Considering Malawi tank, a couple questions...

[justrelax]

I'm going to be moving within the next couple months, and I think I want to start my 55 over as a Malawi tank. Naturally, I have a number of questions.

1. Does the male to female ratio depend on the species, or is there a general rule?

2. Will an xp2 and an Emperor 400 provide enough filtration for a fully, but not over, stocked tank?

3. With a pH of 7.6-7.8, will I need something to raise it?

4. Is there a specific rock that works best for decor?

5. Is non-planted ok?

6. How many inches of fish would be considered fully stocked with the above-mentioned filtration?

I've done quite a bit of research on the fish, here's a starting list of the one's that cought my eye and should be compatible. Please share any thoughts on these choices.

Pseudotrpoheus sp. "red top ndumbi"
Pseudotropheus demasoni
Pseudotropheus sp. "galileo red top"
Labidochromis sp. "mbamba"
Cynotilapia afra "cobue"
Aulonocora baenschi
Aulonocara sp. "lwanda"

 

[MSU Fan]

1. Does the male to female ratio depend on the species, or is there a general rule?

I have generally read 1M/3F to mitigate agression, but I am not sure if that is species specific or not. Others will need to help here.

2. Will an xp2 and an Emperor 400 provide enough filtration for a fully, but not over, stocked tank?

I sure hope so, I have a Emp 280 & Emp 400 on my 55g. Your XP2 & Emp 400 will have somewhere in the realm of 175gph (XP2@~60% total gph) + 400gph (Emp) for 575gph total (+10x turnover). That should be no problem at all for fully stocked tank.

3. With a pH of 7.6-7.8, will I need something to raise it?

Not unless you want some specific breeds to...uh...breed. At that point, more specific conditions may be needed. But consistency is important as well.

4. Is there a specific rock that works best for decor?

No idea on that one...

5. Is non-planted ok?

Actually, every thing I have read says that keeping a planted tank with Cichlids is quite difficult, since their digging can uproot the plants, and they munch on them alot. There are some notable exceptions to this (TravisSimonsons 125g tank).

6. How many inches of fish would be considered fully stocked with the above-mentioned filtration?

I don't know this one. Sorry!

Pseudotropheus demasoni

You will need to keep these in a group of 12 or so to mitigate agression.

HTH

 

[maxwell1295]

1. The general rule for Mbuna is 1 male to every 3 to 4 females. That works for probably 80-85% of species. Some highly aggressive species (Auratus, Kenyi) may require more females per male and with other species M/F ratio is not a big deal (Demasoni, Acei, Yellow Labs).

2. I would say yes for those two filters used in tandem.

3. Nope. As long as your KH is at least 6-8dKH and your GH is high, you'll be fine.

4. For Mbuna, yes....they are a rock dwelling species so caves and lots of rockwork is a good idea. Not need as much with Haps/Peacocks.

5. No plants are needed although many are vegetarian and will need some green in their diet.

6. There is no "inches of fish per gallon" rule. Too much room may cause just trouble as severe overcrowding. Controlled overcrowding works best. 4 species of 4-5 fish each would work well for a 55g. Try not to get fish that resemble each other. That will help prevent crossbreeding and cut down on aggression as well. For example, keeping Demasoni with some Afras could cause problems since both species have vertical barring. The same can be said for the Lab. Mbambas, another species with vertical barring.

 

[JustOneMore20]

4 species of 4-5 fish each would work well for a 55g. Try not to get fish that resemble each other. That will help prevent crossbreeding and cut down on aggression as well. For example, keeping Demasoni with some Afras could cause problems since both species have vertical barring. The same can be said for the Lab. Mbambas, another species with vertical barring.

I agree. Also, I was cautioned not to keep more than one fish of a certain genus (for example, don't keep 2 groups of Pseudotropheus species together or 2 Labidochromis).

The general rule for Mbuna is 1 male to every 3 to 4 females. That works for probably 80-85% of species. Some highly aggressive species (Auratus, Kenyi) may require more females per male and with other species M/F ratio is not a big deal (Demasoni, Acei, Yellow Labs).

I agree with this as well. Just wanted to add that for Peacocks (Aulonocara species) the female to male ratio can be 3:1 or 2:1.

I'd do alot of research on which Malawians you keep together (as I'm sure you will). I wouldn't keep Peacocks with a tank full or Pseudotropheus and Melanochromis species, as the Peacocks will end up dead). If you want Peacocks and Labs, I'd try for some less aggressive species to go with them, like Acei and Rusty Cichilds (though these aren't on your list ). If I could do my tank over, I would not have added the Eureka Peacocks in with the Mbuna. Whatever you keep Labs and Aulonocara with, have a larger group of these 2 than you do the others.

 

[justrelax]

Thanx for the advice so far.

I'd do alot of research on which Malawians you keep together (as I'm sure you will).

You got it
The more I look into this type of tank, the more excited I get. I'm definitely going forward with this plan. I'll be back with more questions!

 

[toddnbecka]

Whatever you do, stay away from auratus, and most of the "mixed africans" commonly sold at Wal-Mart. Auratus are probably the most aggressive mbuna there is, and a 55 isn't large enough for them, much less others mixed with them, because they instinctively claim a large territory. Other common "mixed africans" include zebra's, which are nearly as bad as the auratus when they mature.

 

[bs6749]

What are you going to do with your FW fish that you currently have in there? ; )

 

[justrelax]

I'm going to have 7 lemon tetras and 7 black skirt tetras up for grabs. If you're interested drop me a pm.

I have pretty much decided on this for a stock list:

Cynotilapia afra "cobue", 2 male, 5 female
Pseudotropheus sp. "red top ndumbi", 1 male, 3 female
Aulonocara sp. "lwanda", 1 male, 2-3 female

The lwanda is potentially a 6" fish. Do you think 1:2 is an ok ratio? Also, the cobue ratio, any thoughts on 2:5?

I'll be rock shopping for a while. I'm yet undecided on using some type of holey-rock, or going with more of a boulder-shaped rock. I have a line on all three species, I just need to let my guy know when I want them.

 

[coldmachineUK]

I love single species tanks when it comes to malawis; if you go with a dimorphic species the whole setup will look really neat. Sometimes too much colour is distracting and unpleasant to the eye.

1. Does the male to female ratio depend on the species, or is there a general rule?

As maxwell says, min. 1M:3F, but with the more aggressive you may need more females. I actually have 3M:4F msobo magunga and there's no problems but I count myself lucky on that.

2. Will an xp2 and an Emperor 400 provide enough filtration for a fully, but not over, stocked tank?

Yes

3. With a pH of 7.6-7.8, will I need something to raise it?

Ideally you want 7.8-8.2 but if you can keep it at 7.8 you'd be fine.

4. Is there a specific rock that works best for decor?

I use lava rock for four reasons:
1. Very lightweight. This means:
2. You can stack a ton of it up to provide large amounts of territory. I think this is currently why my tank is so passive despite everything in the literature saying it should be otherwise.
3. It looks impressive: very striking.
4. I've read it's beneficial for the nitrate cycle, harbouring beneficial bacteria in the pores.

5. Is non-planted ok?

Many malawi are diggers, burrowing in the substrate. They can uproot plants as a result. Mbuna are veggies also so they may decide to snack on them. If you go with plants go with vallisneria and java fern since these are not as tasty! And, I recommend planting them in terracota pots rooted firmly in the substrate.

6. How many inches of fish would be considered fully stocked with the above-mentioned filtration?

I think someone else addressed this. Inches of fish per gallon is not a good way of measuring bioload, esp. with cichlids where mild overstocking is actually beneficial to reduce aggression.

Pseudotropheus demasoni

Very aggressive species. You know, this links in to what I say first off: a species only tank. They'd look lovely as a species setup!

Cynotilapia afra "cobue"

A lovely fish, I was after these before settling on the so-called saulosi (which turned out to be the msobo magunga). Nice colouration, and peaceful for a mbuna.

Try looking at a single dimorphic species. IMHO a species-only tank looks far more dramatic than a mass of colour, and you could keep a more aggressive fish than you might otherwise be able to if you opted for a mixed tank. You also wouldn't need to worry about hybridisation issues.

 

[justrelax]

6. How many inches of fish would be considered fully stocked with the above-mentioned filtration?

I realize this was a stupid question... I was assuming everyone would know I was thinking only of on average 4" fish. I should have asked: How many 4" Malawis can I keep in a 55? So... How many?

coldmachineUK, I do like the idea of a single species only, nice suggestion. You know how it goes, though... You start looking through material and before you know it you have a stock list more appropriate for a lake than a tank

What kind of ratio would I be looking at if I went with just the Cobues? Could I do 4 males and 12 females? Or more? I realize the answer probably hinges on the amount of hiding places in the tank, so let me say I'm cool with putting a whole bunch of rocks in there. In fact, one of the reasons I wanted a Malawi tank is so I had a really good reason to set up some really sweet rockwork.

 

[coldmachineUK]

Well, don't forget that the cobue is actually a 'dwarf' african (in comparison to others anyway) reaching an average max. size of 3". So, in a 55G you could definitely go with 16, and at the ratio you describe (4M:12F). With 16 you could also keep a reasonably sized syno or three of a smaller species in there. Since the cobue are mouthbrooders, I don't recommend syno multipunctatus (they're a parasitic spawner and will interfere with your cichlids).
How long is the 55G? 4'? You could go with one of possibly my favourite synodontis of them all: angelicus.
http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/species.php?species_id=278