Getting Some Shell Dwellers. Now With Pics!

[Scott MacAdam]

Hey everyone,

So I've decided that I'm going to snag a few of these little fellas (Neolamprologus multifasciatus –shell dweller from lake Tanganyika) while my LFS has them in stock as I have never seen them sold anywhere around here before. Here is the game plan... I've got a spare 10G which will be their home for about a month until I move at which point I'm buying a 55G and letting them breed like mad, hopefully setting up a few separate colonies within the one tank ( I'll rock off some sections and plant some dividers up and see if that will entice them to do so)

I tried this thread in Tropical Discussion with no replies, so I really hope someone can help me here.

So my questions are:

What should I look to get at the LFS soon. (working on the assumption that this may be my only opportunity to buy them)
They have about 10 mature, and some smaller ones and a bunch of fry. (should I get some fry if I can, should I just get larger ones... any combo of anything...)

And, is there anything else I should know or that I should keep in mind when attempting this first stage(10G/moving/55g)
Are Multies really sensitive to changes in water conditions, will they be really hard to move? (about 200kms)

I really want to give this my best shot and hopefully have a huge setup with these little fish in about a months time so please help me with whatever you can. Thanks everyone!

~Scott MacAdam

 

[kiriyama]

Hi, i was hoping someone in the know would have been along by now, 6 is a good staring number and as the're going in the 10 Gallon initially would be good, you could probably get more depending on filtration etc, if you want them to breed quite quickly then I'd go for the adults, or take the ickle ones and watch them grow etc, if going for the adults I would guess at the larger ones being the males, so 2M/4F or whatever takes your fancy, I like the idea of rock areas (have the same in my own tank),,,, I don't know if I misunderstood but were you going to put actaul partitions in the tank, to be honest I wouldn't bother, for what I undertand these guys are the least aggressive of shellies and are fairly sociable with there own...
As for the travelling/shipping I really wouldn't know where to start, one thing though after reading through tons of forums/articles is that Tangs are hardier than what they are made out to be, I imagine acclimatising them in the usual fashion will be fine.... i.e. Floating the bags to match temperature, open bags to allow oxygen in, then trickle small amounts of water from main tank to bag to match chemistry, I have done this a few times now ranging from 30mins to 60mins period.(depending how far the fish have travelled or more to the point length of time in the bag) All you need now is some sand and lots of shells, enjoy..
If I'm wrong on any of this then hopefully someone else can set you right but please don't crucify me guys , had a really hard day today... all the best

 

[AdAndrews]

where about are you mate?

 

[Scott MacAdam]

I'm in east coast Canada. The idea here is that the 55g will be a species tank, not divided in any fashion but using some different levels and rock wall in the back end to try make it is natural as possible and then let them set up their own spots and breed enough to have a large display of them.

I've heard that in bigger tanks they will divide up into groups or colonies. This being said, I don't know if 55Gs is anywhere near large enough for them to exhibit that behavior but I think it would be amazing if they did because I really like to see fish interacting as they would in the wild.

As mentioned before, I'll start with a few in a 10g until I move and then stock the 55, but I want to get them ASAP in case I wait too long and my LFS sells them out. I've always wanted to keep multies but I've never seen them sold here until just recently.

any thoughts?

 

[kiriyama]

Sounds like an interesting plan, would be good to see how it develops, I have spoke to someone on another forum who has just set up 5 Multis in a tank thats 4 foot long 2 foot high, wonder how long that would take to populate with Multis? Keep us posted, going to watch this one with interest

 

[Scott MacAdam]

Yeah, If you guys are interested I'll make a little photo journal sort of thing and post it once I get the 55 set up and they start breeding. Should be interesting.

I'm headed to the city tomorrow. So I'm going to get about 6? hopefully in a 2/4, m/f ratio? I've read these fish are really hard to sex except for adult sizes. is there any other signs in case they might not be fully grown?

 

[ashemely]

I have to agree with Kiriyama that the Multis are quite hardy and easy to keep. As far as buying your fish, most people suggest that you get six or more juveniles to get a good mix of male and females. Adults would be good to get now, if you want them to start breeding ASAP, but I think in a 10 gallon you would only be able to keep one adult male, any more males would most likely be bullied to the corners of the tank. I have one male and three females in my ten gallon tank, but life would probably be easier for them if I had 1m/2f. The problem is, Multis are extremely difficult to sex, which is why most people suggest you start off with a group of juvies. If you do end up going with the adults then my only guide to sexing in the store, is to buy the biggest mature fish in the tank and then a couple of the smallest mature fish they have. My male's twice the size of the females.

If it was me, I would buy up all of the juveniles (the fish that do not have stripes) that your LFS had. I would also not add shells to the 10 gallon tank, but instead use small caves. I used upside down seedling pots when I first bought my fish, as the shells I ordered hadn't arrived yet. The pots won't be attractive at all, but they will make it easier to catch the fish when you want to move them, cuz you just take the pots out and the fish are left in the tank for you to net up. If you add shells, the fish will just hide in the shells and then you'll have to be careful to keep the shells full of water when you remove them from the tank. Much more difficult then just removing the pots, imo.

Here's a link to my journal:
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/315776-neolamprologus-multifasciatus-tank/

 

[Scott MacAdam]

I didn't think of that, Great tip. I want the moving process to be as easy as possible. If I knew they would still be in stock in a month i'd just wait it out but i don't want to risk losing my opportunity to buy into these little fellas.

 

[Scott MacAdam]

I set up the 10gal for the fish tomorrow (using mature media from other tanks)

I'll post some pics if anyone is interested. Also, if anyone has any ideas for changing it up to better fit the landscape of Lake Tanganyika please tell me.

I'll upload some pics in a little bit.

~Scott MacAdam

 

[kiriyama]

Landscaping - lots of sand
Good tip from ashemely was laying slate flat on the bottom of the tank, as the Multis dig it will not expose the glass on the bottom of the tank
I have heard from forum members that their Multis move the sand away from there shells, my ones however tend to bury them as muxh as they can, even burrowing small pits where there are no shells, the Multis will scape their tank for you
As for decor a few rocks are fine, I have Ocean and Tufa to help buffer up the pH, if you look through threads from AdAndrews there are some nice dark rocks in the journal.

On a sad note I found one of the juvi Mulits dead yesterday , water checks out fine and still following the same routine with water changes and feeding etc. I got 2 juvi recently and this was the one that wasnt in good shape when it arrived, it seemed to pucker up ok in the time he/she was here but ws seen gasping at the top at night, found on the sand in the morning

 

[Scott MacAdam]

Thats too bad. I got the tank all set up yesterday before my last post and I've gone to the city and got the fish today. I got the largest one they had and then the smaller mature ones. Got some pictures of it and what I've done so far.

Here is the temp tank, just something I threw together last night.

Fish in the bag

Suspected male (a bit larger than 1.5 inches)

one of the suspected females (about an inch long, maybe less)

A shot with both the prior fish in it

Feel free to post some comments, I welcome them.

 

[kiriyama]

Glad the move went well, I like the use of wood and plants in the tank, I'm pretty sure your Multis are going to be happy in there
Going to watch this thread with interest, be cool to see what happens in the next tank

 

[Scott MacAdam]

I seem to have lost my fish. I can't see the smaller ones at all, only the large one and he is just playing with one shell and then he goes in, comes out, moves some sand.... etc.

suspected females are nowhere to be found....

 

[Always Learning]

They'll be inside the shells, if you haven't checked there.

 

[Scott MacAdam]

I didn't want to disturb them in case they were hiding so I didn't move the shells.


The male has moved on to a new shell now, is that normal? Also I've spotted one of the other fish, it is sitting behind the shell the the male is now playing with (going in and out, adjusting as he sees necessary I suppose.)

anything in particular I should be looking for to show a that any of my fish have paired or that a second male (if there is one in there) is being bullied at all.