my cichlid tank... question

[Guest]

I wanted to add some more variety to my tank that isn't too aggressive but i want to stay mbuna and i may get rid of my johanni, auratus, and possibly the kenyi. That'll just leave me with the labs and the acea and the albino soclofi. THe labs and acei are my favorite so im wondering about these names that ive seen... "zebra", "electric blue"... and any other suggestions of peaceful mbuna that would be compatible.
Now keep in mind that im only going to add more if i removed some fish. The auratus and johanni are definitely going to go because i like to have the groups and even though the auratus is a female i saw her take a chunk out of a labs tail!!! The kenyi are a little bit aggressive but so far no problems there. If i can find a nice blue to add i will have no problem getting rid of the kenyi.
TIA

 

[manoosie]

zebra= aggresive
Electric Blue= not aggresive

generally...

 

[Guest]

ok but what exaclty ARE they ... any links to pages with profiles? i was browsing through malawi mayhem but not having much luck finding anything.
I know its a chance either way but what would be the best to add if i did this to add more color variety?

 

[Zagz]

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/category.php?cat=2 Some zebras are listed here, look on the right side of the descriptions.

http://www.malawicichlidhomepage.com/haps/malawi_ahlis.html Electric blue haps.

This site lists both haps and mbuna and some of the names you can google for images.

 

[Guest]

Thanks Zagz.. very helpful.

 

[Guest]

After reading around i think im gonna stick with the combo i have except i am getting rid of the auratus. The other's are all ok.

 

[Zagz]

It's hard to make decisions regarding stocking sometimes isn't it? There are so many options sometimes it can be information overload I think.

 

[Guest]

lol that is so true. WHen i first started i just threw in a bunch of mixed africans for 1.99 to find out taht they may not work well together. I love the kenyi becuase of the blue and nothing else has really cought my eye at hte LFS . And Acei---well they are purple.. LOL. so awesome. And of course the labs are the most popular.

 

[DeFeKt]

To give you an idea...
I have the acei "msuli",
Maingano (cyaneo..etc)
latisfaciata (the vertical stripes goes great with the horizontals on the maingano)
dimi compressiceps (wouldn't recommend this for adults)
theres even a albino peacock around somewhere.
and plan to add yellows soon.
So there is a good contrast of Bright blue, black, purple, yellow, white, red and orange
better once the yellow labs in there.
I'm also majorly overstocked at the moment so there is no aggression whatsoever besides a fin nipping red tail black shark who is soon to go. Only problem I had was they all ganged up and hammered 2 albino bristlenose I put in there.
Just put my fry into the tank. some are less then 1/3", and my largest fish is 5" and they haven't even looked twice at each other.
have no problem with the hap/mbuna mixture at all, only thing is to do a minor re-arrange and a major water change if anything gets introduced to the tank.
BTW, wheres ur pics !!

Matthew

 

[Guest]

ha ha yeah you try to get pics of fish with a camera phone.
there are some pics in my gallery though if u wanna check it out.. all wiht my camera phone and of poor quality.

 

[Zagz]

I too have a mix of haps,mbuna and peacocks. There is some mild aggression over the females but that is normal and no one has gotten hurt. I designed my tank around the colors I wanted first then researched the species to go with it. I did at first get cichlids from the misc cichlid tank at the lfs. Soon learned to be more careful though.

 

[Guest]

yeah Zagz ive learned a lot and my future cichlid tanks (yes there will be more!!!) I will be more careful. Actually im gonna get another tank and split these guys up... lol. That way ive got the more aggressive ones in one tank and the more passive in another.

I also want to try a reef tank... someday.

 

[Zagz]

Me too on the reef tank. But first I need more room, LOL 9 tanks is going to be a pain to move I am sure.

 

[mr funktastic]

have you comsidered getting any peacocks? they are not very exciting as juvis but worth the wait once they get colour. i really like my cobalts and they are an amazing blue colour. and if u are going to have an agressive fish in the tank like the johanni why not swap it out for the best cichlid there is the demasoni lol (just my opinion) i have one in my tank now with 2 labs(soon to be 4 or 6) 2 cobalts 2 peacocks and i just added 2 new fish that i have to confirm the name of buti will get back to you on that lol. i have blue from the cobalts yellow from the labs blue and yellow from the peacocks(once they get a little bigger) and now i have 2 orange fish in there that once the male matures he will turn black and blue but the female will stay orange. i am very lucky to have a big als near me and they have one of the best stocks i have ever seen in a fish store. but i guess your choices are limited by your supplier.

 

[Zagz]

OOh ooh I vote the peacocks too. Mine are now adult and are very entertaining and colorful.

 

[mr funktastic]

i was just looking at a picture of your sunshine peacock zags and i love the little tinge of red he has in his top fins. i an still tring to figure out what type of peacock mine are but i think it will have a slightly yellow face and a blue body or vice versa. the store listed it as a alonacaura jacobfrebergi (dont quote me on my spelling lol) and i beleive it also said it was from hongi island.

 

[Guest]

Peacocks aren't Mbuna :? are they?

Demansoni.. do they do well with labs and acei? How does their aggression level compare to kenyi?

 

[mr funktastic]

ok they are supposed to be one of the worst and most agressive cichlids out there but that is only to their own kind. i have one with my labs and cobalts(like the acei) and he doesnt care about them at all. the only time he becomes agressive is when they go into his "space" mine has a little hole dug out from under a small cave and he hides in there most of the time. but when another fish comes into his hole he chases them out and nips at them. it only took my labs a few times to realize where they shouldnt go. he will come out and swim when he thinks i am not looking and i have neevr seen him express any agression towards the other fish. but be warned u can only have 1! unless u are absolutly positive of the gender which brings up another point that they are the hardest cichlid to sex. the only difference between male and female is the female has an egg gland lol. u can only sex them by venting.

 

[Guest]

ok well maybe i didn't make myself very clear.. LOL.. i was looking to make my tank as peaceful as possible with only MBUNA chichlids from Lake Malawi. I know i have the clown loaches, rainbow shark, and pleco's... but they don't really count.. LOL.

 

[kay-bee19]

What size tank do you could have?

You happen to already have some of the most mildest mbuna around (acei and yellow labs). By comparison, then, most other available mbuna will have more aggression potential (which can be managed if properly set up).

You could try adding some cynotilapia afra to your mix. Alternatively, a cobalt blue zebra would contribute some nice blue to your tank.

Finally, as suggested by mr. funktastic, a single pseudotropheus demasoni would do nice. I've got one in my main tank (which includes acei and yellow labs) and he exhibits normal mbuna behavior towards the others. In your mix a demasoni probably wouldn't exhibit the aggression they unleash towards their own kind (which can be quite brutal).