Mixing Old And New World

[markandhisfish]

i know that as a rule african cichlids and new world cichlids should not be mixed and im aware of the reasons why , but kribensis seem to be a kind of exception to the rule. for example in my 100g ive got pair of kribs which i had ages ago and didnt want to part with when i upgraded . they are in with a large severum and a group of angels. they are both colourful and healthy , they spawn regularly and there are no agression issues whatsoever. are there any other african cichlids known to be able to mix with any success?

 

[Wills]

I think there are a few africans that are suitable for mixing. But the main difference is that kribs are not from a specific lake where as things like yellow labs etc are and its those that need the higher Ph as well as the aggression. I dont think that mixing things like kribs and african butterflys (cichlid not surface dweller) with NW is not a problem but when you see people doing yellow labs and angels or rams thats when it gets a bit worrying.

But that said Ive only ever done this on other peoples advice and most of the people that have given me advice has been given advice from others. I guess its just a taboo that not many dare cross.... Be interesting to see what people say

 

[star4]

I had an sp44 victorian red tail in with my servs etc, I bought it with the nics thinking as it was in with nics it would be ok (smack wrists for not researching it first) and it really was ok with the others. I only re-homed it recently as I needed to make space in the tank, but I am regretting it now as he was a beautiful fish.

 

[Davo86]

Kribensis variants, african butterfly cichlids and Nanochromis sp, are the only ones i would try mixing, although Nanochromis species do stay quite small (1"-3") so not best mixed with anything much bigger.

Other african species like Jewels and five star generals sometimes work with your aggressive central american cichlids but even with these can sometimes be downright evil.

Lake cichlid species (malawis, tangs etc) are best left to their own setups IMO

 

[wildechild_01]

I wound up with an Impossible tank set up due in part to lack of research and Impusle purchase of cool looking fish... And so i now have an impossible tank that seems to work quite well. I have a Male/Female pair of Electric Blue Haps (or whatever variety they actually are), and have read a lot of different things about their attitudes and behaviours. They reside quite happily and Peacefully in a 90 USG tank with Discus. When i first realized what i had done i immediately called the LFS where i bought the Cichlids and explained what had happened, The owner who is incredibly knowledgeable said that mixing them was not recomended but he had seen tanks in the past where it worked so to keep an eye on them and if there was an issue i could return the cichlids for a full refund. The next few weeks i kept a crazy close eye on the tank and everyone seemed to be doing quite well. Blue (as i call him) has a cave that he calls home and is mildly territorial around the cave but when other fish come too close he simply chases them off but once they are out of his space he leaves them be. As well when he is swimming out around the rest of the tank he does not bother the other fish, slowly the fish are learning to stay out of his cave. I still keep a close eye on the tank but decided things were probably going to be okay when i noticed that the female is deffinintely carrying eggs, something i figure would not have happened were the cichlids overly stressed. So im not saying they are compatable tank mates, more i think i lucked out with well behaved fish with good personalities, and figured i would share my success story here. Score 1 for dumb beginners luck. I will try to update on the Fry once they are in the tank... im not set up to isolte the female and young right now so going to see how they do in there... lots of places to hide for them though.

 

[england]

As said there are a few which can work sometimes, esp more with central americans....also the few madagascan species like polleni work quite well,more so agaain with centrals,but large tanks needed..