580L (150g) Tanganyikan stocking advice

[Ozzwaver]

Hi all,
I've only ever had peaceful community tanks but want to try something different. My tank is 580 Litres (150gal) but only 5ft long so its quite tall. I'm really interested in a Tanganyikan biotope. I'm not particularly interested in breeding as I'd rather try and display as many different species my tank can support without major issues.

Do I have the option to stock two different species of tropheus??

My very rough stocking list is as following,
?? Amount of Tropheus
3x petricola catfish
4x masked Julie's ( julidochromis transcriptus)
4x shell dwellers (Lamprologus Ornatipinnis)
2x Calvus Black (Altolamprologus calvus)

After reading some previous posts, I realise Tropheus may not be the best choice. Don't be afraid to share stocking options completely different to what I've mentioned. Thanks in advance.

 

[Colin_T]

Only one species of Tropheus per tank. If you buy a group of Tropheus, you will end up with one male, a few females, and a bunch of dead males. For vegetarian fish, the males are unpleasant little bastards that will not tolerate another male in the tank.

Synodontis petricola need to be kept in groups of at least 6 (preferably 10) or more.

If you buy 4 shell dwellers or Julidochromis, there's a chance you get a male and female and a pr will breed. But neither species are outwardly aggressive and should be fine in a big tank.

Protomelis and Cyathopharynx are nice fish but might be a bit big depending on the actual tank dimensions.

Cyprichromis leptosoma and Paracyprichromis nigripinnis are nice peaceful schooling fish. You could have a group of them with 8-10 individuals.

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What are the tank dimensions (length x width x height)?

What is the GH (general hardness), KH (carbonate hardness) and pH of your water supply?
This information can usually be obtained from your water supply company's website or by telephoning them. If they can't help you, take a glass full of tap water to the local pet shop and get them to test it for you. Write the results down (in numbers) when they do the tests. And ask them what the results are in (eg: ppm, dGH, or something else).

Lake Tanganyika has a GH around 350-450ppm and a pH between 8.5-9.0

 

[Beastije]

Cyprichromis leptosoma

For these 120 cm lenght is super minimum, 150cm is way better and there needs to be like 15 of them. Only one male will have full colors others will be dull or duller. Active swimmer, small mouth fun fish but depends on the other fish.

 

[Beastije]

Btw while Xenotilapia flavipinnis is lovely to look at, it is a jumper and even with lid it will jump out

 

[Colin_T]

For these 120 cm lenght is super minimum, 150cm is way better and there needs to be like 15 of them. Only one male will have full colors others will be dull or duller. Active swimmer, small mouth fun fish but depends on the other fish.

The OPs tank is 5 ft (150cm) long

 

[speakerman3]

I would cancel the tropheus and get 10+ cyprichromis leptosoma. They have very interesting schooling and mid-tank breeding behavior. Include a high column of rocks at the back of the tank to give their fry a chance. Tropheus are best kept by themselves due to their diet. If you give their tank mates enough protein to keep them happy, the Tropheus could get bloat.

Four Julidochromis Transcriptus should be good to start, but I like starting with five and then selling off three after a pair forms. In your tank, there might be enough room for two pairs to form.

The Altolamprologus Calvus are another fish that I buy in groups of five and then sell off or move fish as needed. 1 male with two or three females works well. Or get enough that you can have three males total in the tank. Calvus will hunt down fry of their tank mates, but you might still end up with babies to sell off in spite of this.

Give your shellies shells and sand, and they should be fine.

If you aren't going for a strict Tanganyika biotope, rainbowfish are another fish that would do well filling the mid to upper starta of your tank. I like the turquoise rainbows. They are almost as interesting when breeding as Cyprichromis are. Male rainbows get a glowing stripe on their foreheads that flashes on and off as they court or when they vie for dominance.

Enjoy the process.