Africans killing each other!!

O

opaleski

opaleski
Jun 9, 2006
59
0
0
Hills of Florida
Tank-75 Gallon hex--Lots of rocks, 8-Fish 2-Auloncara steveni, 2-Auloncara nyassa, 2-Labidochromis caeruleus, 2-Pseudotropheus sp. One is dead, one is about to die--I removed all of the rocks so no more fighting over terrorties?
Any idea's on what else to do? All are about 4". The pet store said I need more fish? I'm not so sure that I want to go out and spend more money on fish that tend to kill each other? I really wanted to keep African's, but, I don't need all of this anger in a tank that should be calming!
 
African cichlids are inherantly aggressive and pugnacious. moreover, the Mbuna are best kept as a group of 1 male + 4 females (or more) of the same species. your pet store is right ... you need more fish of the same species as you've already got. and put back those rocks ... Mbuna means 'rock dwellers' in Malawi and these species do best when there's LOTs of rocks with LOTs of caves ... at least one per fish.
 
I suggest you let nature take it's course. If you have chosen to have a wide variety of cichlids, the stronger fish will consume the weak, and begin forming a communtiy. One of the most appealing qualities about a newly established cichlid tank is observing the tank's evolution from chaos to a republic, comprised of one or a few species. A balance will be achieved with or without your help, and I've found that to much interference only leads to frustration. Good luck.
 
RUBBERTREE said:
I suggest you let nature take it's course. If you have chosen to have a wide variety of cichlids, the stronger fish will consume the weak, and begin forming a communtiy. One of the most appealing qualities about a newly established cichlid tank is observing the tank's evolution from chaos to a republic, comprised of one or a few species. A balance will be achieved with or without your help, and I've found that to much interference only leads to frustration. Good luck.
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acctually, that is untrue. i see this all of the time in male opaline guoramis. the strongest males gang up on the weakest, and they eventually kill it. then the strongest of whats left kill the next weakest, and so on until there are two left, and it results in one being killed or both because of battle wounds.
 
i wouldn't want to let "nature take its course" when i'm the one paying the bill. . . .
 
i have a 90 gallon of just african cichlids and i have 17 in there and they all get along well because africans are ment to be overstocked when theres alot in a tank the one being chase will blend in with the others which is good and your problem could be that is that you have a 75 gallon with only 8 inside and also your problem can be that you have more males than females remenber if you have about 8 in there you should at least have 2 males with 6 females if not then its just chaos
 
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I would think that having more males will result in more deaths...

I would suggest only a male for 4 to 5 females, all the same species. So maybe two types of the cichlids with a male and 4 to 5 females for each species.

That would result in 10 to 12 cichlids in the 75G tank (two different species of cichlids)... Just my opinion.
 
There are no females only males. That is what the pet store recommended. Down to six now, and the rocks are back in--Maybe I should add more rocks and some clay pots or 1.5" schedule 40?
 
opaleski said:
There are no females only males. That is what the pet store recommended. Down to six now, and the rocks are back in--Maybe I should add more rocks and some clay pots or 1.5" schedule 40?
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take most of them back.
if i were you, i woudnt go to the that fish store ever again unless you had no choice. they are obviously only in it for the money and have no care whatsoever for the aquarist at the other end of the deal, and the do not care for informing the person with the truth that these fish can get agressive.
 
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