I was assured by the sales girl that my two brand new yellow tanganyikan cichlids would be fine in a 10 gallon tank. But for the past hour or so I have been reading online different articles and information on cichilds. Apparently not all cichilds are good for 10 gallons. And i keep reading about some cichilds that need to have sand in their tank instead of gravel and are "shelldwellers". Now im freaking out and confused because apparently there are all different types of Tanganyikan Cichlids out there and all this girl told me were they were Tanganyikan Cichlids. So im not sure what exactly I have. How can i tell? I have also heard these fish need rocks in the tank! Please help. I want my fish to be happy and healthy and i thought they were doing allright and now with all this new information i read im not sure! How can i tell if they are shelldwellers? And do my fish need sand or are they ok in the gravel i have in there? Do they need rocks???? Thanks for any help anyone might have
10 gallon bad idea for cichlids?
- Thread starter pyrettablaze24
- Start date
Well, here's some good news... if they are shell-dwellers, you can fit them in your ten gallon because they stay small. However, they need a high pH.
Do your cichlids look like this? http://www.aquahobby.com/gallery/e_julie2.php
Or this? http://www.aquahobby.com/gallery/e_leleupi.php
Those are both Tanginyaka cichlids.
Here's one from lake Malawi, in case your LFS got mixed up:
http://www.aquahobby.com/gallery/e_labido.php
I've never kept the lake African cichlids, so I won't be much help I'm afraid. But if you can give us an ID, it would help a lot. Cichlid-man and some others can really help you out...
Do your cichlids look like this? http://www.aquahobby.com/gallery/e_julie2.php
Or this? http://www.aquahobby.com/gallery/e_leleupi.php
Those are both Tanginyaka cichlids.
Here's one from lake Malawi, in case your LFS got mixed up:
http://www.aquahobby.com/gallery/e_labido.php
I've never kept the lake African cichlids, so I won't be much help I'm afraid. But if you can give us an ID, it would help a lot. Cichlid-man and some others can really help you out...
Whoa betta, slow down a bit. It all depends...
If they are indeed shelldwellers it is possible to keep them in the 10, but not always the best thing. Can you describe your fish a little more? Or get some pics?
cichlids prefer rocks over plants, however that doesn't mean you can't keep plants with them. Orion keeps his Tangs in a planted tank.
Shells are always good for shelldwellers....makes them feel safer, thats their home. Of course with enough rockwork i'm sure they could do without.
If they are indeed shelldwellers it is possible to keep them in the 10, but not always the best thing. Can you describe your fish a little more? Or get some pics?
cichlids prefer rocks over plants, however that doesn't mean you can't keep plants with them. Orion keeps his Tangs in a planted tank.
Shells are always good for shelldwellers....makes them feel safer, thats their home. Of course with enough rockwork i'm sure they could do without.
Yeah...there are a LOT of different kinds of cichlids, and one "group" of them are from tanganyika. You should take a look at some of the pictures (like lordroad posted) and see if you can ID them, or call the place you got them and demand to know what they are. Most of the yellow cichlids I see in my pet stores are this kind http://www.myfishtank.net/freshwaterprofiles.php?profile=139 which are not from tanganyika.
as for what they need...it really depends on the fish. They dont NEED rocks...but most cichlids need places to hide and things in the tank that will lay out their "territories" whether thats a couple of clay pots or some rocks etc. You dont have to have a huge elaborate setup for them. That being said...there aren't many cichlids that can be kept in a 10, except the kinds that the guys were talking about up there ^, shellies and the like. Some tanganyikans (like the ones I have) stay relatively small and grow slowly...but even the 29 I have them in will be too small when they get older.
Good luck
dont panic.
as for what they need...it really depends on the fish. They dont NEED rocks...but most cichlids need places to hide and things in the tank that will lay out their "territories" whether thats a couple of clay pots or some rocks etc. You dont have to have a huge elaborate setup for them. That being said...there aren't many cichlids that can be kept in a 10, except the kinds that the guys were talking about up there ^, shellies and the like. Some tanganyikans (like the ones I have) stay relatively small and grow slowly...but even the 29 I have them in will be too small when they get older.
Good luck
dont panic.
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/species_profiles.php is a great place to start looking around to help ID your fish, but as good as the information there can be, it can also be quite overwhelming for a new comer to cichlids.
There are several members here who are heavy into cichlids, myself being one of them, so we can help you as long you are willing to listen.
There are several members here who are heavy into cichlids, myself being one of them, so we can help you as long you are willing to listen.