African Cichlid Information

African tank

Wed, 11 Aug 2010 22:24:38 -0500

So once my big guy sells I am planning and african cichlid tank.
Problem is I dont really know where to begin.

I'd like the tank to look as natural as possible but be pretty wide open with constant movement from the fish.
I saw Jimmymac's monsters at night and I really liked it.
Now I imaginge that his tank is alot larger than my 220gal but I'd like it set up the same way with lots of open space.

If you could recomend a few monsters, I was thinking 2venustus 2 empress And for the rest of the tank I dont know what else to add.
I like mbunas but I also like haps.
Would the haps be a better choice or do they require alot of caves and stuff aswell?
I wouldnt mind seeing some peacocks in here aswell.

So do I have to choose one or the other between has and mbuna?

My setup consists of,
- 2eheim 2217's and an Fx5 filter
-1 Koralia2 powerhead but the exhaust from my fx5 is pretty powerful and the 2 spraybars from the 2217's are side by side making them stronger aswell.
-Lighting I have 4 24" power compacts 65watt each with 2 10000/6500k and 2 are actinc buls, also one 4 ft dualt5 thats 48wtts I think with a 10000k and an actinic. Needless to say that the tank is extremely bright.
My temp is always around 78-81deg so I dont hav a heater.
-Substrate will be med sized natural gravel, the tank is currently bare.

Well I am looking to set up a sweet tank and am def going to need your help to do it so any advice or comments are more than welcome.

Basically I want some larger fish cohabing with smaller ones as the would naturally do, I just dont know exactly which species to put together to make that happen.

Thanks in advance

Jeff

how to post pictures from camera

Wed, 30 Jun 2010 12:02:59 -0500

Can someone help me i dont know how to post pictures of my fish from my camera

Astatotilapia burtoni

Sat, 15 May 2010 05:37:01 -0500

Hey all,

Anyone good with Victorian cichlids?

If so you may be able to help me.

I got some of the above from work a few weeks ago and the male has started to show color. Color that I have never seen before in Burtoni. I have kept them before a few years ago and this is what I remember them like:

But the ones I have at work and the 1 male I have at home look like this:

The 4 females I have are the normal silver color.
As I said I have kept them many times before and have never seen this color. Any ideas?

Tropheus Polli "Bulu Point"

Thu, 08 Apr 2010 18:59:16 -0500

Enjoy guys!

Male

Female holding

Youngins

Petrochromis marcognathus "zambia"

Sun, 04 Apr 2010 07:45:59 -0500

Just got some new fish.

Help they don't kill each other.

Buccochromis nototaenia

Tue, 30 Mar 2010 08:33:06 -0500

I got home tonight to find a female Buccochromis nototaenia with her egg tube down and ready to spawn. My colony consists of 9 fish, possibly 3 males the rest females all around the 12-15cm mark.
My question to those who have kept them.... What age/size do they start breeding?

I would have thought it would have been a lot bigger than what they are.

need some species advice

Mon, 29 Mar 2010 19:36:51 -0500

so yesterday i was setting up a 29 gallon in the shed and i had it looking so awesome with some slate standing on end and some cool rocks with holes in them. and then i dropped a rock in it and the bottom broke out. the substrate was going to be agronite from when i had my small saltwater tank so it should keep the ph pretty high.

i still have a 20 gallon long empty so i guess im going to be setting that up the same way. the filtration will be an aqua clean 30 and i got my old saltwater lights 4 bulb 24" t-8s.

i was going to try to do a trio of Cyprichromis or Paracyprichromis cause i been wanting them forever. but i dont know if thats even an option in a 20 long. i want to breed something that isnt super common and looks cool. anyone got any ideas?

Monsters in the evening.

Sun, 14 Mar 2010 22:02:38 -0500

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_tsriKAMe0...feature=channel

RMCA auction fish

Sun, 14 Mar 2010 19:45:49 -0500

I picked up three fish at the RMCA auction on Sun.
One huge male Black calvus (Ink fin),
and a pair of Champsochromis caruelious*.

http://www.cichlidmadness.com/forums/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=24803

http://www.cichlidmadness.com/forums/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=24804

http://www.cichlidmadness.com/forums/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=24805

Kapampa pics

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 18:04:19 -0600

long time return

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 08:54:25 -0600

its been along time since i posted anything here just wanted to drop an update on what i ve been up to
http://www.cichlidmadness.com/forums/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=24784
http://www.cichlidmadness.com/forums/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=24785
http://www.cichlidmadness.com/forums/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=24786
http://www.cichlidmadness.com/forums/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=24787
http://www.cichlidmadness.com/forums/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=24788
http://www.cichlidmadness.com/forums/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=24789

sorry for crappy pics their from my phone i can't stop buying fish long enough to buy a camera

Holding Red Zebra still eating food...

Wed, 03 Mar 2010 12:23:20 -0600

Maybe some one here will know what shes doing... i have a female red zebra about 2 1/4" that has been holding for about 2 weeks...i feed them a on very strict time frame and they all seem to know when its coming and she will not have the eggs in her mouth at those times.... after feeding ill come back later and shes holding again... from what i know they are not supost to eat while holding right??? only think i can think of is she is spiting them out somewhere so she can eat then goes back to retrive them... anyone else ever see this behavior? i havent seen her spit them out anywhere and have sat a watched but never see what shes does...

Buccochromis nototaenia

Sat, 27 Feb 2010 10:59:49 -0600

I got these a few months ago.
I started with 7 fish. 3 males and 4 females.
I lost 1 female to aggression I think.
I gave 2 smaller males and the smallest female to poolmako (Mitch).
Now in a 75 gal. by themselves, the trio is doing great.
1 female is holding, and the male is 5 inches and a beauty!

http://www.cichlidmadness.com/forums/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=24755
http://www.cichlidmadness.com/forums/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=24756
http://www.cichlidmadness.com/forums/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=24757
http://www.cichlidmadness.com/forums/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=24758

Lichnochromis acuticeps

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 18:46:28 -0600

Has anyone kept the above?

I scored a trio last week M & 2F, awesome looking fish, will grab some pics soon.

Also scored 9 Buccochromis nototaenia, those guys are stunners as well.

Help me with my cichlid

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 21:39:04 -0600

Newbie here can anyone tell what to put in the tank with my albino zebra cichlid in my 10 gal. I know the tank is to little but I can't get a bigger one til I move out.

dimidichroims compressicep

Tue, 02 Feb 2010 08:42:34 -0600

hi people im new to your site and didnt see anyplace to do the intro thing so i just thought i would throw a few pics at you and say hi, my fish junkie friend told me about this site and said it wasnt full of all the snobbish horseshit you find on some sites and its and adult site so i can say shit if i want, you all know him has jimmymac but i know him as the master of big baddass malawi monsters.

this little guy is about 9 inches and 2.5 years old.

Buttikoferi's & other Africans?

Fri, 22 Jan 2010 06:47:50 -0600

At a couple different Pet Supplies' stores in my area, I've noticed they keep Buttikoferi's in the same tank with a whole bunch of Mbuna Africans. The fish are only about 1 or 2 inches big. But I've heard before that if you raise them together that it can be done and that the Mbuna's will hold their own as all the fish grow.

Is it possible to have these fish co-exist if you buy them this small and raise them together?

My Cyphotilapia gibberosa (Kapampa) wild eating

Sun, 10 Jan 2010 01:03:24 -0600

My Cyphotilapia gibberosa (Kapampa) wild, eatings on a Fleetwood Mac song, "Tusk"
Here

Future 180 fry control!

Sat, 09 Jan 2010 13:48:27 -0600

My recent return to CM has once again wetted my appitite for new cichlids.
Then yesterday after work I went to the LFS to pick up some food... well maybe check out the new stock.
BAM theres a new center rack of 8 75g tanks right smack dab in the middle of the store... One side all Haps and Peacocks and the other side all Mbuna... mostly new arrivals!
I am still filling up my 180g with Mbuna so, as of last night, recent additions were another Yellow Lab, 2 more Red Zebras, and 3 more Mainganos... all juvies.
Then on the other side I picked up a nice medium Rubins Red Peacock for my Hap /Peacock tank, AND... the impulse buy that I really should know better... I bought a tiny little Hap labeled a VC-10, maybe a tad larger than an inch, that has similar spots to a N. venustus but with red finnage. So I begin the research. That cute lil bastard is a Placidochromis milomo and will soon grow to up to 12 inches! But man are they AWESOME!
So now I have a future solution to my Red, Cobalt, and OB Zebra hybred problem as he will eventually have to go in the 180.
No actual pics yet, but here is a "Googled" one of what it looks like now...

And an adult Male...

Monsters in the 210

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 17:00:42 -0600

Ophthalmotilapia nasuta

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 06:47:40 -0600

Anyone kept the above?

Was thinking about getting 20 this week, But @ $50 wholesale Im not sure....Some info would be great.

Cheers
Az

Baby Malawai Cichlid.

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 10:02:19 -0500

I have baby Malawai Cichild about a inches and I need some good tips about raise them and give them all they needed, Any suggestions, recommandations, advices will be appritiated..

Thanks.

Two Jeweleds First Day

Sun, 06 Sep 2009 21:35:14 -0500

Ok, so these are actually my first cichlids. I currently have two Jeweled Cichlids in a 15 gallon setup (they're only about 2 inches max) and am keeping them there until my 40 gallon is ready (probably next weekend).

The only other inhabitants of the tank are two ghost shrimp and a mini crab who have been in the tank which has been cycling for about two weeks with no issues.

The temperature is a solid 76-78, occasionally the 74 degree bar lights up, but it's solid on 76.

I know that I properly acclimated the two Jeweleds, but I read that they are a mid-level swimming fish, and it's a bit disconcerting that they are hiding out in a corner on the bottom.

For the past few hours, they have been grouped, facing the glass, in the bottom corner of the tank, and I'm wondering if this is something I should be worried about or simply still part of the acclimation process?

Thanks,
Fark.

Help Sexing Krib

Mon, 24 Aug 2009 23:17:00 -0500

Hi

I recently bought some Krib from the pet store and the girl there said she gave me 2 pairs, unfortunately in transport 2 of the fish didn't make it. I believe what i was left with is 2 males but would like confirmation on this. Any help would be appreciated.

Tropheus Kachese Spawning

Fri, 14 Aug 2009 03:00:02 -0500

captured this the other day.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikdcqLmk5KA

WC tropheus lufubu colony

Fri, 07 Aug 2009 02:22:51 -0500

edit

WC tropheus lufubu colony

Fri, 07 Aug 2009 01:34:59 -0500

Had these for a while. Never posted pictures but I finally got a friend to come over and take some shots for me on his DSLR.

Enjoy guys.

can anyone id these juveniles please

Tue, 21 Jul 2009 17:51:12 -0500

Hi all can anyone tell me what these fish are thanks

rescaped the petro trew tank

Sat, 18 Jul 2009 18:36:33 -0500

these guy must hate holy rock. They never acted this way with the holy rock in their tank.

http://s297.photobucket.com/albums/mm210/j...nt=DSCN0890.flv

greenwoodchromis christyi

Thu, 16 Jul 2009 16:53:35 -0500

Does anyone know anything about these guys? I got a chance to get some. Are they aggressive to each other? Can they be kept with trophs & petros? probably not since they are carnivores. I think they are cool looking.

trews & moops

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 08:30:03 -0500

3 month old video of one of my 210's.

tropheus brichardi namansi reef

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 02:17:50 -0500

Here are some pictures I recently took of my namansies.

I sold off my ilangis to make room for these guys.

petrochromis

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 21:35:59 -0500

Frickin animals

http://s297.photobucket.com/albums/mm210/j...nt=DSCN0770.flv

http://s297.photobucket.com/albums/mm210/j...nt=DSCN0814.flv

my troph tank

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 01:54:26 -0500

heres a vid of my troph tank

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t87sH275AXc...re=channel_page

35 WC kachese + fry
1 WC petro. trew.
2 WC eretmodus cyanostictus

tanks been up and running about a year now.....

My tropheus ilangi colony and a petro moshi

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 23:51:56 -0500

recently sold these guys to get something more rare.

Hope you guys like it.

And the moody petro moshi

Pictures of my Tropheus Ulwiles colony

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 23:20:03 -0500

Hope you guys like this. I had these almost 2 years ago. Since have sold them to keep other tropheus.

Feeding the young group.

Picture of my WC sub-dominant male.

African starter tank

Sat, 20 Jun 2009 09:29:57 -0500

Hi,

I've taken the plunge and decided to get a tank, a few of my friends have them and my Dad used to keep marine. Since I'm used to seeing marine the thought of having a tropical tank never excited me until I saw Malawi's at LFS. Since I'm just getting into this I didn't want to get a giant 300L tank straight away and having read all the infomation I could find on cichlids that apparently wasn't the best thinking, so here I am with a 125L and a LFS with tiny baby Malawi, maybe 2 inches at best. So the question is, can I keep some Malawi in the 125L for now and upgrade the tank in about 12 months?

Thanks for any help
Andrew.

which tank to keep for fronts?

Tue, 26 May 2009 18:14:45 -0500

ok im trying to decide which tank i should keep and which one to get rid of. i have a 90 gallon show tank but its really only 70 something gallons. its 48"Lx12"Wx28"H. then i got a 56 gallon column tank. its 30"Lx18"Wx24"H.

my question is which one do you guys think would be better to keep a few frontosa in? i have 2 right now in with my other tangs but im gonna get rid of everything and keep just the fronts. i only want 3 or 4 maybe 5 at the most. the two i got now are 3-4 inches closer to 4 maybe a little over but i doubt it. i think i got a male and female looking at the vents but its hard to tell for sure.

so which tank should i use? and how many fronts should i get?

Please Help Me Id This Cichlid

Wed, 29 Apr 2009 08:24:35 -0500

Can anyone please help me Identify this African Cichlid and maybe tell me how long it takes for them to get their color.I had it for about 2 months now.If ya need better pictures I can try and take more.Thanks for your time. http://www.cichlidmadness.com/forums/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=23872

Still don't know how to stock this 55...

Sat, 25 Apr 2009 09:09:31 -0500

What could I fit in there that is colorful and won't literally kill each other? I know a few yellow labs for sure... but what else?

Fish ID

Sat, 18 Apr 2009 19:28:41 -0500

Hi all,

I just got my 90 up and running and bought my first two Cichlids.

Can someone tell me what I have, (The Orange Fish seems Aggressive)?

Thanks All

S

The Apprentice - notice Alan Sugar's Yellow labs ?

Mon, 06 Apr 2009 17:25:44 -0500

The Apprentice - anyone else notice the Yellow labs in his office tank - along with a shoal of tinfoils !!! ?

6 inch fry

Tue, 24 Mar 2009 07:48:25 -0500

Heres some shots of the little monster I got a few days ago.
Hard to believe hes a fry at 6 inches, LOL

Melanochromis auratus

Thu, 19 Mar 2009 16:24:12 -0500

So, I'm taking a problem fish from a co-worker since my tanks are essentially empty and it can't currently cause any issues in my tanks. I heard about a "demon fish," and my suspicions immediately went to M. auratus or Metriaclima lombardoi. I haven't seen the fish, but based on the description she gave me today, I think it is M. auratus... and it's probably male.

Anyway, I'm planning on keeping it solo, since she has described it as "evil," and I don't think the 50-g could handle the full complement of mbuna with a male auratus... unless perhaps, you all think a couple of females may be ok.

Any tips?

Need some help

Tue, 17 Mar 2009 19:21:17 -0500

Mods feel free to move if you need to. I have been lookin at fish and researching them non stop for about a month now. I am pretty much set on saulosi, lions cove afra, yellow lab, and rusties. I am gonna get 1m 3f of each. I was wondering if i could get a bigger cichlid as like a center piece fish. It will be a 75G with the normal specs. Is this even possible??

110gal stock list

Sat, 07 Mar 2009 12:53:33 -0600

Hi all,

Just wondering what you all think of the fish I have in my 110gal.
I know some are more aggressive than others but aside from the Kingsizie, the Hongi and Mbamba having it out with eachother everything is pretty peaceful. Those guys don't bother the others and everyone else seems to just be doing their own thing.
I was having a problem with an Albino red zebra bothering my M Estherae but he is out of the tank now.

Did I do ok or are there any fish that I really shouldn't have added to this mixed tank?
Also I was thinking of adding some top swimmers as my tank is 30in tall oceanic, any suggestions?

Why do LFS's get new fish...

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 11:45:21 -0600

So last night I go into the LFS to pic up a glass lid for one of my 10g fry tanks... $10, big deal but thats all the spare change I had. As soon as I walk in the Manager greets me with "I was just thinking of you.... You gotta see these!" So I says to myself, oh-oh this is gonna hurt.
Somebody brought int their Tanganikian stock for store credit. First tank 5 large "wild caught" J. dickfeldi, a colony of about 10 nice N. Pulcher (Daffodil) and a bunch of Tropheus duboisi juvies. Then the bastard takes me over to a 90g that is literally chucked full of about 20-25 T. duboisi adults. Super wide yellow bands with crisp clear defined lines. All in great shape and very active. Normal price foe juvies there run $18-$20. So I had to ask... how much?
The adults will go for $50... EACH! The really bad thing about it is I know I would need to buy a colony of 10 to 15 for this to work. And me trying to watch my pennies...
Damn those pretty fish anyhow

Help Sexing Johanni

Tue, 03 Mar 2009 16:10:58 -0600

One of my two electric blue Johannis is changing color. It is 3" in length, turning light blue, with dark horizontal stripes, and yellow top to its dorsal fin, and tail fin. The othe one in the tank is turning dark blue, and you can barely see its stripes. It is constantly digging. I know females are yellow, but arent they yellow from birth? The tank I saw at my LFS had about four 1" yellow ones, and 15 or so blue ones, same size.

moved my africans to the 90 gallon show tank.

Sat, 28 Feb 2009 21:22:21 -0600

i got rid of all my big cichlids and now im gonna concentrate on africans again and saltwater when i get my new tank finished.

the tank i got them in now is almost 30 inches tall. the floor is only 48x12 though so it has less floor space thn the 65 they cam from which was 36x18 but its got more water...

i am looking for something to fill the empty top space. does anyone know of an african cichlid that will stay in the open water close to the top? most of my fish are tangs so i would prefer something from the same lake any ideas? something that likes a lot of water movement would be best theres an aqua clear 110 and an aqua tech 30-60 on the tank now and two 4 inch bubble strips so there is a lot of water movement out in the open.

heres what it looks like.
http://www.cichlidmadness.com/forums/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=23645

7 Line Frontosa

Mon, 23 Feb 2009 14:23:20 -0600

Hi all,

I just picked up what I think is either a 7 stripe kigoma or bangwe frontosa.
It has the yellow coloration on it's dorsal fin and large cheek stripe/mark below the eye. Also it has a blue glow to it which I guess is common in all tosa's.
The fish was not labled at the lfs and the guy didn't know where they had gotten them from.

I have also heard the name Helembe Frontosa used, is it the same thing just a different locale or is it something totally different?

As I said it def has 7 stripes, the yellow dorsal fin, and face mark. Are there any other differences to look for as far as determining what type of Frontosa?

Also I paid $50 for a 4incher was this too much? and is this a fairly rare type because I've never seen one and I frequent my 3 lfs's pretty often?

I'll post pics when I get some and thanks in advanced