so i was at a lfs today with a friend and they had one of those tanks labeled "assorted african cichlids" .... as though that helps any with the ID of any specific species in it. well they were all really small at about an inch, one in particular caught my eye since it is an albino. i was wondering how rare these are. iv never kept cichlids and my friend who is a cichlid fanatic basically only knows about south american ones, so what are yalls expert opinions and advice on this? so the main questions im asking, to start with, is if albinos are rare and how do you keep africans in general? on that note, how big do they get, what size tank do adults need, do they need companions or can they be kept alone, what tank parameters are desirable?

http://www.africancichlids.net/articles/se...tips_and_facts/

albinos are not as rare as you might like to believe, but are ok to have. Sometimes you might find with albinos are that you never see them during the day. Some albinos have red eyes which can be sensitive to light, and therfore make the fish nocturnal

Albinos really aren't that rare.

Well you need at least a 55 gallon, preferably a 75 gallon if your going w/Mbuna from Lake Malawi. Most of them get around 5" long, although the crabro's get 7" and my cynotilapia afra only get 3". I would stay withe the smaller species if you opt for the smaller tank size.

You could keep smaller Lake tanganyikan(sp?) cichlids in a smaller tank.

African Cichlids generally need hard high ph water of around 8 or so. Lake T do best w/PH around 8.5. So most people use commercially available buffers to keep their ph at these levels. Or you can make your own buffer...just look around this forum on some threads and you'll find it. They need good filtration. A lot of us try to shoot for turning the tank over about 10 times per hour. So if you have a 75 gallon tank you'd be set w/a filter that does 750 gallons per hour (2 separate filters would be better. Easier for cleaning/maintence. You won't have to worry about killing the good bacteria off if you clean one.)

Mbuna do better w/multiple females to one male. The male can get kinda bossy w/them so if there's multiple females it divides it up.

Try looking at the members african tanks and the journals for ideas. then read about the species your interested in to find out more about them

ok sounds good. ill poke around the old posts and see what i like. also, just off the top of my head, (and i might be mixing old and new worlds here idk ) if i got that albino, an electric yellow, and one of those that have electric yellow on the bottom half and white and black horizontal strips on the top half; and i kept them in a tank by themselves whats a good minimum tank size for them, id love to get a big tank but im a bit crampt for space.

Mixing New and Old World cichlids aren't a good idea, not only do they require different water parameters (PH/KH) and usually different feeding requirements, they also have different temperments.

The albino you liked is most likely pseudotropheus socolofi albino, the electric yellow is labidochromis caeruleus, and the other yellow one you are describing is likely melanochromis auratus (one of the most aggressive mbuna available). All of those fish require a minimum 4-ft tank, they are best kept in groups of 1m/3+f and if kept in an undersized tank are likely to become hyperaggressive, often to the point where you only have one fish left in the tank.

Also, the mixed african tanks aren't a great place to buy them, most of the fish in there tend to be hybrids, and with mbuna not knowing the parentage of your fish can lead to a disaster aggression wise.

As kj said though, many Lake Tanganikya species, which are a little harder to find, will be happy in a smaller tank.

hmmm ok, well im supposed to go with a friend of mine to a cichlid convention here pretty soon, i know its got new world cichlids there idk if they have africans but its worth a shot. someone there should still be able to help me get some true breeds anyway if i decide i can get another tank. i hear what you're sayn about the hybrids, iv heard plenty from my friend about how most if not all of the authorities in the cichlid keeping world shun hybridization to the point of saying "if you find a hybrid, kill it". i actually agree, if it doesnt occur naturally then it could have the potential to do massive amounts of ecological damage not to mention most ppl want a fish thats as close to a wild caught one if possible.

what if i got just one... and kept it by itself, like say a yellow lab or that albino, what would be the minimum tank size it it had the tank all to itself? would a 20 long be decent?

Unfortunately that's not going to work either, mbuna (the rock-dwelling cichlids of lake Malawi) despite their aggression are pretty social fish and are used to large numbers. They're just not going to be happy on their own, and you'd probably never see them as they would be spend most of the time hiding.

ok so whats a minimum number to keep together and still say its responsible?

It really depends on the species, w/l.caeruleus and p.acei, they are happiest in groups of 5 or more. Most of the others should be kept in at least trios (1m/2f). Highly aggressive species should be kept as 1m/4+f. And p.demasoni are so conspecific aggressive they should be kept in groups of 12 or more, but will ignore most tankmates that don't look similar. Whatever combination you keep, because of their territory needs, a 4-ft tank is still the minimum recommended size.

ok, if i decide to go with cichlids ill remember that