Cichlids With An Itch?!

[welly]

Hi there, does anyone know why my fish appear to have an itch they just need to scratch??, Sounds funny i know but i have just purchased a 180 litre tank and i have transfered all my cichlids accross and as of today they seem to all be bouncing off the rocks and the gravel???

Is there a problem or does this sound normal?

Many thanks

Paul.

 

[littlest]

rubbing against rocks and ornaments can be a sign of parasites I'm afraid.
Unfortunately I don't know enough to advise you, but hopefully someone more knowledgeable will come along soon.
In the meantime, are the fish showing any other symptoms? How many in the tank? Did you cycle the new tank? What are water test readings? Did you dechlorinate the water?

 

[pauly]

rubbing against rocks and ornaments can be a sign of parasites I'm afraid.
Unfortunately I don't know enough to advise you, but hopefully someone more knowledgeable will come along soon.
In the meantime, are the fish showing any other symptoms? How many in the tank? Did you cycle the new tank? What are water test readings? Did you dechlorinate the water?

it's also a sign of mating and agression. Maybe they're just setting their territories.?

 

[scooterchick]

Could be many things but def an infection. Are there any visible signs on their bodies? Any fluff, spots etc? Are their gills red or inflamed? Possible causes are flukes, parasites, velvet, ich. Did you cycle the tank? Use the same filter? Did you introduce any new fish at the same time?

It's def not a mating ritual, there's something wrong.

 

[WILDER]

Water stats would be good in ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and ph.
Bad water quality can make fish flick and rub.
Did you match temp and ph.

 

[dthoffsett]

Actually if they are mbuna (rock dwelling cichlids from Lake Malawi, Africa), it is perfectly normal for them to shimmy and flick or rub the rocks and sand. It's a display of aggression or mating, and unless they are doing it constantly with no rest, not a reason for concern. You may see an increase of the behavior for the first week or so in a new tank as they are setting up territories and a pecking order again.

As the others have mentioned a check of ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate, and close observation would be in order just to rule out the possibility of parasites/infection.

 

[welly]

Thats great advice everyone, many thanks.

Its a 1 meter tank by 18 inch by 12 inch and there are 16 fish in which im told is not too many??

They are only rubbing when they are in a group rather than on their own.

What does cycle the tank mean?? im affraid im new to this but was told the mbuna are a reasonably easy fish to start with.

The temp is 27 degrees and i have placed the 12 from my old tank and introduced an extra 4 new ones.

 

[scooterchick]

Thats great advice everyone, many thanks.

Its a 1 meter tank by 18 inch by 12 inch and there are 16 fish in which im told is not too many??

They are only rubbing when they are in a group rather than on their own.

What does cycle the tank mean?? im affraid im new to this but was told the mbuna are a reasonably easy fish to start with.

The temp is 27 degrees and i have placed the 12 from my old tank and introduced an extra 4 new ones.

Did you place the filter from the old tank in the new tank too?

Cycling the tank basically means getting the tank ready for fish and that doesn't mean putting in water and away you go! When fish are introduced to water you feed them and they produce waste, this turns into amonia, which is deadly to fish. In a well established aquarium there is bacteria that feeds on the amonia and nitrite (a byproduct of amonia) keeping the tank 'clean'. In a new tank you won't have any friendly bacteria yet (unless you transferred the old filter) and the fish will be vulnerable to amonia and nitrite poisoning. Not only that their immune systems will be fighting the efects of the amonia therefore they can easily fall victim to other conditions healthy fish laugh at, such as parasites, bacterial infections etc which I suspect may be happening here.

As far as stocking goes I think there are too many fish in there. Rough calculations I think your tank is around 28 gallons which is far too small. I know these fish should be kept in large groups to minimise aggression but to kept 16 of them they should be in a larger tank.

Until you decide what to do, keep doing water changes every couple fo days and get a testing kit from your LFS, don't buy the strips, they're hopeless.

Good luck!

 

[dthoffsett]

I agree with scooterchick, I'm afraid your tank is too small. Because of aggression, territory needs, and adult size, mbuna should be kept in at least a 4-ft tank (55gal is a popular size). Once all of your fish reach sexual maturity, chances are excellent you're going to have some major fighting and probably some deaths. I'd recommed either upgrading your tank, or returning the mbuna and replacing with other fish suitable to your tank.

Mbuna are good starter fish in that they are hardy, however, they are a bit complicated when it comes to compatability.

Here is some more information on mbuna:
[URL="http/www.fishforums.net/content/African-Old-World-Cichlids/27706/The-Mbuna-Aquarium/"]http/www.fishforums.net/content/African-...Mbuna-Aquarium/[/URL]
[URL="http/www.fishforums.net/content/African-Old-World-Cichlids/98179/Feeding-Mbuna/"]http/www.fishforums.net/content/African-.../Feeding-Mbuna/[/URL]

And information on cycling:
[URL="http/www.fishforums.net/content/Tropical-Chit-Chat/141944/Cycling-Resource-Center/"]http/www.fishforums.net/content/Tropical...esource-Center/[/URL]
[URL="http/www.fishforums.net/content/Tropical-Chat/175355/whats-cycling-/"]http/www.fishforums.net/content/Tropical...whats-cycling-/[/URL]

You should be testing your tank for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate daily if cycling, weekly if cycled (liquid test kits work best). A fully cycled tank should always read Ammonia-0, NitrIte-0, and NitrAte-best kept under 100ppm.

 

[dthoffsett]

Not only that their immune systems will be fighting the efects of the amonia therefore they can easily fall victim to other conditions healthy fish laugh at, such as parasites, bacterial infections etc which I suspect may be happening here.

IMHO if the fish are only flicking occasionally or when in a group, it's perfectly normal mbuna behavior. Many new keepers mistake the behavior for parasites.

Rough calculations I think your tank is around 28 gallons which is far too small. I know these fish should be kept in large groups to minimise aggression but to kept 16 of them they should be in a larger tank.

I get about 37 US gallons, still too small for mbuna though.

 

[welly]

Just done a double check on the size of the tank ( i still had the cardboard box in the garden )

Its 101cm x 41cm x 50cm and says its 180L

All the fish i have at the mo are only 2 inch but i am told they can grow to be 3 or 4 times that, is 16 still too many?

Thanks for the advice, im going to buy a testing kit tomorrow and see what it reads, the fish today seem to have settled down a little, i have just done a 20 % water change and it is very clear.

 

[dthoffsett]

Just done a double check on the size of the tank ( i still had the cardboard box in the garden )

Its 101cm x 41cm x 50cm and says its 180L

All the fish i have at the mo are only 2 inch but i am told they can grow to be 3 or 4 times that, is 16 still too many?

Thanks for the advice, im going to buy a testing kit tomorrow and see what it reads, the fish today seem to have settled down a little, i have just done a 20 % water change and it is very clear.

Even though it is a little shorter than 4-ft, the 180 is pretty popular mbuna starter tank for UK keepers. Depending on the species you have (any chance of listing your fish?), your tank is fully stocked. You may consider upgrading in the future, but if not it should comfortably hold the fish you have (again, depending on the species).