non aggressive african tank

kalidiscopeyes

kalidiscopeyes

Small Fish
#1
Dec 27, 2008
28
0
0
#1
I'm in the process of setting up a new 55gal tank. All I have is onyx sand and lace rock. I'm going to add plants soon and probably more rock. I've went from wanting S.Am dwarf tank to rift lake cichlids! I love live plants and want an interesting mix of colorful fish. So, I thought about having some p.pulchers (or some type of w.af. krib), dwarf african butterflies, congo tetras and diamond tetras. Not sure about how many of each...still researching. Any suggestions welcome. Also, any suggestions about bottom feeders...I want to find an african cat that won't get huge!
 

Chris_A

Chris_A

Large Fish
#2
Oct 14, 2008
615
0
0
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
#2
Over all that souds like a very nice tank! Just a couple of points though. Nothing you listed is from any of the rift lakes ;). And actually Diamond tetras are from Central America. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with your choice of livestock, just a little info for you. :)

So far as an African cat that doesn't get huge;
1) Ghost Catfish: Kryptopterus minor
2)Upside down Cat: Synodontis nigriventris
3)Aaaand I'm kinda at a loss... I went threw 3 or 4 areas on Fishbase and those two are the best I could find from the same area as the Krib's and Congo's. Most of the "smaller" sized ones I'd never seen in a LFS and most of the ones I have seen got pretty big (1 foot +). I'm sure there are more, maybe someone else has some suggestions?

Chris
 

kalidiscopeyes

kalidiscopeyes

Small Fish
#3
Dec 27, 2008
28
0
0
#3
I decided against the rift lake species because of the aggressiveness. I want to have some schooling fish and they would probably be eaten in a rift lake set up. I'll look up the cats you mentioned. I'm setting up my tank as I can afford it, but I'll post some pics once its done.
Thanks for the info! :)
 

M

Monoxide

Large Fish
#4
Dec 19, 2008
224
0
0
#4
You want some not so aggressive fish with color. Why not try a yellow labs. If Iam correct and people can say different. You buy 1 male to 3 females to keep the tank control more. Also there color is really nice and pretty. And there pretty active that Ive seen. Also easy to care for IMO.
 

misterking

misterking

Superstar Fish
#6
Aug 12, 2008
1,124
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Manchester, UK
www.facebook.com
#6
That sounds great... just, get the congos before the butterfly fish and let them grow a bit.. butterflys are carnivours and have sizeable mouths and will often eat a small congo with little hesitation should one get in its way. They do well on live/frozen food like brine shrimp or bloodworm.

But I really like the idea.. tempted to steal it myself :p
 

Orion

Orion

Ultimate Fish
Moderator
#7
Feb 10, 2003
5,803
3
38
Kentucky
www.thefishcave.net
#7
Giving up on the rift lakes so quickly? ;)

For a schooling fish: Non- Jumbo cyprichromis would fit the bill. These are a semi colorful cichlid that are very much top dwellers for the most part. Females are rather drab, with the males having nearly all the color.

For a 'fun' fish: Any of the 'dwarf' julidochromis species. J. ornatus and transcriptus and dickfieldi . *you'll have to forgive me and double check my spelling* I suggest these rather then the marlieri or regani because the larger two are often said to be quite a bit more aggressive than the smaller julies.

Then you could go for even more cichlid madness and get a larger hardy shell dweller for the bottom, or just get some nice syno cats (I wouldn't do both in the same tank). I'll have to say out of all the fish I've ever kept, Synodontis multipunctatus has been one of my favorite of all time.

All these fish come from Lake Tanganyika *of course* and are relatively non-aggressive, and if you mix the sexes correctly you should have minimal issues. And if well cared for you would probably end up with some nice breeding going on as well.
 

kalidiscopeyes

kalidiscopeyes

Small Fish
#10
Dec 27, 2008
28
0
0
#10
Chris_A said:
Over all that souds like a very nice tank! Just a couple of points though. Nothing you listed is from any of the rift lakes ;). And actually Diamond tetras are from Central America. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with your choice of livestock, just a little info for you. :)

So far as an African cat that doesn't get huge;
1) Ghost Catfish: Kryptopterus minor
2)Upside down Cat: Synodontis nigriventris
3)Aaaand I'm kinda at a loss... I went threw 3 or 4 areas on Fishbase and those two are the best I could find from the same area as the Krib's and Congo's. Most of the "smaller" sized ones I'd never seen in a LFS and most of the ones I have seen got pretty big (1 foot +). I'm sure there are more, maybe someone else has some suggestions?

Chris
Click to expand...

Dimond Tetra
Moenkhausia pittieri

Size: 2.5" max pH: 5.0 - 7.5 (6.7 ideal) dH: 4 - 18 (7ideal) Temp: 78 - 82F, Origin: Western Africa, Zaire Congo River
This is where I got my info and why I thought the diamond tetras where an african tetra. Arizona Aquatic Gardens - Diamond Tetra
 

kalidiscopeyes

kalidiscopeyes

Small Fish
#11
Dec 27, 2008
28
0
0
#11
Monoxide said:
You want some not so aggressive fish with color. Why not try a yellow labs. If Iam correct and people can say different. You buy 1 male to 3 females to keep the tank control more. Also there color is really nice and pretty. And there pretty active that Ive seen. Also easy to care for IMO.
Click to expand...
They are beatiful. I would love a tank with some yellow or blue labs. Would they tolerate the schooling fish though? I really want some cichlids that I can house with schooling fish.
 

kalidiscopeyes

kalidiscopeyes

Small Fish
#12
Dec 27, 2008
28
0
0
#12
Orion said:
Giving up on the rift lakes so quickly? ;)

For a schooling fish: Non- Jumbo cyprichromis would fit the bill. These are a semi colorful cichlid that are very much top dwellers for the most part. Females are rather drab, with the males having nearly all the color.

For a 'fun' fish: Any of the 'dwarf' julidochromis species. J. ornatus and transcriptus and dickfieldi . *you'll have to forgive me and double check my spelling* I suggest these rather then the marlieri or regani because the larger two are often said to be quite a bit more aggressive than the smaller julies.

Then you could go for even more cichlid madness and get a larger hardy shell dweller for the bottom, or just get some nice syno cats (I wouldn't do both in the same tank). I'll have to say out of all the fish I've ever kept, Synodontis multipunctatus has been one of my favorite of all time.

All these fish come from Lake Tanganyika *of course* and are relatively non-aggressive, and if you mix the sexes correctly you should have minimal issues. And if well cared for you would probably end up with some nice breeding going on as well.
Click to expand...
lol! I haven't given up on the rift lakers at all! I just want a bigger tank for them...hehehe! Always planning the next tank while setting up the current one *BOUNCINGS
But I have time to check out your suggestion b/c I have to wait till I have the $$ to stock it.
Oh, and as far as spelling goes; if you overlook mine I'll sure as heck not say nuthin' bout yours!
 

M

Monoxide

Large Fish
#13
Dec 19, 2008
224
0
0
#13
Normally putting labs with other fish isn't the best... BUT they are one of the less aggressives cichlids Ive seen... and with my friend and I tanks they didn't hurt other regular fish. But let some other people throw you some ideas or something.*thumbsups
 

misterking

misterking

Superstar Fish
#15
Aug 12, 2008
1,124
0
0
Manchester, UK
www.facebook.com
#15
kalidiscopeyes said:
Dimond Tetra
Moenkhausia pittieri

Size: 2.5" max pH: 5.0 - 7.5 (6.7 ideal) dH: 4 - 18 (7ideal) Temp: 78 - 82F, Origin: Western Africa, Zaire Congo River
This is where I got my info and why I thought the diamond tetras where an african tetra. Arizona Aquatic Gardens - Diamond Tetra
Click to expand...
Diamond tetras are a venezuelan species.. the most readily available african tetras are congo tetras, yellowfin congo tetras and african moon tetras as far as I know.

If you want to go down the rift lake path you can't really go wrong with yellow or blue labs as long as they're well stocked. However then you're limited in terms of plants and decor - only a few plants, such as anubias, will survive the high pH required and the voracious appetites of rift lake cichlids, however I've seen some amazing planted rift lake tanks - they just require a huge amount of maintenance.
 

Last edited:
Chris_A

Chris_A

Large Fish
#16
Oct 14, 2008
615
0
0
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
#16
LOL, yeah I think they were an Ocean and continent off on their location ;).

From Fishbase: South America: Environs of Lake Valencia in Venezuela (Moenkhausia pittieri, Diamond tetra: aquarium)

I've got a few others I could post up for you if you'd like. :) Please don't get the wrong impression, I TRULY am not trying to be confrontational, just want to get you the right info. :)

BTW, one more vote for Tanganyikans ;).

Chris
 

misterking

misterking

Superstar Fish
#18
Aug 12, 2008
1,124
0
0
Manchester, UK
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#18
exhumed07

exhumed07

Superstar Fish
#19
Apr 30, 2006
1,774
0
36
Illinois
#19
yeah I tried planted tanks with my cichlids. didn't turn out that well. constantly my fish were digging up the plants and I tied some painted lead sinkers to them. yeah that didn't stop them. since they douldn't move them the ripped them to shreads. my fish don't like my setup and constantly change it to their liking
 

M

Monoxide

Large Fish
#20
Dec 19, 2008
224
0
0
#20
The Cichlids I had always moved all decos and all the rock to all sorts of parts of the tank. They dig tunnels from side to side of a big deco even, kinda fun to watch but hassel to keep it organize.
 

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