Cichlid stocking

[Maridia]

I've heard that cichlids can withstand higher nitrates than most other fishes. I heard this because most cichlid tanks need to be heavily stocked in order to avoid conflict. Is this so?

 

[aquandrew]

I've heard that cichlids can withstand higher nitrates than most other fishes. I heard this because most cichlid tanks need to be heavily stocked in order to avoid conflict. Is this so?

this is definitely not true, at all. you need to do tons of water changes, if you decide to "overstock" for aggression issues. any cichlid you find in the wild, will be living in water with 0 ammonia 0 nitrite 0 nitrate. there is too much water volume, for toxins to build up in lakes, rivers etc.

 

[SonicsDC25]

Agreed with aquandrew, high nitrates are always a toxin no matter what and having an ability to withstand a higher amount of it will still have bad effects no matter what. As for the overstocking, it really all depends on tank size, species, and the amount of females you're looking to have when it comes to conflict/aggression.

 

[Fishdude3233]

+1 to all above said statements you can overstock as mbuna tank as that helps with aggression, but then you need to do larger water changes more frequently, and will need 2-3X overpowered filter to help keep up