malawi cichlids? i dont wanna jsut risk it people have said it would work and others have said no i jsut dont want her gettin beaten up shes pretty chunky and will be gonig back into my jewel vision 260 i play on keeping the smaller electric yellow cichlids to start with

thanks luke

Plecs and malawis need completely different phs (plecs prefer slightly acidic), so no, plecs aren't best suited to a malawi tank. Some people do it, but it's not ideal - and the long term effects on the plec's health wouldn't be worth risking. Synos make great malawi catfish though

I have heard people keeping large commons for they can handle a larger range of pH but I don’t think a Royal could take the stress.

hmmm okay ill have a think i may try it and then if it doesnt look okay after a day or two put it in my brothers tank with his neons and pretty fish haha i have a syno and a holbo catfish ( so its called in the shop ) would the holbo be okay aswell or not?

I'm going to be the voice of dissent here and mention my Panaque lived for about 7 years in a Malawi cichlid tank. She was fine, though a bit shy, and perhaps didn't grow much because she didn't have as much food as she might have done otherwise (the cichlids eating algae and vegetables as happily as the catfish). The pH and hardness isn't such a big deal -- most of the Panaque kept in southern England are kept in hard and alkaline water anyway.

However, I'd comment further and say that my catfish had by this time been in my care for a few years, and she had grown and become used to aquarium life. Putting a newly imported Panaque straight into a Malawi tank might be less successful because you can't be sure the catfish will eat. Buying an older specimen from another aquarist that is already a year or two old is perhaps the way to go.

In terms of temperament, an angry Panaque can more than hold its own with a similarly sized cichlid. Though clumsy, they are extremely powerful, and armed with strong spines and basically bomb-proof thanks to their armour plating.

Cheers, Neale

ive had my plec for a year now in a community tank its constanly been chased around by my holbo catfish and my synodontis! i think she should be okay! im gona give her a try and then put her in my brothers tank if all fails but thanks for ure reply nmonks thts wot i realli wanted to hear!

thnx luke

what is the Ph of the tank?

Good point. The pH and hardness of the Malawi tank my girl lived in was plain London tapwater, so "hard" with a pH between 7.5 and 8. So she wasn't get anything that other fish in London don't have to put up with. I wouldn't keep a Panaque spp. above pH 8, so if you've hardened the water with tufa rock, coral sand, etc., then a Panaque isn't, in my opinion, the catfish for you.

Cheers, Neale