Time For Cichlids

[GavinB]

Hey all

I'm looking to restock my tank with Chichlids but have never kept them previously.

I have a Jewel Rio 180 litre tank.

Can someone suggest some species to obtain (I'm primarily looking at you Wills )

I know that Convicts are easy to come across but have heard some horror stories regarding their aggresion even to fish 8 times their size so may well stear away from them as I'm not really wanting a single species tank.

 

[KittyKat]

What size fish do you want? What sort of layout?

Even specifying one of these groups would be helpful
* African rift lake
* Amazon, large
* Amazon, large, community/planted
* Amazon, small (community & planted)

 

[kizno1]

I would go for a SA tank. You could go for a few dwarfs and some other fish or a pair of bigger fish and a couple of other fish.
For smaller fish something like
2 red breasted acara or 3 apistogramma agassizzii
2 dwarf flag cichlids
1 festivum cichlid or angel fish
1 BN or banjo catfish or 6 corys
10 tetra not to big but they need to be big enough not to be angel food maybe lemon tetra

For bigger fish maybe
2 blue acara
2 BNs or 2 of the smaller whiptails or 3 banjo catfish
8 congo or emperor tetra

 

[Wills]

Hi if you like convicts how about Honduran Red Points? If you like them my old male is in Ferrybridge Aquatics which isnt far from our neck of the woods and a good shop to visit its near Xscape - the big indoor mountain. I had to rehome him as he does not mix well with female fish but if you want a larger cichlid tank sticking to males is probably the best option. To be fair he does not look his best in the shop at the moment but I will dig out a good pic of him on my other computer later on if you want.

I like the looks of Kiznos stocking lists but from your list it sounds like you want more of a larger SA/CA community which is quite possible in a 40 gallon IMO the thing I would do is stick to all males that way you get a good variety of fish in there and at the same time a well balanced tank.

One thing to remember though is with American cichlids, a form of community tank is nessacery so you need schooling fish to act as dithers or target fish. Dither fish are fish that stay high in the tank and tell most cichlids that the water is safe from larger predators, this is especially needed in a tank with dwarf cichlids. Target fish are generally larger and faster zippy fish that distract the cichlids from each other like barbs, danios or larger tetras.

In a 40 gallon I would probably go for 3 or 4 mid sized Central American male cichlids with dithers and some catfish. How long is the 180 I cant remember off the top of my head but is it about 40 inches or something like that?

I would probably go for 1 Honduran Red Point and 1 Ellioti for starters - or actually just had an idea - Geophagus Imporgenisis (spelling) they are basically mini Brasiliensis with really nice gold colours and quite peaceful. A group of them would mix well with one other single specimen cichlid like the HRP or an Ellioti - I would maybe do a trio of the Imps and then 1 of the other cichlids. Ellitoti are always available in most places I think our local MA has a few in at the moment? And if you can get through to Sheffield Fish Inc (well worth a visit) has the Imps I was on about in as well quite a nice big group.

Then I would mix them with maybe 6 Black Ruby Barbs or some kind of mid sized rainbow fish or Buenos Aires Tetra or Blind Cave Tetras - the latter two would be more biotope correct. For catfish I would go with some dwarf hoplos http/www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/species.php?species_id=13 - again I know Ferrybridge has a few of these in. Or you could try a group of Brochis catfish which are like more robust cories. Though there are quite a few more options if your not too interested in keeping it biotope correct. A small plec species like a rubber lip would work in there as well - though you have an L75 dont you? If so that would work as well, though maybe growing a little large for the tank but not a really active plec so could work.

Wills

 

[GavinB]

I love the idea of a couple of HRP. I dont know if I want to keep my L75, with his rather small size I would worry that he would get gobbled by larger cichlids. The Geophagus Iporangensis also looks like a decent fish although if I was to get HRP I think I would like a breeding pair.

In my ideal tank so far I would have

2 x HRP (1 Male + 1 Female)
1 x Geophagus Iporangensis
2 or 3 x apistogramma agassizzii

Anyone see any issues with this as a starter?

 

[GavinB]

Ferrybridge looks really decent but unfortunatley I dont have access to a car and I think a taxi would be quite expensive! When are you next taking a trip across?

 

[Wills]

2 x HRP (1 Male + 1 Female)
1 x Geophagus Iporangensis
2 or 3 x apistogramma agassizzii

If you want a breeding pair thats when the problems start happening, especially with Central Americans. In that set up my prediction of what would happen is the HRP pair would kill the apistos and damage the geo quite badly. Then the male would eventually stress the female to the point of disease or death.

Also the Geos are a gregarious fish that need to be in groups in preferable situations. And while mixing dwarf cichlids like apistos with some South American cichlids I think they would be in trouble if mixed with the HRPs - even when not breeding.

A set up that would work in the format you said about could be.

2 Festivums
4 Cupid Cichlids or 3 Apistos - any species but smaller species of Apisto would work better, depends whats available.

or

2 Festivums
2 Krobia sp. Rio Xingu Red Cheek - Frisbies have these in great fish I have a pair but the ones there are larger than mine.
2 Laetacara Dorsiger

Then I would mix that with a large school of Pencil Fish or higher water tetras like Lemon Tetras - but I would not have bottom dwellers in there because the bottom will be quite full from the cichlids - though the way this tank would work is the apistos or cupids would take up most of the bottom and the Festivums would take the upper of the tank. The good thing about Festivums are an open water cichlid so take up territory in the upper levels of the tank rather than the base, the only other cichlid that does this is angelfish.

Equally the Festiums would work in the second set up the same way then the dwarf laetacaras and the larger krobia would work in the same way as the apistos/ cupids. The Laetacara Dorsiger are quite easy to swap with other dwarfs that work in pairs like Nannacara Anomala, Bolivian Rams, Laetacara Curviceps, Laetacara sp. Buckekopf or Laetacara sp. Orangeflossen.

For me the second set up sounds really really good lots of really peaceful South American Cichlids and you could get some nice schools to weave in and out of them. I would probs go for the Red Pencilfish that Maidenhead have in atm and a group of nice cories as well.

I'm not going to any of the fish shops for a few weeks major cashflow problems but Ill let you know the next time I am going to one of the big shops if you want to come along. There are 3 or 4 big shops nearish Hull I go too for fish simply because the quality of their cichlids is higher than that of those in Hull - but Frisbies is quite good at the moment especially for the krobia I mentioned. One of the big cichlid keepers in Hull sold loads of his stock onto them a while ago and there are still some nice stuff in there - a good group of Guianacara Sphenazona in there as well at the moment one of the parents but a group of the young as well which would be a good fish for the set ups I mentioned.

Wills

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

There are some gorgeous "Dwarf Sumbu" Tanganyikan cichlid fry becoming available soon on the forum

 

[GavinB]

how much would people expect to pay out for the fish Wills mentioned?

 

[Wills]

Erm festivums are about £5 ish for a mid sized one, laetacara are about the same. The Krobia I said about at Frisbies are £35 for a pair which is expensive but Frisbies are expensive in general really. Apistos vary greatly from shop to shop - ings lane sometimes order them in and charge about £3 per fish. So yeah about £5-£8 per fish I reckon depending on the shop.

Wills

 

[KittyKat]

Under £10 each for young fish/"second hand"/from local breeder, over for adult fish from LFS.