Will this fish mix get along

Hello,

I'm starting a 55 gallon Mbuna tank. After doing some research,
especially on www.cichlid-forum.com, I was thinking of stocking the
following mix of fish:

4 Labidochromis caeruleus
4 Pseudotropheus socolofi
3 Synodontis multipunctatus

Will these fish get along together? Is this stocking level good? The
tank is heavily decorated with rocks, with many hiding places. Any
other suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

Chris Kollmann


--
Chris Kollmann

"Christopher Kollmann" wrote in message
...
Hello,

I'm starting a 55 gallon Mbuna tank. After doing some research,
especially on www.cichlid-forum.com, I was thinking of stocking the
following mix of fish:

4 Labidochromis caeruleus
4 Pseudotropheus socolofi
3 Synodontis multipunctatus

Will these fish get along together? Is this stocking level good? The
tank is heavily decorated with rocks, with many hiding places. Any
other suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

Chris Kollmann


I generally put mbuna into larger tanks (70g+) so they don't get on each
other's cases too soon, however Labs are fairly mellow (on the mbuna
scale of aggression ;~), and Socolofi are dwarfs (though testy). It
sounds like a nice mix. You could put some ditherfish in there too, to
bring the mbuna out more and to give some color/activity to the upper
portion of the tank. Since you have yellow, blue and black, how about
some Tiger barbs (green, albino or even regular). If you want to stay
with the African theme, some Julies or Lamp. Brichardis would work too,
though they can sometimes reproduce faster than desirable.
--
www.NetMax.tk

Quoth ,

"Christopher Kollmann" wrote in message
...
Hello,

I'm starting a 55 gallon Mbuna tank. After doing some research,
especially on www.cichlid-forum.com, I was thinking of stocking the
following mix of fish:

4 Labidochromis caeruleus
4 Pseudotropheus socolofi
3 Synodontis multipunctatus

Will these fish get along together? Is this stocking level good? The
tank is heavily decorated with rocks, with many hiding places. Any
other suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

Chris Kollmann


I generally put mbuna into larger tanks (70g+) so they don't get on each
other's cases too soon, however Labs are fairly mellow (on the mbuna
scale of aggression ;~), and Socolofi are dwarfs (though testy). It
sounds like a nice mix. You could put some ditherfish in there too, to
bring the mbuna out more and to give some color/activity to the upper
portion of the tank. Since you have yellow, blue and black, how about
some Tiger barbs (green, albino or even regular). If you want to stay
with the African theme, some Julies or Lamp. Brichardis would work too,
though they can sometimes reproduce faster than desirable.

Thanks for the feedback.

Hmm, I kind of like the idea of some dither fish, if that won't put too
much bio-load on the tank. However, my research indicates Barbs prefer
softer, slightly acidic water. Is that true? If so, that's not exactly
the environment I going for with these Mbuna. I'll look into the
Julies, that may be a good idea. I was hesitant to mix Tanganyika and
Malawi fish, but I just love the looks of the Cuckoo Cats, so I'm
already messing with nature in this tank. Anybody else have good
suggestions for dither fish that will get along with this mix and enjoy
harder, higher pH water?



--
Chris Kollmann

I have had good luck with tiger barbs with my yellow labs, and Rusties, too
(Iodotropheus sprengerae). Also, I like the giant Danio for dither. They
both do well with the hard alkaline water. Be sure to keep the Tiger barbs
in a group of 5 or more, and they leave everyone alone.


Christopher Kollmann" wrote in message
.. .
Quoth ,

"Christopher Kollmann" wrote in message
...
Hello,

I'm starting a 55 gallon Mbuna tank. After doing some research,
especially on www.cichlid-forum.com, I was thinking of stocking the
following mix of fish:

4 Labidochromis caeruleus
4 Pseudotropheus socolofi
3 Synodontis multipunctatus

Will these fish get along together? Is this stocking level good? The
tank is heavily decorated with rocks, with many hiding places. Any
other suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

Chris Kollmann


I generally put mbuna into larger tanks (70g+) so they don't get on each
other's cases too soon, however Labs are fairly mellow (on the mbuna
scale of aggression ;~), and Socolofi are dwarfs (though testy). It
sounds like a nice mix. You could put some ditherfish in there too, to
bring the mbuna out more and to give some color/activity to the upper
portion of the tank. Since you have yellow, blue and black, how about
some Tiger barbs (green, albino or even regular). If you want to stay
with the African theme, some Julies or Lamp. Brichardis would work too,
though they can sometimes reproduce faster than desirable.

Thanks for the feedback.

Hmm, I kind of like the idea of some dither fish, if that won't put too
much bio-load on the tank. However, my research indicates Barbs prefer
softer, slightly acidic water. Is that true? If so, that's not exactly
the environment I going for with these Mbuna. I'll look into the
Julies, that may be a good idea. I was hesitant to mix Tanganyika and
Malawi fish, but I just love the looks of the Cuckoo Cats, so I'm
already messing with nature in this tank. Anybody else have good
suggestions for dither fish that will get along with this mix and enjoy
harder, higher pH water?



--
Chris Kollmann

I have read that rainbow fish are a popular dither fish choice in rift lake
aquariums....

Susan

"Christopher Kollmann" wrote in message
.. .
Quoth ,

"Christopher Kollmann" wrote in message
...
Hello,

I'm starting a 55 gallon Mbuna tank. After doing some research,
especially on www.cichlid-forum.com, I was thinking of stocking the
following mix of fish:

4 Labidochromis caeruleus
4 Pseudotropheus socolofi
3 Synodontis multipunctatus

Will these fish get along together? Is this stocking level good? The
tank is heavily decorated with rocks, with many hiding places. Any
other suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

Chris Kollmann


I generally put mbuna into larger tanks (70g+) so they don't get on each
other's cases too soon, however Labs are fairly mellow (on the mbuna
scale of aggression ;~), and Socolofi are dwarfs (though testy). It
sounds like a nice mix. You could put some ditherfish in there too, to
bring the mbuna out more and to give some color/activity to the upper
portion of the tank. Since you have yellow, blue and black, how about
some Tiger barbs (green, albino or even regular). If you want to stay
with the African theme, some Julies or Lamp. Brichardis would work too,
though they can sometimes reproduce faster than desirable.

Thanks for the feedback.

Hmm, I kind of like the idea of some dither fish, if that won't put too
much bio-load on the tank. However, my research indicates Barbs prefer
softer, slightly acidic water. Is that true? If so, that's not exactly
the environment I going for with these Mbuna. I'll look into the
Julies, that may be a good idea. I was hesitant to mix Tanganyika and
Malawi fish, but I just love the looks of the Cuckoo Cats, so I'm
already messing with nature in this tank. Anybody else have good
suggestions for dither fish that will get along with this mix and enjoy
harder, higher pH water?



--
Chris Kollmann

Since you have yellow, blue and black, how about
some Tiger barbs (green, albino or even regular).

NetMax, you have given so much great information, but this suggestion
astounds me.

Can you elaborate?

"luminos" wrote in message
...

Since you have yellow, blue and black, how about
some Tiger barbs (green, albino or even regular).

NetMax, you have given so much great information, but this suggestion
astounds me.

Can you elaborate?


My pleasure luminos, but what aspect of my suggestion have you found
astounding, my sense of colour coordination, the layering of species or
the range of natural origins being mixed together?

For layering, the Syno holds the bottom 10%, the Socolofi the next 25%,
the labs about the middle 50% (overlapping into the Socolofi territory),
leaving the top of the tank empty, which 7 Tigers would sill nicely. For
swimming behaviour they also contrast each other with territorial to a
roving pack grouping.

On colours, there are already yellow fish (Labs) and blue with black
banding (Soco), and the Syno are monochrome, so I was looking for
different colours. Tiger barbs come naturally (line-bred) in 3 colour
forms, regular banded, green and albino (you know that I'd never suggest
a dyed fish).

On place of origin (water parameters & behaviour), they are all close
enough if the water is not to an extreme, and the tank is not
overstocked.

Does that help?
--
www.NetMax.tk

Hello Netmax and other members,

First time poster. Was pleasantly surprised to find a ng just for
cichlid lovers. Wife bought me a 26g (don't laugh) for Christmas. I
thought it was pretty big but notice that many are talking 55g plus in
this ng. Guess I'll work up to it.

I have just put in 7 cichlids and notice as you pointed out that the
top half is not used too much. I have two yellow Labs, two dolphin
and two zebras and one can't remember. They are just babies now (1"
+). Eventually I want to put in a pleco and small eel or blue
crayfish. Do I have any room to add more with the 26g tank or should
I be satisfied with what I have?

TIA

All the best,

Larry
Southern Ontario

"Larry" wrote in message
...
Hello Netmax and other members,

First time poster. Was pleasantly surprised to find a ng just for
cichlid lovers. Wife bought me a 26g (don't laugh) for Christmas. I
thought it was pretty big but notice that many are talking 55g plus in
this ng. Guess I'll work up to it.

I have just put in 7 cichlids and notice as you pointed out that the
top half is not used too much. I have two yellow Labs, two dolphin
and two zebras and one can't remember. They are just babies now (1"
+). Eventually I want to put in a pleco and small eel or blue
crayfish. Do I have any room to add more with the 26g tank or should
I be satisfied with what I have?

TIA

All the best,

Larry
Southern Ontario

Do you want the good news or the bad news first? ;~) The good news is
that you have started with some of the more interesting and personable
types of fish in the trade. The bad news is that you will soon be
hooked, and within a year, you will look back fondly at your 26g which
will be a quarantine or a fry tank, and be admiring your dolphins
swimming back & forth in their 60 to 100g tank (dolphins or Cyrtocara
moorii get to about 20cm (7-8 inches) and are best kept in groups of
about 5 to 7 fish). They group fairly nicely with Labs which have
similar diets but prefer the lower reaches of the tank (the dolphins will
take to the upper reaches as they mature). Labs are properly kept in
small groups as well. Zebra (some type of Pseudotropheus) can have
nastier dispositions and require more vegetation in their diet. They
will be your 'black sheep' and will probably make that tank feel smaller
than it is for the other occupants.

Trade secret: larger tanks are in many regards, much easier to take care
of than smaller tanks. Personally, my smallest tank which I have
patience to operate is 40g, and I really prefer larger than 60g as this
is when I find the system stabilizes much more easily, jmo.

Please look into cycling *important* as it sounds like these fish were
just dropped into a new tank. They will die or suffer tremendously in
the accumulation of their own waste unless you take aggressive action to
control this while the tank cycles (establishes a colony of bacteria
which converts fish waste into less toxic forms).
http://faq.thekrib.com/begin-cycling.html

ps: more fish - bad idea, unless you were already cycled, and were just
using this as a grow-out tank, before they were moved into something
bigger in 8 months.
jmho
--
www.NetMax.tk

"Christopher Kollmann" wrote in message
...
Hello,

I'm starting a 55 gallon Mbuna tank. After doing some research,
especially on www.cichlid-forum.com, I was thinking of stocking the
following mix of fish:

4 Labidochromis caeruleus
4 Pseudotropheus socolofi
3 Synodontis multipunctatus

Will these fish get along together? Is this stocking level good? The
tank is heavily decorated with rocks, with many hiding places. Any
other suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

Chris Kollmann


Chris,
As Netmax stated, most of the Mbuna do better in a 75 gallon tank. If
you're going with a 55 gallon, consider some of the smaller Mbuna instead of
the Pseudotropheus species. Even the dwarf species of Mbuna can be a bit
aggressive for a 55. You may be better off with Cynotilapia or Iodotropheus
species. Another option would be to mix some Aulonocara with the yellow
labids. Many of the Labidochromis species, like the caeruleus are
insectivores. They eat a mix of algae and insects from the biocover. This
allows them to have a more varied diet where most of the other Mbuna species
need a diet primarily vegetarian in nature.
A note on the P. socolofi. Netmax mentioned them as dwarf Mbuna. In the
wild these fish obtain lengths of about three inches. Most of the P.
socolofi in the trade right now are tank raised. In tanks, these fish have
been recorded up to lengths of six inches or more. Not exactly a dwarf Mbuna
at that size. Also, when purchasing P. socolofi, be certain you're getting
the right fish. They are found in the wild in a couple locations along side
Metriaclima aurora and visibly look identical. It's easy to catch small M.
aurora and mistake them for P. socolofi.
As for dither fish, I've moved away from them in my tanks now. Once the
fish are used to you, they're out enough to not have to worry about it. If
you build up the rock work enough in the tank, the fish will cover the
entire range. If you stick with Mbuna and do 6 L. caeruleus, (1m/2f) and do
say 6 Cynotilapia afra (2m/4f) with lots of rock work, the tank will be
alive with activity.
Just my thoughts.
Tim (aka AmateurCichlids)
www.fishaholics.org