Does anyone keep Cyrtocara Moorii with Mbuna?

[Istanbul_Kop]

I dunno dudes. I will have a look round in the local fish shops and see what they have or have coming in for when I'm ready. I've always totally loved the look of the Afras, thought they might be too aggressive for this setup though? I was hoping to get all my fish from this guy, he's well known and has a good reputation for quality....but will of course play the field. So close to finalising this list now! edit: I really want the yellow labs as they are originally what go me interested in Malawi...BUT...if i was to remove them from the list I could just get a load of Saulosi (maybe solve a few problems there?). Are Saulosi with Yellow Labs a really big 'no no'?

 

[efors]

I don't know what others may think, but IMO, I would stay with either the Saulosis or the Labs and not both of them; for the reason I stated before: I think that as females of both species are yellow, that would create a big problem between males of the 2 species and crossbreeding. A 10+ group of Saulosis is nice and you can have 2 different colors with only one species. Good luck with whatever you decide to do and post us some pics later!
p.s.- Again, I would stay with the Labs.

 

[Pittbull]

yep agreed labs will be your best bet, they are nice..

 

[Istanbul_Kop]

Alright, cheers chaps. I really wanted the Yellow Labs, so I'm glad you both agree. If I can source Cyn. Afra I will add them to the list, but if I can't, is there anything else on that breeders list that you can recommend for black/blue? I appreciate all your help, next step will be getting numbers right. It's going to be like a month until I get stocked up, but I wanted to do this now as I've had so many definite fish in my list and later found out something or changed my mind. Cheers again,

 

[efors]

Ps. elongatus "Mpanga" males have a blue body with black bars and also black on all fins with some yellow on dorsal and caudal fins (I was looking my book for this!). They look really beautiful. Apparently, females are brownish colored with thin blue bars and also some blue on fins (not bad looking, at all!). Check with your breeder to verify this, because the Ps. elongatus complex is something complicated, IMO.

 

[Pittbull]

agreed with efors also the chewere will sport the blue black coloration..

 

[Istanbul_Kop]

Thanks guys, I will be back soon with a plethora of new questions.

Adjust your clocks to GMT so you can answer me quickly....:evil_lol:

 

[Istanbul_Kop]

Thinking about exact stocking numbers, what do you think I should be working towards? ie 1cm of fish per 2 lires of water (thats 2cm per US Gallon)?

I have a number of different Malawi books and they range from recommending 1cm fish per 2 litre to 2cm per 2 litres (thats 4cm per US gallon).

Also, my tank is 350L manufacturer stated, but in reality, they are never that much and with the displacement caused by a load of rocks, do I work on the basis that my tank is 350L or the actual amount?

Cheers

 

[efors]

Hi, Kop!
For stocking plans there are a few rules. For an African cichlid tank, I have learned this rule from a guy of Wales, UK and applied it to my tank because I like it: Stock 20 to 24 inches of adult fishes for each square foot of tank space. In your case, we have nearly a 90gal tank. As that tank is 4 feet long and 1.5 foot wide, that equals an area of 6 square feet; then we can have there 120 to 144 total inches of adult fishes. If for example, you are going to have fishes with an average adult size of 4 inches, that means you can stock 30 to 36 fishes in your tank; less if they are going to be bigger. It may sound as overstocking, but I think you should do it in an African cichlid tank. Start with juveniles and remember to have good filtration and to do weekly water changes. I hope this can help you and as Pittbull would say: Aye, see you later, buddy! :thm:

 

[Pittbull]

Aye, hehehe your funny efors, i agree 100% with efor did you go with stock list 2, if so i would do 5 a piece that way you have an option left open to you with a surprise group of fish if needed and if you find a must have group, later buddy..