Bought some cichlids-HELP

[fishman89]

Today I was at Wal Mart buying dog food and saw some cichlids. I couldnt resist waiting and buying em from my LFS so I bought em from there. I have no idea what type they are or anything. The tag said "assorted cichlids". but they all look healthy and happy I have 5 of them in a 125 gallon at my friends house right now because I cant have them in my 25g because its a black paradise fish species tank. So I am getting a 90g tommorow from the same friend(traded a yellow watchman goby and a dirtbike) will they be ok in this? does anyone know what kind wal mart sells? the 125g they are in is cycled etc. AND They are the only fish in it for now because he is also starting a black paradise fish species tank. so I look forward to having them in my house and everything. any info or any kind of help is welcome

[oztun]

Assorted cichlids could mean anything... Search the internet for pictures or post some here for us to see. Hopefully you have all of one type like all South Americans or all African Lake. SA's like a PH of 6.5 or so and African Lake fish like 7.6-8.2 or so. I'd be prepared to get rid of some if they have different requirements. Also some africans are extremely aggresive and will kill other fish.

For now just don't get any new ones till you figure out what you have and what you need to do to keep them healthy.

[fishman89]

3 of them look like these ones http://www.kevincaughey.com/images/fish/1.jpg
and 2 look like this http://www.greenparktropical.com/Fish/images/Cichlids/african/Aulonocara%20Nyassae%20Yellow.jpg

[CCchaos04]

most of what ive seen at walmart were africans. I never buy fish from walmart because the ones i bought in the past either died or infected my tank with ick. Ive looked at the fish at walmart a couple times and at least a few fish in every tank had ick.

[oztun]

Ok looks like you might be in luck. Both of those are the species Aulonocara which are African cichlids from Lake Malawi. Hopefully your tap water has a alkaline PH. If not I'd use some crushed coral mixed in your gravel. You want it to be from 7.5-8.8. Most people setup up nice rock structures in their tank for these types of fish.

They are great cichlids to own and if you do your research you will get lots of enjoyment from them. Remember to have patience so you can do it right. Eventually you might want more but might want to go with different species from the same lake. These fish tend to be aggressive and having more lessens the aggression since it gets more spread out.

Search google for "aulonocara" and "lake malawi cichlids". You will find tons of information. Just do lots of research. You can also use the search button on this site too.

[fishman89]

well i am setting up the 90 tommorow and I am using pre aged water with a pH of 8.0 I always have some preaged fresh and saltwater jus incase. I also bought 45lbs of lava rock (not alive) for the freshy 90g from a friend just now(my friends and I often sell trade etc.) and some fake plants with some limestone caves(she made them herself). So they are good together? Thats great! Can I get more in a 90g and how do I know which ones r guys or grls? Can they breed?

[Nuriel]

the blue ones look a bit like Lombardoi females, "kenyi"- ...good luck!

[fishman89]

thanx. what do i feed these guys?

[gsk177]

Flakes if they are small, flakes and smaller pellets if they are large enough to eat them.
If they are of typical walmart size, id stick with flake for the time being.

[gsk177]

BTW, could you possibly post a picture of the homemade limestone caves?
Im very curious as to what they look like.

[fishman89]

yeah I'll try. and so like just tropical fish flakes ?

[gsk177]

Yeah, tropical flakes or cichlid flakes would be best.

[fishman89]

sorry cant get any pics don't have my digital camera and I cant find any cameras around here. I will get my camera back 2 morrow and I'll post as many pics as you want(camera at parents house,dad's b-day)

[fishman89]

I'll go to walmart tommorow on my way home and buy some cichlid flakes. Also do these fish require certain lighting? Any tankmates?The tank I am getting has 2 flourescent bulbs that were used for a saltwater tankare these to bright?

[gsk177]

There are no freshwater fish that I am aware of that requires "special" lighting. Now you can go overboard and create too much light that will cause stress or possible algae problems, but in a practical sense, no, you don't need anything special for lighting. The lights that came with the tank will suffice.

As for tankmates......I would stick with what you've got as far as the main species and possibly look for a cleanup crew of sorts. For that, corries, plecos, maybe some smaller catfish.....

[fishman89]

ghost shrimp?plecostomus? or however its spelt

[gsk177]

I would expect the shrimp to be eaten. The pleco would make a good candidate, but I would steer clear of the common pleco. Try a bristlenose or rubber lip or a different variety. Besides getting very big, common plecos are IMO kinda boring.

[fishman89]

so how about 2 bristlenose and the 5 cichlids?

[gsk177]

Easy as pie. ANd possibly a school of cory cats

[Analog Saint]

Not to nitpick, but don't cories prefer softer water? In addition, I'm not sure how aggressive these africans are, but I'd be worried that the cories might not be able to fend for themselves against them.

Bristlenose plecos rock, they should be able to handle everything. They can hold their own and have an insatiable appetite for algae. Cories are great too, but the last time I had cories and a cichlid (a kribensis) in the same tank, I found a cory missing both its eyes and a portion of its tail.

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

Yeah cories and africans would be a very BAD idea... those would be picked on severly... and are small enough to eventually be a snack.

For catfish only synodontis cats work, either mutlis or petricolas.

As for the food get AFRICAN cichlid flakes and SPIRALUNA flakes, since some of the fish you have are vegetarian and meaty protien in thier diet can be deadly. Its important they are african cichlid flakes because they are made specially for africans, as opposed to new worlds.


And raise your Ph up to 8 using crushed coral or shell. :)

HTH
-Diana

[fishman89]

can i use the spirulina flakes i feed my Bicolor Angel(saltwaterfish)? ok I'll raise the PH. I just got the 90g at 8AM my time and I have been setting it up ever since I seeded the filter with some substrate from the tank they are in and as there substrate i used some crushed agronite mixed with crushed coral. The limestone caves and rockwork are incredible and I love it!(sorry no pics yet have to drive a while to dads house!). The tank is up and running as for filtration i used an Emperor 400 biowheel along with a Hydor Prime 30 Canister Filter. They have 1 flourescent light and I am thinking of adding a protien skimmer cuz I heard these guys are messy eaters. Is this ok? No fish are in it yet because I'm letting the tank run for a few hours all the water is preaged and stuff. With supplements etc. The PH is at 8.0 and the nitrates are at .5ppm and nitrites are at 0. Is there anything else I need to worry about? I wont put the fish in untill tonight. For now I have the 5 of them in a 20g tub.

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

It sounds pretty good, i wouldn't use the protien skimmer, i dont think its nessecary. Ive never heard of someone using it on freshwater before...? hehe

As long as you have decent filtration you will be okay... say about 300 + gallons per hour with a strong enough current to lift the poo off the floor.

cant wait to see some pics!

oh yeah those saltwater sprialuna flakes should be fine.. who makes them? ;)

[fishman89]

tetra makes em. So no protein skimmer. I've never heard of freshy using em either but I thought I'd be safe cuz I spent a lot on these guys with all there stuff and I dont want em to die off. Yeah the pics are gonna be awesome. I am hoping to have em by tonight or tommorow. My fish are so cool I love watching em. So which ones are vegetarians and which ones arent? Will they breed in a 90g?

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

Generally the mbuna are vegetarian and the haplochromis are not. There are some execptions, like yellow labs, that are mbuna but can handle more protien in thier diet. However, it is reccommended to feed them lots of spiraluna. The haps & peacocks eat more meaty foods like krill and brine shrimp, and african cichlid flake. It is generally adivsed against keeping the two different types together because its hard to feed them individually when they are in the same tank.... but if you feed mainly sprialuna and almost an equal share, but slightly less, of the african cichlid flake you should be okay. You can give a treat of krill once every two weeks or so. Also dont feed them very often... once a day 5 times per week. This will help cut down on bloat, which they are prone to.

And yes, if they are happy they will breed. Make sure to have females for the males so you dont get any cross-breeding happening. Also, be sure to have a good ratio of female to male because they are harem breeders. So, i would say about 3 females per male. They are usually not sexable when young though, so you will need to wait until they are older.

PS- check out this site: http://www.malawimayhem.com It deals primarily with malawi cichlids

:)
-Diana

[fishman89]

thanx I'll do all of that and make sure they stay healthy and happy. I cant wait to have em breed. I just did a water test and pH is at 8.0 Nitrites 0 and nitrates are almost 0 basically I could barely see the test water change color. Can I put the fish in yet? I know I'm probably being really impatient but this tank is so awesome and I want them all to be happy. They are kinda cramped in the 20g tub I have em in right now. Oh and I heard its healthy to add a pinch of sea salt into the tank? So in a 90g is 5 cichlids too much or can I buy more?

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

You could probebly do close to 30 cichlids in a 90, depending on what species they are. wow i know! hehe. its best to slightly overcrowd them because it cus down on aggression, so a bully wont always pick on one fish- he will get distracted by all the others. Once you get pictures we will help you ID them, so you know what you have and what you can add, etc etc.

Yes a lot of people add a bit of salt. I dont really know the formula since i dont add it but i think its about 1 tsp per gallon. Its not nessecary but i just pointed out in another thread that it will help cut down on bacterial infections in wounds.

:)
Your tank sounds absolutely fine, you can go ahead and add the fishies!


-Diana

[fishman89]

ok I'm going to add the fish now! So 1tsp per gallon? I'll try that sometime. Not now cuz I dont wanna mess around with stuff I want everything to be stable. I also heard putting some substrate in my powerfilter can help maintain a good pH? Alos I heard baking soda can raise pH if you cook it for an hour at300F? I'll let you know how it goes with the fishies as soon as I put em in which will be right now.

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

Oh no need to cook the baking soda! Just go ahead and add it... but if your ph is already at 8.0 then its fine.

You can put some crushed coral or shell into a stocking and put that into the filter, which will raise ph. This is not instant though, it takes a little while to buffer all the water in the tank. But its reccommended because its much cheaper then using cichlid salts to buffer the water.

I use baking soda to raise the ph instantly for the new water going into the tank during water changes, etc. I dont add very much, i usually add a bit and then test the ph, then add a bit more if needed. Then you will become familiar with how much you need and wont need to test it any more. :)

[fishman89]

lol sounds like a good idea. Can you add it a SW tank? I am all out of PH buffer and my 55g SW tank has a PH of 7.8. So I'll add some baking soda,if its ok(???). Whats Cichlid salt? My cichlids are doing great. They have already picked out little territories. each one has a cave except for the smallest that one choes a group of plants. These little fish are amazing! I love them. No wonder so many people raise them and care for them!

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

Yeah they are awesome fish thats for sure. :D

Cichlid salts are a buffering compound that are supposed to make the water perfect for africans. Well, depending on the type you get i guess. Raises ph and hardens the water etc etc. They are sold at the pet store near all the aquarium additives. I feel they are expensive and cheaper ways can be found, such as baking soda and crushed coral/shell for ph.

A lot of people use them with great success though. :)

I dont know if you can use baking soda for salt water, you might want to search around for an answer to that. I dont see why not, but i know salt water is a little more fussy than cichlids ;)

-Diana

[fishman89]

lol yeah these fish rock. To my amazement they are sticking together unless someone gets close to the tank then they all go to there seperate territories. 'm the only person who can get near the tank without them freaking out. Is this normal? It looks like they are schooling??? Also I went and bought 8 more cichlids at walmart same ones. They are currently being qt'd. I'll add them either tommorow or day after. I dont think I'll buy the cichlid salts. The baking soda works in salt too I asked around. When are you thinking of going salt? I could help ya,thats where I'm comfortable,but I dont know everything. I guess thats why I'ma member of the forum lol.

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

Yeah my fish will usually freak out if people walk near the tank. The mbuna do this often, i find the haps arent as scared. Actually since i add the haps and mbuna together the mbuna will not hide as much and dont really scatter when i come near the tank. I think the haps taught them a lesson. They can recognize me as thier owner and dont run away when i come to the tank, but with different people they will be more weary. I think cichlids are the only fish that can tell who thier owner is (well, at least who the person that feeds them is).

[fishman89]

lol yeah they do like food! But my tomato clown recognizez me. Every time I walk in the room it swims over to say hi! This is probably because I raised him since he was a small fry. I love him! So this is common in the fish I have? Well maybe they'll get used to me. I certainly hope so! Your very knowledgable in cichlids. tahnkyou for everything and I look forward to recieving more info from u.