Kribs

[Tempestuousfury]

If all goes well, perhaps I might get a pair or so of kribs. Getting info beforehand to prevent messups.

From what I have read they are aggressive, especially when breeding.

Occupants I hope to have in the tank with them:
Black widow tetras
Danios
Neon tetras
Gouramis
Corydoras (spotted and albino)

Possible problems:
Gouramis are slow
Neons and danios are small and easy targets

Any solutions to this problem? I would live to have a couple of neons, black widows, and dwarf gouramis in as well. If none of these are a possibility, what about angelfish?

 

[black angel]

i have a pair of kribs which have just brought their fry out today. they are in a 16 gallon tank all to themselves. i found that when they were in the community they attacked anything big such as gouramis and angels. they didnt bother the neons and other dither fish so much. as long as its a long tank of about 48 inches with all the hiding places on one side then the catfish should be okay as long as he has lots of places to hide. good luck.

 

[Colin_BC]

Actually, Kribs are one of the more patient cichlids when it comes to breeding in a community. What size is your tank? I don't think any of the occupants listed would be a problem except maybe the cory's (egg eaters), but if your tank is large enough I would suggest putting their cave in a corner and putting a divider up after they spawn. Leave the parents with the eggs and leave a danio or two in with them as dithers. You could probably even get away with having all fish other than the kribs on the other side of the divider since it is clear, the dithers will still do their job as the kribs will chase away anything that comes too close to the divider. The fish you have should serve well to strengthen the bond between a Krib pair. If you can, make sure the male is larger then the female. The young lady Kribs like the older gents... If you have Krib's isolated with no visible dithers at all, it is likely the female will turn on the male after spawning as he will be then be the only possible threat in her eyes.

When my kribs started setting the mood for spawning, they fended off their territory from anything that got too close, but they never posed a serious threat to any fish in my 30G, except my pleco. They don't play well together. Kribs will chase other fish away once they get too close, but once the pother fish has left the scene, the Krib returns to it's cave. Unlike many other cichlids, Kribs won't chase and beat/kill anything that gets too close.

If you have an interest in dwarf cichlids, or even if you don't, Kribs are a great place to start. They are prolific community tank breeders. Their courtship dances are interesting, and the parenting cannot possibly be explained. It something you have to see for yourself to believe. These fish are better parents than some people I know... My krib's brought their first batch of fry out about 3 days ago. With one jerk of the body from either parent if they feel a threat, all babies go completely flat to the ground and stay motionless...

I started with angels, then blue rams, but the Krib's have been the most interesting by far!!!

Colin

 

[Tempestuousfury]

Ooh. thanks for the advice.

My tank is a 45 gallon. I believe it is 3' by 1' by 2' (length, width, height).

I can arrange for their caves and will probably have to either upgrade my lights for plants or get fake plants.

As long as all they do is chase the other fish away...

So more neons and danios, eh. Ok, that can be arranged. The problem now is the gouramis it seems. I really want to keep them, but am now in the process of breeding them and hopefully will be able to do so again as well if I can figure out how to house the fish.

I removed the tank info from my sig, it is in my profile, if anyone needs to see it.

 

[Colin_BC]

I don't think a couple dwarf gourami's would be a problem in a 45G. If you can get lour lighting to about 2WPG, some fast growing plants like limnophila provide good cover for any fish. Some java moss and java fern would be very good for fry. They feed off the organisms that grow on it. My krib fry are always being led by the parents to the java fern toeat the algae or the limno for the same purpose. My fry all have nice fat bellies with added brine shrimp and Hikari First Bites. If you can, keep a couple dividers on hand. You can always create a couple smaller breeding/rearing quarter(s) away from the community in the same tank if need be.

Colin

 

[Tempestuousfury]

Not exactly sure if I will be able to get dividers...

As for plants, I'm on a budget, but I could get some fake ones and java moss. If the dwarf lily bulbs and aponogeton bulbs from Walmart work, though, then I will have more live plants for them.

Need to get confirmation of the trade, first off, and then see if there's a place around here where I can get java mos...

 

[moneywastedonfish]

as colin said your fish should be fine especially in a 45. The kribs will take over most of the tank when they breed though, at least mine did. Its cool how the male colors up with a pink belly as well to perhaps look more like mum

Um and i dont understand what you meant by that pm, my email is down and i cant re read it or send you a one saying 'sorry? please explain' i just think fish keeping is expensive as most of my money is wasted on fish, not really a waste though as iy keeps me sane.

 

[willywonka099]

Well actually kribs could end up killing each other if they don't have anyone to take their aggresion out of ...... Danios,barbs, and most tetras should work great b/c they are so quick. I would try to void long finned danios b/c of there beatiful fins being ripped to shreds

 

[juanveldez]

yeah kribs are a nice african speices of cichlid not my bag but nice, I prefer didmochromis compresscips or nimbochromis livingstonii

 

[Tempestuousfury]

So I'm down to fast cyps and chars and perhaps gouramis. Catfish are a bit iffy.

As for the pm, I'll check that out.

I see. What I meant to say was, "do you actually think that your money is wasted on your fish?"