Starting A Fresh: Cichlids Tank

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JT-SCFC-1912

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In the new year I shall be starting a fresh on one of my smaller tanks;

This tank is a 40 gallon / 180l. It's bigger height wise rather than length wise, sorta like a cube shape, exact measurements don't know exactly

I would like to start a cichlid tank, I would really like some bright coloured cichlids. I really like the mbuna cichlids,and the yellow labs, can anyone recommend a list of African / old world cichlids which are bright and colourful yet will all get on lol.

Also anybody know the best place to buy slate rocks
 
check out peacock cichlids! defiantly has beautiful color schemes
 
agreed they are really nice, sooo much choice!?
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I have put together a stocking list, will these all get along?

Labidochromis Caeruleus (Electric Yellow Cichlid)
Cyphotilapia Frontosa (Frontosa Cichlid)
Tropheus Moorii Bemba (Double Banded Tropheus)
Haplochromis Latifasciatus (Zebra Obliquidens)
 
Two of your list are malawi cichlids and two are tanganikan cichlids. Your shouldnt really mix the lakes.

On the other hand you will need to put up your tank dimensions so we know what we can work with? as im pretty sure your tank will be too small for any mbuna. The fronts also grow to 12inches + and tropheus should be kept in species on tanks.
 
Congrats on looking into Africans. First off, your tank size is not really right for keep MOST African cichlids. There are people that keep shell dwellers in that size tank but that's about it. These fish, even Mbuna, will mature out to al least 4"-5". You are also mixing Tangs, Mbuna, and Victorian and not too sure how well that works. I know the Frontosa needs a tank on the lines of 100gal+(US) because they can mature anywhere from 8" to 15". Maybe look into the Cynotilapia Mbuna species. These keep to a smaller mature size and have very colorful males. One of the problems with Mbuna, as probably with most fish, is they will cross-breed with others that look alike and will also have a higher con-specific aggression you may want a single species tank with 2 males and say 5-6 females. You can check a web site - Cichlid-forum.com and look up all different types of cichlids. It's a great reference spot. Good luck.


Thanks,
Steve
 
I would recommend you look in to dwarf mbuna (lake malawi) for a 180L tank, other cichlids wouldnt have enough space to clame territories and grow to large. I also agree not to mix the lakes, try and keep species with appropriate tank mates. Another option you could do is a shell dwallers tank (lake Tanganyika) very small fish but great behaviour.

Personally dwarf mbuna would be the one to go for if it were me.
 
And if you want to feel inspired, take a look at what Justin's done for his P. saulosi. Absolutely brillliant.

In a tank that size you are limited, for sure, but there are some very attractive options, too. I presume the footprint of your tank is 36" x 18". If that is the case then you could look at any of the following:

Lake Malawi:

- Species tank of any dwarf Mbuna. P. saulosi would be a great choice thanks to their sexual dimporphism.
- Species tank of P. demasoni. This one would be a lot more tricky than anything else I would recommend, and I think you should build up some experience first. The conspecific aggression displayed by these guys is astounding. For that reason you'd be wanting to start out with about 15 of them in that size tank, and prepare for a mild die-out before they stabilize. Saulosi would be a better choice for you, no doubt.

Lake Tanganyika:

- Shell-dwellers! These guys would be my number one recommendation for a tank your size (or any size, to be fair; they're my favourites). I suggest you have a good read up on them. There are some pretty big differences between the various species. My suggestion would be to read as much as you can, pick one species, and then work out if you can keep anything else with them (if you so choose). For example, my newest tank holds almost 300 litres, and the centre-piece of said tank is going to be a thriving colony of Neolamprologus multifasciatus - probably my favourite fish. I have the option of doing a community of tangs in there but I've decided to just go for the safe option of adding some Cyprichromis leptosoma "Utinta" to fill up the upper-levels with activity and colour.

Once you know which shelly you like, you can stock around their requirements. For instance, some of them (like Multies) exhibit alloparental traits and will breed in a colony, whereas others are strict pair breeders, and must be maintained as such. Some, such as Telmatochromis temporalis, are extremely aggressive and would likely dominate anything you could reasonably fit in your tank (Mbuna included). On the other hand, some are either extremely shy (N. brevis) and/or do not maintain large territories (Multies, N. similis, etc). The less aggressive guys can be kept with other fish from the lake, or even certain other hard-water fish (rainbowfish, livebearers, etc). If I was stocking your tank, I'd be tempted to go with:

6 Multies
6 Paracyprichromis nigripinnis

Start the shell-bed at one side of the tank - it should be at its densest at the side it starts at, then gradually thin-out around the centre of the tank. Leave a good-sized space of open sand which leads to some rockscape for the Paracyps. Be careful not to let your Multies' breeding get out of control, and make sure those rocks aren't too near the shells, or the Multies will eventually claim those, too. You can even keep plants in such an aquarium with relative ease although most don't because it's not 'authentic'. I much prefer the look of a planted tank, as such my shelly tank is going to be quite heavly planted. I'll be sticking a journal up on here in the coming weeks once it's underway.

There are other fish to consider from Lake Tanganyika which could be happily kept in your tank - do some research or fire some questions at me if I've piqued your interest.

Lake Victoria:

- Your only option here is a breeding group of one of the Victorian Haps (such as sp. #44). Aim for one male, three or four females and call it a day.

I'd definitely be looking at shellies, if I were you.
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Oh, and as for rocks: have a look at your local garden centre. Plumstone is a particular favourite of mine. It's like rounded slate and very pleasing on the eye with the added benefit of being safe for the fish (because they can't scrude themselves when being chased about).
 
Thanks for the advice :)

I will defo take your advice on board and decide. I will be setting up a journal also for those interested :)

I've been toying with the idea of yellow labs buuttt, don't really know much about them / tank mates would prob be limited :/
 
Actually Yellow Labs are very flexible in terms of tankmates. This is because, unlike pretty much all other Mbuna, they are not strictly aufwuchs-feeders, so they can handle a bit of a meatier diet, like many of the Peacocks and Haps. On top of that, males do not take territories among the rocks (which is also linked to their dietary habits), so they are a good fit in terms of mixing with fish from both extremes of the aggression scale. They do get to a good size, though; so I'm not sure there is much you could mix them with in your tank. If it's the colour you're attraced to, I will again recommend P. saulosi. Juveniles are a quite brilliant yellow (a more pleasing shade than Yellow Labs, IMO) and dominant males eventually turn blue with black bars, while the females stay yellow. Again, check out Justin85's journal.
 
Fantastic advice dogsout!
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And spot on with Justin's saulosi tank
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Your enthusiasm for shellies is making me take another look at them. I may have a spare 55gal. I may want to fill soon.
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Thanks,
Steve
 
No worries. Excuse all the typos; I posted that in a big rush on my phone. Never again! I am so hyped up to start this tank now. Really can't wait. I should be putting my fish order in next week and receiving them the following week. I've got a lot to do in the mean time. I'll be making an Hamburg Mattenfilter, plus I've got 40 litres of moler clay, 20 litres of John Innes No 3 and about 30KGs of crushed coral sat here in my wife's way. New lights from our PS3Steveo will hopefully be here soon and then I'm good to crack on with it all. I need to get plants and stuff but the classifieds on here have been dead so that's held that up. I guess I'll just have to get some from MA, or something. But yeah, journal to follow shortly!
 
Excellent! Look forward to seeing the progress.


Thanks,
Steve
 

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