new african cichlid tank

[jonny92087]

im receiving a 55 gallon tank from my friend for free, so now i can finally get some of those cichlids i have been looking at for so long ive been looking around a little and have decided i want them to be from lake malawi and preferably mbunas. i would like to know any information about them.... how many in a 55, specific kinds, anything that you think might be helpful.
also should i go with an emperor 400gph or the aquaclear 500 i have read that emperors are the best HOB filter but i dont know if the extra 100gph would be more beneficial than the biowheels

thanks

 

[Somonas]

Welcome to the board Jonny.
You have made an excellent choice. and it's obvious you have done your research - either an AC500 or an E400 would make a perfect filter for a 55. As you know already it's better to overfilter than underfilter.
A 55 is a bit small for african cichlids. However. you can have a beautiful thriving tank with a few different species of mbunas. I have a 65 and it's great.

As you continue your research you will quickly discover that there is hundreds of different kinds of african cichlids all with long scientific names. For a 55 I recommend one species if zebra (pseudotropheus, also known as metriaclima) one species of labidochromis (yellow labs are great for a 55) and one species of labeotropheus (for example fulleborni) now you might note that fuellebornis get quite big and you might be better off with labeotropheus trewawases, they are smaller and more slender.

You do not want to have 2 species of pseudotropheus, or 2 of the same species of any other mbuna together because you risk crossbreeding.

The most common way to keep mbuna for breeding purposes is 1 male for 3 or 4 females. You can have a male only tank and put whatever you want in but you run the risk of having aggression problems.
I would stick with a breeding setup with the male:female ratio I recommended above.. you will have babies before you know it.

there are others here who will have excellent advice as well. A lot of us here are very passionate about our African cichlids.

Art

 

[steve535]

i agree with art yellow labs are great for a 55 .start out with 3 or 4 then befor you know it everyone will have some of your fry.my fuelleborni is 6 years old and about 6".they are smart and long lived. do your research with the pseudotropheus some can get nasty.also think about a pair of synodontis multipunctatus catfish. they play all day .they get to be 5or6 inches. good luck steve

 

[jonny92087]

thanks for the help ive gone to www.cichlid-forum.com and have started looking at my options, ill have to go and see what my lfs carries. so would you recommend about 10-15 total mbunas? (in a 55 with a 1:3-4 male:female ratio)

 

[fishydude22]

African Cichlids are an interesting species i'm currently reasearching about.

One question though for whoever wants to answer... If you get African Cichlids as juviniles, how do you tell male from female?

 

[Managuense]

yeah dude, dont fall into the trap of getting 1 yellow one, 1 blue one, 1 orange one etc etc.

a lot of people do that and it makes for a very dull african cichlid tank IMO.

i go for few species, but many of them.

i would go for a lot of yellow labs, and maybe some rusties as far as species go.....your tank would be MUCh more interesting this way i promise.

i would try to avoid pseudotropheus lombardoi (kenyi) and the auratus, these buggers are not worth the headache IMO and definately IME.

 

[steve535]

managuense have you had a prob with the pseudo auroratus?ive had 1 for along time without any trouble.purple and yellow great color.jonny look into pseudo acie they truly love to school.

 

[Managuense]

the auratus is a very pretty species.

what i mean is that they are so incredibly aggressive it is hard to keep them with other mbuna....especially with a mature male.

M. auratus is definitely not for beginners, even though it is often purchased by unsuspecting and naïve admirers. The reason for being a difficult or problematic fish is due to the fact that it is far more aggressive than the majority of Mbuna. Adult males are perhaps the most aggressive of any Mbuna available, period. They are violently intolerant of male conspecifics (i.e., fish of similar appearance). Simply do not try and keep more than one of these males in anything less than 125 gallons. Males can be quite effective at laying claim to almost half of a 50-gallon aquarium, fighting anyone who trespasses, unless to spawn.- www.cichlid-forum.com

 

[steve535]

i agree it maybe not the best choise for a beginner.mine isnt all that aggressive at all.he is in a 55gal planted with mostly male Mbuna's.i had a pseudo tropheops that was a killer it hit on every fish in the tank.he did not last very long with me.steve

a pic of my aurora is on the cichlid-forum photo contest this mth ( shameless plug i could use the votes.)

 

[jonny92087]

i thought you werent able to keep mbunas in a planted tank because they would eat or uproot the plants, not to mention the high ph

 

[Flex26]

I was in a restaurant the other day. The restaurant had a 55 (or 75?) with africans. One of the fish was an auratus. Well, the other fish I saw were all in hiding, while the auratus was swimming around all happy like.

Just my own observations....

 

[steve535]

ive had Mbuna's and plants for years now. you have to anchor them(the plants) until a good root system is formed. most cryptocoryne, taller vallisnera,java fern,some echinodorus,and anubias are pH safe(7.6 to 8)and can withstand some chewing.my pH is 7.6 to 7.8 the low end for malawi cichlids but they seem to do fine.

 

[offish]

all good stuff regards stocking. Do you know yet how you're gonna decor the tank? definitely get a couple of multipunctatus if you can, stunning looking! Also, hunt down a Hap. Ahli, the males are the most vivid (electric) blue you will fins this side of a reef!!

If you stick with Mbuna, lots of rock work, if you can get them try big rounding pebbles as they provide great hidy holes and the fish will feel more at home. I use small/medium bore plastic tubes which I hide behind my rockwork - it creates a maze of tunnels for them and keeps them happy, lots of space.

Also, make sure you go for a fine substrate as thier big into digging, on this note make sure any decor is firmly in place as they WILL excavate and this can cause landslides!!