iv decided to set up a tank as i miss my last one i had it is 50 us gallons and i woud like to keep malawi cichlids as i like the colours but the only problem is i dont no anything about them names,aggression etc and was wondering if someone could make a stock list of what would be good for the tank with a plec or bottom feeders or sumat aswell so there wouldnt be to many in there thanks in advance i no im asking alot

This post has been edited by dave1987: May 5 2008, 08:11 PM

any have any suggestions

You should look under the cookie cutter set ups on this we page to decide on waht you want. http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/quic...erence_list.php

You can have a synodontis catfish for a "bottom feeder" since they naturally live with some of these african cichlids.

Probably the easiest thing to do is go to your LFS, write down the names of all the fish you like. Then post on here and we'll help with stocking.

Yellow Labs (labidochromis Caeruleus) are usually very common and great looking fish and are generally considered to be mild tempered. Your lfs should have them or be able to get them easily. Here's a pic:


These are of my actual fish when I got them about a month ago. I find them very stunning!!
As for other fish, what dthoffsett said about going to your lfs and making a list is a perfect way to start!! We can help tweak your list from what's available to you

hi yes definately yellow labs i love there colouring i do hav e apictur of a tank full of fishes that i like but for some reason the option 2 put pictures on doesnt work can u help with this pls

ok heres a link to the pictyure would these fish be ok can u name them all for me nd how many would be ok in a 50 us gallon tank



This post has been edited by dave1987: May 2 2008, 08:51 AM

can anyone help me ID th efish in the picture pls

anyone?

Well the ones in the foreground with the black and orange stripes are clown loaches..

Maybe the blue and black stripped ones could be convict cichlids???? Convicts apparently will go breeding mad and you will not be able to get rid of them...

im not a cichlid person (yet) so cant help with the others.
Sorry!

This post has been edited by Mystil: May 2 2008, 05:27 PM

nah there not convicts

excluding the 2 Labidochromis Caeruleus, they look to be mainly pseudotropheus species,
can't tell you much more than that i'm afraid,

This post has been edited by Davo86: May 2 2008, 05:48 PM

so so far we have id 2 Labidochromis Caeruleus and 2 clown loaches thanks im after a set up with the same sort of fish does anyone have any suggestions thanks

looks liek there is a psuedotropheus acei in ther too and and metrialima (sp?) estherae.

I possibly wouldn't keep clown loaches with mbuna though, they like softer water.

The blue striped cichlid at the top is a female Metriaclima Lombardoi.

To be honest, I'd highly advise not buying from a mixed cichlid tank, especially for a beginner. You often end up with hybrids, and without knowing their parentage you could end up with a pretty fish that happily kills all the others. That said here's what I could ID.



1. tropheus duboisi 2 & 3. labidochromis caeruleus
4. metriaclima estherae 5. Chromobotia macracanthus (clown loach)
6. Labeotropheus fuelleborni OB 7. may be a young pseudotropheus crabro, it's a little blurry though
8. I think it's a poor quality l.caeruleus but I'm not sure.
9. I think it's a young female metriaclima lombardoi

thanks for the id'ing of the fish iv kept fish before i had angels with other things so if i was to go out and buy the ones you named would they be ok together and how many would you reccomend in a 50 us gallon tank i wont be buying the fish from the tank in the picture i just want fish like that

No problem. By beginner, I didn't mean new to fish keeping, but new to mbuna, they're a bit more complicated than your average "community" fish.

Before I recommend a number of fish, what are the dimensions of your tank? Since mbuna stake out their territories in the bottom levels of the tank, floor space is more important than the number of gallons.

Out of the ones I id'd, l.caeruleus and m.estherae would work well together, depending on the dimensions of your tank you could possibly keep l.fuelleborni as well.

ok thanks the tank is 3 ft long by 1 and a half

Well, l.fuelleborni won't work, they're a little to larger and aggressive for a 3ft. I'd probably go with 12 adults total. 3 species of 1m/3f each. m/f ratio doesn't really matter with labs, but you'll only want one male with the m.estherae. I'd pick another peaceful species, iodotropheus sprengerae are an excellent choice if you can source them.

Maybe Acei also as they are quite a peacefu