Help with 80 gallon Malawi tank stocking.

rufioman

rufioman

"That guy"
Aug 16, 2010
4,244
37
51
39
Northern Arizona, USA.
Real Name
Heath
I have a question regarding the stocking of my 80 gallon Malawi tank.

Dimensions: 48"Lx18"Wx28"T
Filtration: Penguin 350 and Emperor 400
Water changes and cleaning of substrate: 25-30% once/week, 50% once/month.

Pic:

Heath_Carnicom


Current stock list (type, size, female:male ratio):

Pseudotropheus sp. Acei/Acei-2" 2F:0M
Melanochromis auratus/Auratus-2" 1F:0M
Metriaclima estherae/Orange zebra-2" 1F:0M
Pseudotropheus zebra/Albino zebra-1.5" 3F:0M
Hemichromis bimaculatus/Red jewel-2.5", 2" 1F:1M
Metriaclima lombardoi/Kenyi-1.5" 0F:1M
Pterygoplichthys gibbiceps/Sailfin pleco-4.5"
Female:male ratio-8:2
Total inches of fish: 18.5 (23 w/ pleco)

I want to go for near-maximum capacity with this tank but not totally overboard as there are ten in there already. Any thoughts/advice would be appreciated.
 
Bump your Zebras up to about 10 total and the Acei 10 total and get rid of the Kenyi and the auratus Or add 7 more Socolofi or Fueliborni
 
Also from your photo i notice you are feeding top fin i would do NLS pellets and flakes a better quality food for Africans, just my opinion.. Welcome to AC..
 
Why get rid of the kenyi and auratus? Not enough of them? Aggression? This tank is fairly new so I'll definitely look into getting a new staple. Thanks by the way.
 
Why get rid of the kenyi and auratus? Not enough of them? Aggression? This tank is fairly new so I'll definitely look into getting a new staple. Thanks by the way.
Click to expand...

Aggression. Those 2 species are some of the meanest you can buy and are capable of killing off a tank if they feel like it. There are much more attractive, less aggressive mbuna out there IMO.

I agree with Pitt's stocking suggestions. For an 80 gallon you'll be aiming for about 25-30 fish as long as you keep up on water changes and filtration. The fewer species you have, the more likely you are to have a successful tank. You could do 4 species in this tank just choose wisely.

Also the gender ratios don't quite work like that. Usually you go for gender ratios within each species. Females can be just as mean as males. How big are your fish? Are you sure about the genders? Some of those species can be tough to tell without venting.
 
Ah totally. Someone this morning told me the aggression would come out more when they are bigger even if they're alright with each other now. I'm going to setup my dusty 55 gallon for them then until I can find them homes.

Cichlids are a whole new world to me so thanks a lot for your suggestions and insights. My LFS and the manager of a large one in phoenix said that due to coloration and egg spots they were able to identify the ones I labeled as females and vice versa. I mentioned they were all still a bit small, roughly 2", and still they persisted. I guess time will tell?

Given the parameters and your advice, somewhere around 25 sounds about right. I'll wait to get more input on genders of the fish then see where it goes. Thanks, I will update asap!
 
Egg spots and color are not reliable ways to tell gender. Some females have egg spots, some males have very few. You can usually pick out a dominant male but it can be very difficult to tell a subdominant males from females. They will change their color to look like females to avoid the wrath of the male. At that size I think it's pretty hard to tell. Once they get bigger it will be easier.
 
Awesome, thanks man. I have my 55g ready just in case!
 
Thanks Mrs Blue you are awesome.. Good luck Rufio it will all come together soon my friend and welcome to the wonderful world of Africans..
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom