New To Cichlids...

[ICEEGRL]

I really like the blue ones and bright colores... and odd looking ones.
Mostly I want as much bright bold colors as possible. Since I can't have tons of different kinds I will need to find some that the males are a different color from the females (can't think of what they call it right now) for some variety...

I know I like blue and yellow and white/pink and anything different.(usually)
I don't know what all is out there to pick from... I probably would like a lot of things if I saw them...

Thanks for helping!
Amanda

Edit: I will probably get them special ordered from the pet shop that got my loaches for me...

 

[dthoffsett]

I really like the blue ones and bright colores... and odd looking ones.
Mostly I want as much bright bold colors as possible. Since I can't have tons of different kinds I will need to find some that the males are a different color from the females (can't think of what they call it right now) for some variety...

I know I like blue and yellow and white/pink and anything different.(usually)
I don't know what all is out there to pick from... I probably would like a lot of things if I saw them...

Thanks for helping!
Amanda

Edit: I will probably get them special ordered from the pet shop that got my loaches for me...

Not too many mbuna are dimorphic, however pseudotropheus saulosi would work, males are blue and females are yellow.
[URL="http/www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=1"]http/www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=1[/URL]

I don't know of any pink mbuna, but metriaclima estherae are a red/orange color.
[URL="http/www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=1730"]http/www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=1730[/URL]

For white, you could go with pseudotropheus socolofi (albino).
[URL="http/www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=1786"]http/www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=1786[/URL]

For other species check out the profiles here.
[URL="http/www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/category.php?cat=2"]http/www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/category.php?cat=2[/URL]

 

[ICEEGRL]

I think the first one is a definite. I have to have that one.

The second one... It says that the male is powder blue, but all the pics show orange/yellow... According to the pics the male and female look pretty much the same... I will have to look into that. I do like it though.
Will it make a difference that the feeding habits are different?
Can I put mildly aggressive with aggressive?


I am about to look at the other 2 links...

Thanks!
Amanda

 

[wendywc]

Hi Amanda!

I'm excited for you. I know how much and how long you've been wanting to set up this cichlid tank. Definately looking forward to seeing your setup.

 

[ICEEGRL]

Thanks Wendy. I am trying to plan it all out now so that if I ever get time at home to work on it I will know what I am doing. I am still spending the better part of every day at Momma's house helping her.
I hope to get started on the stand soon. The kids will be out of school soon so that will free up a little time each day for me to work on some of my projects.
It will take me a while to figure out what I want my finished tank to be... I still have tons to learn and even more questions to ask before I even start to actually put things together. I don't want to have to re-do this tank like I have on all my other tanks. I want to get it right the first time. (If that is possibe...)


I have decided that do really want the first 2 kinds listed above. How many females would I need per male?

Is there a white one that don't get quite so big? That one is beautiful though. I may end up getting it if there isn't a smaller one...

I also would like to find another blue one. I will only be getting blue from the males and I can't have as many males...

How many can I have in a 60g tank? (with good filtration...)

How much water movement do these fish like?

Thanks for looking and posting.
Amanda

 

[kj23502]

I think the first one is a definite. I have to have that one.

The second one... It says that the male is powder blue, but all the pics show orange/yellow... According to the pics the male and female look pretty much the same... I will have to look into that. I do like it though.
Will it make a difference that the feeding habits are different?
Can I put mildly aggressive with aggressive.
Thanks!
Amanda

Here's all of what it says on the comments section of the page about estherea.

"One of the most popular Mbuna since its discovery in Lake Malawi. M. estherae is a very lively fish with great colors. Males typically are bright powder blue, females a rich orange. Although they have not been confirmed in the wild, orange males are common in the aquarium. Orange males do not share the rich orange color of the females and instead are light orange with a faint blue cast. Females can be not only orange (or commonly nicknamed "red") but also be OB (Orange Blotched)."


The blue are mostly in the wild and red males are in the aquarium trade.

I would say about 16 fish or so. Maybe a few more with 10x per hour filtration. So you'd need 600 gallons per hour turnover if you put more...although it is said that 10x turnover is good once all the fish reach adulthood!

 

[dthoffsett]

I have decided that do really want the first 2 kinds listed above. How many females would I need per male?
I'd go with 1m/3 or more f.

Is there a white one that don't get quite so big? That one is beautiful though. I may end up getting it if there isn't a smaller one...
The only other white mbuna I've seen in the hobby is labidochromis caeruleus (Nkhata Bay).
[URL="http/www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=1667"]http/www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=1667[/URL]
They're white and the males turn a soft blue when in breeding mode. They're actually the most commonly seen morph in the wild, though the yellow morph is most seen in the hobby.

I also would like to find another blue one. I will only be getting blue from the males and I can't have as many males...
The only two monomorphic blue mbuna I can think of off hand are metriaclima callainos & pseudotroheus socolofi. M.callainos would hybridize with the m.estherae, so they're out. And, p.socolofi regular and albino would hybridize so you couldn't have both at the same time. I'm also not sure if you went with the white morph labs and the regular (blue) socolofi, if they would hybridize. Maybe someone else will know.
[URL="http/www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=787"]http/www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=787[/URL]
[URL="http/www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=919"]http/www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=919[/URL]

How many can I have in a 60g tank? (with good filtration...)
As kj said, I'd go with 15-16 adults in the end. You can start with extra juvies to end up with your desired m/f ratio if you LFS will take the extras back. I'd go with either 3 species of 1m/4f each, or 4 species of 1m/3f each.

How much water movement do these fish like?
I've found my adults quite enjoy riding a pretty fast current, however juveniles won't do as well. I'd aim for a filter turnover of 6x per hour as juveniles, once they hit 3 inches, I'd add an additional filter to bump it up to 10x per hour.

 

[ICEEGRL]

That will work.
Thanks.