Can This Work...

[LolaLouie]

I have almost fully stocked my tank but would like a few more cichlids.

I have a 200 litre tank with an oversized filter so it's not so much bio load that counts but space for territories.. so I was just wondering whether I could add to my tank 2 more Angelfish and 2/4 Kribs.

My current stock is:

2 Angelfish
2 Bolivian Rams
1 Dwarf Gourami
6 Cherry barbs
6 Corys
1 Oto
2 Hill Stream Loaches (small algae suckers)
2 African Dwarf Frogs
4 Pentazona barbs
6 Neons
6 Amano shrimp

Thanks!

 

[Larissa]

I don't have any experience with angel fish but I hear they get very agressive when they are breading. Maybe someone else can back me up on this? If so, perhaps you could have 4 male or 4 female in total - depending on what you already have? I think a pair of kribs would be good - I'm not sure if you have a big enough tank footprint for 4 as again, they get very agressive when they breed, but a pair would work well.
(As a side note, you may consider getting 2 or 3 more otos - they love to be in groups and won't be as shy. Also their affect on the bioload is negligable)
It seems like your after some more variation, but you could also consider getting a few more Bolivians. Maybe 2 more pairs, since they are smaller than kribs (and a tad more peaceful, I think). Their group dynamics are interesting to watch. But don't let me take you down the bolivian road again if you don't want any more lol!
You could probably also do a trio of some sort of apistogramma if you felt like sticking with south american cichlids...so many options...

 

[LolaLouie]

I did try to get more otos but they died on me the day i bought them and when i read a little more into them i found this is reasonably common so never wanted to waste time getting anymore.

I didn't want to get anymore bolivians because i have a happy pair at the moment so didn't want to mess up the dynamics by introducing more.

As for Angels I would quite like for them to breed but if they're really aggressive then i'm happy to have all M or all F the trouble is that they're so hard to sex.

I wasnt going to get regular kribs but Pelvicachromis Subcellatus which apparently are a little less aggressive. I have my heart very set on these as they're beautiful, I would also love for them to breed!

So ok how about if i add 2 more angels and only 1 pair of Kribs?

Thanks for the help!

 

[loachman]

hillstream loaches will not work. They require cooler water with A LOT of flow. The rams, frogs, gouramis and angelfish will not appreciate that sort of flow rate.

Grown angels are also known to consume neons.

If you want to breed the angels, you'll have problems. Amano shrimp, cories, and frogs will likely all eat eggs. Some of the other fish will eat fry.

 

[Larissa]

I understand about the otos. They can be very hard to aclimate and tend to die when introduced into a new setup. I think you could go with a pair of kribs for sure as long as they have enough territory, and the bolivains have room to hide from them if the kribs decide to breed. As for the angels, I really am no expert, you just need to make sure there are not too many hormones flying around the tank or your peacful community might turn nasty. HTH.
-Larissa

 

[mark.w.jones]

With Angels the common approach if you want a group is to buy a school all at the same time. Eventually though, you will get them pairing off, which as you have mentioned is not easy to predict as they are difficult to sex when younger. As long as you have a reasonably large group 6+ members the aggression will be evened out. Worst case scenario is usually 3 Angels as the breeding pair will usually attack the 3rd to the death. 3 Sets of breeding pairs would be ideal IMO but be prepared to have to remove fish or take them back and switch new ones in, in order to establish a happy collection of Angels. They will eat most of those smaller tetras when they are a few years older though

 

[Miss Wiggle]

i would say space wise you have room for 2 more angels OR 2/4 more kirbs, not both.

 

[LolaLouie]

I know this is horrible but if my angels eat my neons I don't mind that much. I don't think they will though because my neons are fully grown and were in the tank before the angels and also I provide my fish with plenty of live food.

As for everything eating the eggs I guess i don't really mind that either. To be honest it would be nice to watch the fish courting and nice to have some fry but I don't mind too much and will be happy just having a healthy tank.

The hill stream loaches I know should be at a lower temp but my LFS has always kept them at 24 degrees and is selling them as tropical fish so I figure if that's what they're used to... Also my flow is pretty strong at 1 end of the tank (which is mostly where the loaches stay) but doesn't bother my frogs or rams as they are bottom dwellers.

I'd rather have the kribs than the angelfish if you guys all agree I should only get one or the other, but the thing is, given that i'm not worried about the bioload as the kribs and angels will occupy totally different levels of the tank surely it wont make a difference having both???

Thanks all for answering, I hope you don't think from some of my above comments that I don't care about my fish (or don't research properly) because i really do it's just I think sometimes these "rules" are situational e.g. angels eating neons.

 

[Larissa]

I think the kribs will be fine. You can try adding 2 more angels and see how it plays out agression wise - if there is trouble you can always remove them.