Kribensis in a community tank - advice?

[Sati]

OK, this is not a great photo, but here's my 38g community tank.

I have the opportunity to get a nice pair of Kribensis... a breeding pair. My question is, do you think they'll do OK in my community tank. It's well planted so there are lots of spots to hide. I'm hoping that this would prove a good home for them even if they get territorial while breeding.

If not, I will try to get a group of males, or a group of females. I'm not sure which would be best.

 

[madasafish]

It really, really depends!! I've got 2 (males) in my community tank and they do chase the other fish a bit. I imagine that a breeding pair would be more aggressive.

Many others have reported Kribs to be the most peaceful cichlids out there--they usually are...

 

[millym]

hi there,
we had a pair of breeding kribs in our community tank when we started out- big mistake, i noticed from your pic you have neons & red eyes(lovely tank) our kribs ate about 5 of our neons & attacked a small red eye & zebra danio until we realised what was happening (we blamed our barbs initially til i saw the murderers in action ) sadly we had to make a choice the kribs or the rest of our small fish & we rehomed our kribs. theyre gorgeous fish but we didnt have the right sort of mix of fish for them in our tank.(we got some bad advice from a lfs about the kribs) if we'd had room we would have loved to have kept them in another tank but unfortunately our flat is small. i would be v wary of putting them in with your neons or anything else small.

 

[TankGirl]

I will agree with millym that it would be a risk, and the neons (cardinals?) would be the first to go if there was trouble. I have 3 in a 12gal as juveniles and it looks like I have a female and 2 males, so the extra male is going to go back to the LFS. They do not seem to really injure each other, but the harrassment is intense and swift.

I know I have seen pics online of community tanks with kribs, but it would depend upon the fish.

 

[Sati]

I am very attached to the fish I have, as I've had most of them quite a long time. I wouldn't want to lose any of them. And yes, TG, the fish in the pic are cardinals, although there are a couple of neons left as well. I don't want to risk this. I think I can get some broken tanks in need of resealing. Maybe I can set up a tank for them. I'd love to have fry because I've never had babies, save baby snails! Boy, I guess it's a good thing I don't have any money, lol.

 

[TankGirl]

They make a great fish for a smallish tank, since they are pretty reliable breeders and they are generally pretty easy to sex. I am sure a tank will find its way to you, one way or another. Keep your eyes peeled!