Starting with Cichlids

[captainhook]

Ive been doing research for about a month now and looking at allof your photos I have realised that cichlids are truly amzing and beautiful fish. Would it be wise to begin my first fish tank with a small selection of cichlids? If so what types? Thanks

P.S. I particularily like DG's setup, would I be able to have a collection similar to that?

 

[Jamnog]

some would say not tho i wouls say yes depending on the size a tank with cichlids can be the most rewarding. they are one of the most popular fish as they are one of the most varied some of them are hard to keep but none i have seen my faveorite is the common firemouth tho they dont do well in tanks smaller than 2 foot and the probably do better in my experience in groups.so biggish tank prolly about 3 foot for 7 or so of themsome kind of cat and well water they are not nknown for being comunity fish if there is a fish in the tank thats capable of looking after itself like a golden gourami or something then fighting would not be aN issue but neons are prolly out. tho i never really rated them as fish that much anyways. actually scratch that the neons seem fins i just looked over they are swimming alongside my shoel of firemouths and seem quite content. perhaps the hype was wrong . i thing if cm got ahold of thise topic things might get a little clearer for you.

 

[mrV]

Would it be wise to begin my first fish tank with a small selection of cichlids? If so what types?

You didn't mention anything about your tanks size and water values..

 

[semper fi]

imo, cichlids are great for beginners since the more fish, within reason you have in a tank the lesser the aggression. with the proper filtration and maintenance you could have more cichlids than any other fish. would start off with the africans rather than the sa/ca's til you do gain a bit more experience.

out of the africans the malawis are the most common and popular. mbuna and utaka are the two groups of lake malawi. mbunas are more aggressive than utaka. they are also best put in groups of three females to every male. here is a link to a site that has some wonderful information and pictures of africans. also gorege reclos' tanks are quite stunning.

http/www.malawicichlidhomepage.com/index.html

take a peek at some of the fish and the information at this site. is well worth your time.

do need to know your water parameters also.

semper fi

 

[captainhook]

Well actually I have a 55 gallon tank with no water set up as of yet, I planned on getting all my info before I did anthing. How should I set the water up?

 

[Jamnog]

you could fit an awfull lot of firemouths in that sized tank. 55 inches of them theoretically depends what you like have you had anythaughts on which sorts yet?

 

[semper fi]

you should start cycling the tank while youare thinking of what type of fish youare going to house in it. a cycled tank can take up to 6 weeks. add some water to the tank and some food. let the food sit in the water even without fish. the decayying food will create ammonia for the cycle to beginn. or you could add straight ammonia to the tank. one drip per every five gallons of water. make sure that it is 100% pre ammonia though. should be able to find at any grocery or hardware store. would reccommend the hardware store first as grocery stores usually carry ones with perfumes and dyes to make it better on the nose to clean with.

since the cycling of a tank is 6 weeks you do have things to ddo in your spare time such as decide on what kind of cichlids you will want to house in your tank.

semper fi

 

[captainhook]

Sort of, I would like to say in the medium size rang and have a variety of brigth colored fish with interesting temperments, I am not sure about names at all but from pictures I like the bright yellow and blue striped fish. What do the firemouths look like and what is their temperment?

 

[Pufferpack]

Here is a quick link to the pics of my wifes cichlids Cichlid Pics
There are some good examples of medium and small Cichlids there. You should also check out the other members pics as there are some beautiful cichlids(as well as all the others) posted there

The pics are as follows:

Joe - Electric Blue Johanni...Melanochromis johanni......medium sized African

Big Blue - Cobalt Blue Zebra Mbuna...Maylandia callainos......medium sized African

Goldie Girl - Red Zebra Mbuna...Maylandia estherae......medium sized African

Sunny & Sunshine - Yellow Lab...Labidochromis caeruleus......medium sized African

Mick - Firemouth ...Thorichthys meeki ....Medium sized Central American

Jewlie - Jewel Cichlid....Hemichromis bimaculatus ....Medium sized African

Rambo - Bolivian Ram...Microgeophagus altispinosa ....small South American

Kribbie - Krebensis...Pelvicachromis pulcher ...Small African Cichlid

 

[cichlidmaster]

IMO, to much emphasis is being placed on water values here!!

Most fish you will find at your local fish shop will be able to survive quite happily in straight tap water with no manipulating the values!!

Although say Tanganyikans come from a ph as high as 9.0, this ph value is not needed to keep and even breed this fish (unless of course you are getting wild caught staright from the lake).

IMO you should not concern yourself with this as most fish available are already acclimated to survive in lower ph"s.

If, however you are planning on spawning fish, their are many who will need special ph values and then you would need to consider manipulating their ph!!

I have bred fish for over 10 years from all three African lakes with never altering the ph of my tap water.

I have also spawned SA/CA species without manipulating the ph.

In fact, I currently house a group of F1 firemouths in straight tap water and they are thriving.

This is of course just my opinion, but is based on the above mentioned 10 years of breeding experience.

You should concentrate more on a selection of fish that will live together in a certain harmony rather than worrying about the ph values of their native waters as they are probably so far removed from them it will not matter anyway!!

CM

 

[captainhook]

I guess another important question is what do the prices run for these types of fish?

 

[Jamnog]

well the common ones i got where all in the £2-3 price range but it changes from shop to shop on the other hand i paid £25 for a pair of i think it was jewels i should ask cm later or post something in the chiclid part of the forum

 

[Pufferpack]

All the Cichlids I listed above were prices between $4.99 and $8.99 Cdn (so that translates to about $0.50 to $0.90 American )...actually with you being in the states you have a reliable supplier with good prices and excellently cared for cichlids right here on the forum....Cichlidmaster

 

[-=DG=-]

P.S. I particularily like DG's setup, would I be able to have a collection similar to that?

Cheers m8

I had also thought that cichlids were hard to keep when i first started keeping fish. But maybe its easy now because i (and others) have had fish for for a long time?

If you do your homework, then its easy to keep any fish i suppose. Its just a matter of if you can keep them happy (financially (got to buy tank/filter + bits and bobs) and time spent maintaining the tank).

My uncle has had from a baby a yellow lab in his community tank which is now 6" long. His ph is about 6.5. My ph is about 8 (about right for malawi).

I think the only difference between fish are their behaviours and size and needs.