Few Questions

[corykid]

Hey ya'll, i got a few questions regaurding my mbuna cichlids that i hope i could get answered

Fish list:

3 zebras (1 male, 1 female, 1 unknown)
1 kenyi (female)
1 Fuelleborni OB (unknwn)
1 Perlmutt (unknown)
1 socolofi (again unknown)
1 joanjohnsonae (female)
1 Cyno Afra (unknown)
1 Electric Yellow (female)
1 auratus (female)

Questions:

1. Should i take the auratus back? I am thinking yes...
2. 2 penguin 350's and a Maryland C-220 is that good filtration?
and 3. My mom and i both really like the color the yellow lab brings to the tank, i was thinking of buying one more female and male, is this a good decision, or would that put me over a max amount of fish for my tank?/would i be better to buy a different fish?

all-in-all my vision for the tank would be to have a nice group of yellow labs with all other fish being different colors which i think would look nice

thanks in advance for your replys

fish pics>>>>>http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=145979

[kay-bee]

1. Should i take the auratus back? I am thinking yes...
2. 2 penguin 350's and a Maryland C-220 is that good filtration?
and
3. My mom and i both really like the color the yellow lab brings to the tank, i was thinking of buying one more female and male, is this a good decision, or would that put me over a max amount of fish for my tank?/would i be better to buy a different fish? all-in-all my vision for the tank would be to have a nice group of yellow labs with all other fish being different colors which i think would look nice

1. Not necessarily if it is a female (but keep in mind, both genders start out looking identical but the males undergo a color transformation as they mature; based on the pic you have an immature auratus (gender undetermined). If you're able to return the auratus at any time (trade/sell, etc), keep it until it becomes too aggressive in the tank. Depending on the motivations of the other mbunas, it might not end up being a complete terror in the tank.

2. Not familiar with the last filter but you should be ok.

3. If the yellow lab is a juvie, it may be hard to determine gender (of the one you have or the ones you want to get). Of your list the yellow labs are the least aggressive and would benefit being in a larger group. You could add as many as 4-6 more yellow labs.

[corykid]

Kay-bee again thank you for your quick and helpful answers!

That is interesting to learn that the female may not become agressive, i will hold off on bringing her back and just keep an eye on her

I will also look to see how the stock of labs is at my LFS tomorrow while i am getting more lava rock:headbang2:

[Fishfiles1]

normoly the black line on the dorsl fin of male labs is darker and more difinitive than the females

[kay-bee]

That is interesting to learn that the female may not become agressive, i will hold off on bringing her back and just keep an eye on her...

For clarification female auratus can be aggressive, just (generally) not as aggressive as the males (one of my most aggressive mbuna's is a female so 'female' does not equate to 'not aggressive', but perhaps 'not as aggressive').

However a female auratus in your line up may be dominated by one of the other males (and that male may not be as hyperdominant as a male auratus could). For example, if the auratus is a female, the male red zebra may dominate the tank in a non-aggressive way (though the auratus could still be an aggressor, just not the alpha aggressor). If the auratus is a male, it may dominate the tank and be prone to become a bully towards all.


normoly the black line on the dorsl fin of male labs is darker and more difinitive than the females

Depends on the quality of the yellow lab in question. A high quality female can have bolder fin markings than a low quality male; and a high quality dominant male can have darker more definative black fin markings than an average sub-dominant male.