how many maingano's fit in a 45g, 4 ft tank?

[Dan_Forbz]

im looking at setting up a tank specific for maingano's and also to go with my current maingano stuck in a 5g at the moment. from alot of time and effort im pretty certain the one i have now is a male ( cant be sure though). once i tried placing a male with him and he had fun trying to catch him, due to territorial fighting, yet again his colouration is not like the male i baught to see if they would get along?

the plan is using this 5 ft tank for a breeder and also as another feature. would it be best to just buy a few juveniles and let them pair off on their own, removing my current maingano from the picture and selling off the extras, or trying to find a match for my current maingano?

as i have read however, mainganos prefer a ratio of 3 females to one male ? is this true? would this stuff up breeding?

 

[JustOneMore20]

Most Mbuna are polygamous and males will breed with several females, which is why you see the 3:1 ratio. Some people keep more than 3 females per male so they have more options. I believe they should breed in the tank. I would go with atleast 3 females per male...but you may have to buy juveniles and let them grow some before you can sex them. They should breed in the main 45g tank though, no problem.

For a 45g tank...I would think you could house 8-10 Mainganos. Someone else will hopefully give you their opinion as well.

 

[Dan_Forbz]

8 - 10 maingano's would be about the amount I'm wanting. of course that's about 2 males to 6 females or 8 females right? and because my maingano is already adult size , would he go ape on the juveniles or let them grow?

 

[toddnbecka]

They're a relatively mellow species, not likely to kill each other off.

 

[Dan_Forbz]

ohh okay, maybe they will go fine. i can always place him in there and just observe for a few hours and see how they do