Newbie Here

[junebugd]

Hello all. I'm new to the community, but not to fish keeping. Currently I have a five gallon for my betta Freddie, and a 29 gallon community tank. I have acquired a used 46 gallon bowfront, complete with many extras to go with it, through a classified add. I have been doing research on setting up a cichlid tank (African) and fishless cycling. Just finished reading cycling info I found on the forum. I know some say that anything less than 55 gallons is too small for cichlids, but could a 46 work? I would appreciate any input from cichlid keepers. Is it true that overcrowding can keep down aggression? About how many 4 inch cichlids could I have. I am not really interested in raising babies, so is keeping all males possible? Sorry for so many questions, but I'm really anxious to get started.

Thanks in advance,
junebugd

[Rosenweiss]

Welcome to AA! I don't think overcrowding keeps down aggression--but I could be wrong. I would think that more space and more hiding places is what keeps it down.

[junebugd]

I know, that makes more sense to me, too. But I have read it somewhere. Probably what's wrong is that it's all starting to run together. Guess I need to get to the fishless cycling, then jump in with a few smaller ones and see what happens. Thank for the reply.

[Rosenweiss]

You're welcome. Before you decide on your stock, I'd wait for a cichlid expert to chime in. I know that many kinds are too large even for a 55...

[junebugd]

I've been looking at the lfs. I love the color the cichlids offer. I probably need to keep to some that stay at 4 inches or less. Maybe someone with experience will chime in. Do you have a community tank?

[Rosenweiss]

Yeah, my experience is more in community fish and schoolers. =]