Combatibiltiy question?

justahannah

justahannah

Fascinated newb
Jul 29, 2008
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Tacoma, WA
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Hannah
So, I'm working at a pet store in a fish department, and cichlids are not my strong area. Lately I've had a couple customers asking if they can keep South American and African cichlids together...I was told no, but not why by a coworker and I'd like to be able to provide a why. People (most, anyway) tend not to buy fish if I can give them a legitimate reason why they won't work in the tank/would be a waste of their money. Can someone here give me the lowdown so I can prevent bad homes from happening to good fish? Thanks!
Hannah
 
two many different water values is the key most african rift lake cichlids require a water ph value of 8.6 or higher and SA cichlids do well in ph values of 6.0 to 7.0 central american cichlids can go a little higher than 7.0 also size and aggression play a major role in the different types of cichlids a large oscar will eat a small mbuna or tanganyika or a full grown pair of mated mbuna at 6 inches will beat the crap out of a 2 to 3 inch oscar so the carma is twofold, these are just examples but there is a reason why most workers say that they dont work now for all those folks out there that say it doesnt matter and it works for them well luck is what took place in that part and they got the right combo but is it normal, its one of those toss ups in the fish hobby.. cool deal let me applaud you for asking the question to better serve the fish community my friend..
 
Thanks everyone for all the responses! I'm sure I'll have more questions in the future as things come up. I hate not having a reasonable answer...when people ask a question and only get an ignorant sounding "yes/no" without the reason, they make bad choices based on what they want because most people don't want to do the research...it's hard to convince someone it's a bad idea with "just because that's what I was told". The more I know, the more ammo I have to talk people into getting compatible fish. And then I feel better because I love my fishes!
 
There is also different ways to control their aggression. With Africans you have to over stock the tank to keep their aggression under control but doing that with SA/CA cichlids would cause more aggression.
 
krytan said:
There is also different ways to control their aggression. With Africans you have to over stock the tank to keep their aggression under control but doing that with SA/CA cichlids would cause more aggression.
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I agree, I think this is the biggest reason. People usually have really bad aggression/fighting issues when they mix SA/CAs and Africans because while they are both aggressive, they are aggressive in different ways and cannot read each others behavioral cues.

SA/CAs will usually work out a pecking order and territories amongst themselves, it is advised to understock these fish so they each have adequate territory to claim. Whereas Africans are recommended to be overstocked to minimize aggression, and they have more a hyperactive constant aggression.

Also there's the fact that most of the most popular Africans (Lake Malawi especially mbuna) are herbivores, and should have a mostly vegetable-based diet, whereas CA/SAs are generally carnivores, and need a higher protein diet. So since you can't physically stop a fish from eating food you are feeding into your tank, if you had mbuna it is likely they could get sick (bloat) from eating too much protein, which you would have to feed to keep the CA/SAs healthy.
 
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