get about as big as koi, the big ones get along just fine with koi same size or bigger. They are more predators than goldies/koi so they will go after smaller/slower fish. The juvies here seem to be more aggressive about it than the adults are but I wouldn't put them in with any of the pokey goldies they'll pick the crap out of them. I'd watch them with butterfly koi as well, but the previous lot were always pretty good. My kids tended to feed 'em kinda heavy too, so that may be part of it.

Outside they tend to patrol the surface (the arowana part) and nail bugs and stuff that come by, so if you do get them you absolutely have to have a net on the pond or they will jump out. Will, not maybe or if.

They're not picky about food. They'll take pellets, flake, whatever. These new guys seem to really really like this brine shimp flake I picked up, but they haven't turned down anything else either.

They're also stupid fast (like barb fast) so it's a bit of a challenge to catch 'em.

If I get some free time this week maybe I'll try doing up a profile.