Malawi compatibility..

[NeBuEr]

Hi! I am thinking of replacing my guppy and tetra from my aquarium as they seem to be incompatible with the 4 Malawi's... can anyone pls suggest some species which can live in peace with Malawi's or are they that savage ? :eek:

[valerie]

Its best to only keep malawis with other malawis, the exception might be a bottom dweller like a bristlenose pleco or syno.

I"m assuming you have Mbuna? in that case guppies and tetras won't work in this tank.

What size tank and what fish are in it?

[NeBuEr]

My tank is a 50 gallon one and I have incompatible fish such as the Malawi mbuna and guppys and tetras... ive had a whole thread on the newbie freshwater forum titled 'Those Malawi's...' I'd like to keep a varied community but if malawi's are that aggressive... and I do want to keep Malawi's coz they're hardy fish

[valerie]

Malawis aren't community type fish, unless you are setting up a malawi community tank. They shouldn't be mixed with tetras and such as they are far too aggresive for them.

If you want a community tank with tetras and guppies then returnt eh malawis.If you want malawis then returnt he tetras.

[JSchmidt]

Many species of synodontis catfish can live peacefully with Malawis. A great species for that size tank would be Syn. petricola, a smallish catfish from Lake Tangynika (I always forget how to spell that lake's name!). If you get at least 3 or 4, they should be quite active and playful.

Otherwise, you'll do much better sticking with Rift Lake cichlids. You have to be careful which species you mix, but thye are very interesting. I especially like species tanks. As long as you have at least one male and a number of females, you'll have a great chance of seeing them have fry, which is quite cool.

Good starter mbuna are yellow labs (Labidochromis caeruleus), pearlmutts (Labidochromis pearlmutt) or Pseudotropheus saulosi.

Many other Pseudotropheus species are too boisterous or too big for that size tanks, as is true of most Melanchromis and Labeotropheus species.

I'm sure other will chime in with good, mild-tempered (relatively speaking, for african cichlids) species.

Good luck and be warned: cichlids can be addictive!

Jim

[RHJ]

I will add to JSchmidt's list: Iodotropheus Sprengerae (Rusty cichlid) and Pseudotropheus Acei. Both of these (and the others listed by JSchmidt) are smaller and less aggresive than other Mbuna. Remember though, ALL Mbuna can be aggressive.

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

I think you need to work on getting all your incompatible fish out before you add any more malawis. Even the malawis you have now aren't going to work out. (I dont know what the brown ones are you were talking about though, i just know the auratus and you certianly cant have those).

How about clearing everything expect the pleco and start over with something like yellow labs. Do you want mbuna or haps? You need to do some heavy research on malawis. There are lotsa books you can buy that will help guide you through your set up. There's an unlimited combination of malawis that could work out together. It all depends on what you want and what your willing to do for your fish. You shouldn't get anything that is too aggressive or gets too big, because you have a 50 gallon. Thats still a half decent sized tank though.

Let us know how it is going and what you decide to do.

[mobiusnu]

Pseudotropheus acei and Pseudotropheus socofoli would probably work out well with those fish, too.

[F1shkeeper]

I have a dinosaur eel in my 55g mbuna tank, dinosaur eel's (also called dinosaur bischir) are very calm and also a very interesting addition to a larger tank.

[JulieC]

If you can find them, Pseudotropheus demasoni stay small (males 3 in females 2.5 in) and they are tough enough to take on bigger tankmates.

I have a species tank of them and they are a very interesting and beautiful mbuna species.

[Websta316]

in my comunity 4 ft i have 4 yellow labs (2 babies) :D 3 zebra, 1 milomo, 1 unidentified, and 2 corydora. The milomo and male yellow lab always compete for dominace but its nothing but shows of aggresion and chasin which lasts only a few mins. is there any bottom feaders that would be compatable in a boistrous cichlid tank ???? and was thinkin of addin an oddball or 2 any ideas ??

[blue2fyre]

Wow old thread


First I would move the cories. Mbuna are NOT community fish and the cories would be happier elsewhere. Then I would look at getting a few more mbuna to spread out aggressin. Post a picture of the unidentified one and we can help you figure out what it is. Also what size tank is this?
Once that is all done I would look into syno petricola. They are a fun little catfish that like to be in groups and will fit in well with the cichlids.

[dtowncich]

Websta,

For about a year, I had a Yo-yo loach, red-tail shark, and a number of clown loaches that would live peacfully w/ Mbunas.

All of them grew quite big.

The yo-yo loach only came out during/after feeding time to clean up the mess.

The red-tail shark chased most the Mbuna around the tank.

The clown loaches kept to themselves and also were left alone. They regularly came to the surface to eat (alongside) the cichlids.

[efors]

And what happened with them after the year?

[dtowncich]

I disassembled the tank when I moved.

The clown loaches went w/ my roommate to his new place (they wound up a bit too big for my taste anyway), and the yo-yo and red-tail are still thriving in my mixed Malawi.

[efors]

Cool!