Cichlid Compatiblity

[T-man02]

Can i fit another cichlid in my tank or not the ones i have know are small under5cm and if i can what kind

 

[WendiDell]

Ok Wendi well my rz is my least favorite for two things. First off my mom like the color and sugested it. Second I really don't want hybrids and as soon I got the rz in the tank he was best friends with my lab as you can see probably not that great for a none hybrid tank. Then he was starting to nip at my acei(my fav fish) i know that it's the way they are I was just a little bit annoyed by the new fish in the tank messing with the most like. Lol I just kindof went off on the rz but whatever. So that's why

That's reasonable. I don't like it either when a fish gets nippy.
Fins end up torn, fish end up stressed. Then the fish that's being picked on starts to manifest illnesses, their immune system crashes.
Fish keeper's start freaking out. It's not good for anyone.

 

[T-man02]

In all reality, if you appropriately stock the tank with 1m-4+ females of each fish, hybrids aren't going to be a problem IMO. My labs always stuck to themselves, and by red zebras always stuck to themselves. Sure, it can happen, but its not all that likely IMO

In the long run thats what i intend to do but i dont have the money to do that right know i have to pay for everything so 14year old kids dont make much cash lol

 

[T-man02]

That's reasonable. I don't like it either when a fish gets nippy.
Fins end up torn, fish end up stressed. Then the fish that's being picked on starts to manifest illnesses, their immune system crashes.
Fish keeper's start freaking out. It's not good for anyone.

Yes im Concerned for the well being of all my fish and my acei the most. At what size do they get sexually mature?

 

[WendiDell]

Yes im Concerned for the well being of all my fish and my acei the most. At what size do they get sexually mature?

Just like people, fish vary in size and grow at different rates. It's an age when they become sexually mature, not size. And it's earlier than you think.
Have your males started to look like they are trying to eat your gravel/sand? That's a nesting behavior. The males are tyring to make a place that the females will find desirable. Mine started doing it around 6-7 months old.

 

[T-man02]

Ok mine have been kindof pecking at the gravel idk if thats what your talking about ic so then wow that was quick

 

[WendiDell]

Ok mine have been kindof pecking at the gravel idk if thats what your talking about ic so then wow that was quick

When they are pecking at the gravel, they're trying to get at any food that fell into it.
What I'm talking about is, the male will go inside any cave like hole and grab a mouth full of gravel. Then they stick their head out and spit rocks. They make little mounds of gravel outside, trying to get to the smooth glass bottom. They think it will entice a female to come in and lay eggs. When there is a safe place with a smooth surface the females can lay eggs and then scoop them into their mouths. So the males try to make it for them.
I hope this is a little clearer.

 

[T-man02]

Ok

 

[T-man02]

Were kind i find a better varity of cichlids

 

[Hobgob]

Were kind i find a better varity of cichlids

What type? PetsmArts around here have a good variety

 

[T-man02]

Some german an africans

 

[Hobgob]

Some german an africans

Like GBR and ya I'm pretty sure petsmarts here had some really nice Africans. I got my GBRs at big als aquarium super centers

 

[T-man02]

Whats gbr sorry newby here

 

[Hobgob]

German blue ram

 

[WendiDell]

T-man, when you say cichlids you are talking about a whole lot of different fish. Most of the Africans are incompatible.
If you have some from Lake Malawi, you can't mix in any cichlids from lake Vitoria or the other one I can never remember, it's lake Tang-something.
Then a real different one are Angelfish. Angels are also considered Cichlids. But they can't be in a tank with any of the other cichlids.
I don't know who or how they decide which fish will be in the cichlid family, but there are a lot of them.
You may need to narrow your fish search a bit.

 

[T-man02]

The mbuna and some germans

 

[WendiDell]

The mbuna and some germans

They are both cichlids and like everything else, the Mbunas will kill the German Rams. They will kill any Ram.
Here is a picture of a Mbuna. It will show you why you don't want to put any poor defencless fish in with a Mbuna except another Mbuna.

 

[T-man02]

Ok i see why lol what are some opions about kenyi and aurtous ( i know the second obe is spelled wrong sorry lol)

 

[WendiDell]

Ok i see why lol what are some opions about kenyi and aurtous ( i know the second obe is spelled wrong sorry lol)

Those teeth say it all, don't they?
I've only had 2 Kenyi and both were mello compared to the RZ. The female Kenyi is the only one to survive the RZ terror. She is very calm and is always out front, she's rarely behind the rocks. The minute the camera comes out she fallows it. It's a battle for me not to have her in every picture.
I've never had any Auratus myself, but after a little surfing of a few sites, for what is worth. The general consensus was that the Auratus should be fine with a Kenyi, but is to aggressive for Haps & Peacocks.
But, this is just my opinion after reading various things on Cichlid behaviors and compatibility.
The Auratus are interesting in the fact that the female is the bright yellow with horizontal stripes and the males are a drab grey. Backwards from most Mbunas.
Hope this helps you a little.

 

[mfdrookie516]

Kenyi and Auratus are arguably two of the most aggressive mbuna. I had both in my tank, and my male Kenyi was definitely the most aggressive fish in my tank.