Problem

[Whitey]

Hi, i have noticed that alot of my fishes tails and fins have been nipped due to all the chasing and aggression with cichlids but is this normal? Or is this aggression too much?

I did originaly post this in emergencies but no one answerd and im quite worried.

 

[guppy_man]

maybe you should add more fish to the tank so that they aren't that agressive towards the same fish.
something like that, i read it on the net.

THE MORE FISH THE LESS AGRESSION! i think thats right

 

[denis coghlan]

Sounds like your agro levels are a bit high, I dont think its a good sign that you have fish with damage cause by aggression. I know that african cichlids are naturally agressive but within a tank, this agression should be curved and at best stopped. Having fish that are getting damaged makes me think that you have one very agressive fish that you can get rid of that is causeing all the damage or your species mix is not right.
Some of the more crusty members that post in this section might have a better ideas and advice.


Can you also please give details of which fish are being damaged and which fish are causeing the damage.

 

[Whitey]

It seems its the biggest of the yellow labs, but i have some very aggressive cichlids and thought these guys would of been the least of my problems?

 

[KimA]

I had a similar problem when I started out my tank, but it was the Yellow Labs that were being picked on by a Red Zebra.

I went asap and bought another group of Malawi's to increase the numbers and (hopefully) lessen the aggression, and I also rearranged and added some more rock to increase hiding places, and also so that territories would have to be re-established after introduction of new fish - this helped a great deal. With Malawi's it's "the more the merrier" (well, hopefully).

 

[Whitey]

Right this is what seems to be the case...

The biggest yellow Lab chases all the fish, but has competition with the biggest Melanochromis auratus which arent chasing anyone. The other yellow lab chases the smallest yellow lab.
The biggest livingstoni chases the smaller one and they also chase the 3 fryeri.

 

[rixy]

add another 6 or so fish and rearrange the rockwork.have you got a boss fisha dominant fish in a malawi tank is a must.the boss usually patrols the tank and stops any aggro.

 

[Whitey]

Its only a 40gal, i thought it would be pretty stocked already. Would u sugest i take out the biggest yellow lab and he is the main problem?

 

[rixy]

the livingstoni will be a problem in the near future.they will outgrow your tank eventually and they are very greedy.they will bully the rest of your fish at feeding time.malawis are very very difficult fish to get right.trying to get the right combinations of fish plus the right amount is not easy.

 

[KimA]

You do need to overstock with Malawi's - but also making sure that you've got a powerful enough filter to deal with the extra fish. I've got a 180L tank with around 20-25 fish currently in it and the aggression has quietened down (not gone entirely of course, the odd chasing around still occurs).

 

[mamafish68]

my god, you guys are telling him to get more fish for a 40 gallon tank? HELLO

*how about buy a bigger tank THEN more fish IF YOU THINK YOU HAVE TO KEEP ALL OF THESE NASTY BUGGERS TOGETHER.

it's all about size mannnn, you've got a mess in there for sure. too much to mention until you get a bigger tank.

your auratus are the immediate problem, the livingstoni will be next followed shortly by the fryeri

next time check adult size and aggression when adults, young juveniles.



*just IMHO, been doing it for long enough i have experience.

 

[bobf]

I would agree with the comment about the auratus being the most likely candidates as the prime aggressors.

From what I've read they are the psycho fish from hell and would climb outta the tank and come after you with a blunt instrument given half a chance. Time for a Malawi ASBO to be served!

And don't get me onto Livingstoni...

 

[Whitey]

Ok thanks for the help so far, unfortunatly i cant get a bigger tank untill at least when i come back from holiday so im stuck with this for at least 2/3 months. But hopefully nothing major should happen in this time should it?

If anyone else has anything to add it would be a big help.

 

[Ferris]

I think its been covered that the Fryeri and Livingstoni will need re-homing. Auratus are extremely aggressive fish and not great tankmates for labs who are as mild as Mbuna get.

In terms of the 40 gal, i would return the Auratus, get a couple more labs and add 5 or 6 Psudotropheus Acei or Saulosi, which are both colourful species and make great lab tankmates.

Hope that helps