Can I Add Rainbows?

[jshultis]

Was hoping someone could give some advice. My tank specs are below along with the fish currently in the tank. Was wondering if I had room to add some Rainbows? If so, how many? Was looking to add Bosemani or maybe Trifasciata's;

Tank: 70g Show Tank, Moderately Planted (Live Plants)

Fish:

3 Juli. Transcriptus Gombi (Sex Unknown)
3 Thoracochromis Brauschii (2M / 1F)
1 Aulonacara Lwanda v
1 Female Peacok
1 Pleco


Thanks
Jesse

 

[Roan Art]

I assume those are cichlids? Are they African? Aggressive?

If you can give me some info on those guys, I might be able to help you.

Is that Peacock a gudgeon or another cichlid?

Roan

 

[jshultis]

Roan,

Thanks. They are all Cichlids. For the most part, they are Tanganyikan/Malawi and from what I understand they are not overly aggressive. They all seem to keep to themselves. The mid - upper stratum of the tank is pretty vacant that is why I was considering Rainbows. The llwanda and female are a pair and are larger (now about 3 inches, probably getting to 4 or so). The Brauschii are smaller but the males will get to 3 - 4 inches. The juli's are the smallest, but would expect them to get about 2 - 3 inches.

Jesse

 

[Roan Art]

Hrm.
Rainbows I know, cichlids I don't. What I can tell you is what would work in the water you have, assuming you have it set up as a "hard water" Rift Lake? tank. As to whether they will get along with your cichlids and your cichlids get along with them, I hope someone else who knows these types of fish can shed some light on it.

I eventually want to learn more about cichlids, but not atm

What I do know about some African cichlid tanks, if they are set up as thus, is that they have a lot of salt in the water in order to mimic the high TDS of the African Lakes.

(Someone who knows this crap jump in and confirm or shoot me in the head, please )

With surety I can say that Boesemani will probably work in very alkaline water, if acclimated properly. They have been caught in water ranging from 6.4 ph up to 9.0 pH, however I'm not sure of the GH. I do know that mine have been in a GH in excess of 20 with no problems, as well as a dGH of 7, again no problems. Boesemani grow from 3.5-4", and should be in schools of 6 or more.

If someone says the cichlids will work with them temperament-wise, then you probably have room for a school of six.

As for the Trifasciatas: the Boesemani originate in Papua New Guinea and the trifasciata originate in Australia. Australia has a much greater range of climate than PNG does. They've been found usually in very alkaline water, but also acidic. Apparently they are often seen in the same water as Melanotaenia nigrans, which is the only Rainbowfish that I've read about that seems to prefer more brackish conditions, ie: high TDS.

Trifasciatas grow to around 6", and you might be able to squeeze a school of those in there.

Dunno if this helped at all. Really need feedback from someone who knows cichlids well.

Roan

 

[jshultis]

Roan,

Thanks very much. Great information. I will do some more research on my own as well to better understand the cichlid requirements vs rainbows.

Just one point of clarification;

You mentioned a school of 6 bosemani and a possible school of trifasciatas. Are you saying I can add a school of each or is it "one or the other". Just don't want to over stock.



Thanks again,
Jesse

 

[Roan Art]

Roan,

Thanks very much. Great information. I will do some more research on my own as well to better understand the cichlid requirements vs rainbows.

You're welcome.

Just one point of clarification;

You mentioned a school of 6 bosemani and a possible school of trifasciatas. Are you saying I can add a school of each or is it "one or the other". Just don't want to over stock.

Thanks again,
Jesse

Since you already have fish in there and more space = less chance of aggression, one or the other.

As to how many of each, I'm not sure of the dimensions of your tank. 70g isn't a "standard" size so I'm hard pressed to envision the footprint. Is it 36x18x25? If so, then six-eight Boesmani or six trifasciatas. The younger the rainbow the more it will "hang out" in the upper layer. As they get older they will gravitate towards using more of the middle layer and the whole tank.

HTH
Roan