Africans a bad idea ?

X

XMAN

AC Members
Nov 24, 2004
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Hi,

I currently have a 40 long with only 5 fish in it. I have 3 giant danios (2.5" or larger), a bristlenose pleco (5 inches), and a clown pleco (2.5 inches). my pH is regularly about 7.5-7.8. How would Africans do with these guys? Or perhaps the better question is, how would my existing fish do with the addition of some africans? Is this a really bad idea?
 
It's been my experience that my Africans ignore plecos, loaches, or catfish, but I think they would beat up on your danios. I don't think it's a good idea, personally.
 
Is Ph of 7.? high enough for africans? I always thought they did best in the 8's
 
I agree with LuvMyKribs that your pH is at the low end of the advisable range for "Africans", assuming by that you mean Rift Lake Cichlids. However, if you were willing to bump the pH a bit higher (Rift Lake buffers for Lake Malawi or Tanganyika are available and not that expensive), you could keep some of the smaller Tanganyikan species with your fish with no trouble.

Shelldwellers might be a bit small, but Neolamprologus brichardi aren't terribly aggressive and you might be able to breed them and watch some interesting brood care. The julidochromis genus would also be generally workable, I think.

On the other hand, when people say "Africans" they often mean those "mixed Africans" sold in a hybridized jumble in many fish stores. Those, by and large, would not be a good idea, both because of space and aggression issues.
 
and don't forget the "west" african species ... some will do well with the fish you've got.
 
I know about the west African ones. Originally I was going to go with Steatocranus spp, but they are hard to find near me. So... I was just trying to think through other options.

Regarding different lakes cichilds, I am guessing Pseudotropheus spp. are from Lake Malawi then. Are the Tanganyikan cichlids more aggressive in general? Also, just curious, does anyone use baking soda to raise/buffer your pH in African tanks? I know the mineral content would't be quite right, but are there drawbacks to doing so that I may not be aware of?
 
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