Is 10 african cichlids in a 29gal over stocking?
- Thread starter cichlidcichlid
- Start date
it really depends on what kind of cichlids u have and alot of ppl will tell u that it is overstocked but u know as long as ur doing proper tank maint. and ur fish are healthy u dont have to always conform to what everyone else says.
i have 4 yellow labs and 4 various peacocks in a 29 and they are very healthy and active. but i also have excellent filtration and i perform weekly 25% water changes.
i have 4 yellow labs and 4 various peacocks in a 29 and they are very healthy and active. but i also have excellent filtration and i perform weekly 25% water changes.
Personally, I wouldn't put more than one African in anything less than a 30 gallon. And then I'd overstock the 30 to reduce aggression (maybe 6-8). Depends on the kind of Africans, though. If you have shell dwellers or dwarf cichlids, you would still be overstocked, but I don't think that you would have as many problems down the line as if they were something like demasoni or yellow labs.
Keep in mind, too, that if these fish are juveniles and get along now that doesn't mean it will keep going on. When they get to be adults, they won't get along as well I can tell you that from experience. The success of your mix also depends on your ratio of males to females. Per species it is recommended that you have a ratio of one male to 3-4 females. Or just males of the species. It is very common for the dominant male in the tank to kill off perfectly healthy tankmates over night when the mix of males to females isn't right.
Do you provide caves, rocks, plants, and other hiding places? It is very important that you do...especially with the tank stocked as it is. The hiding spots will at least allow for the subordinate fish to hide from the dominant one.
For now, provide weekly water changes (bi-weekly would probably be better) of at least 25-30%. And research the species of fish that you have and find out if they will work.
And last, but certainly not least:
Just because the fish are survivng, does not mean that they are happy or healthy. We recommend the size of tanks based on the research that we've done and the personal experiences that we've had. I have a 55 gallon with Africans that I've had up and running for almost 2 years now. Keep your fish the way that you want to, but this is what I recommend that you do based on my experiences with these fish.
Keep in mind, too, that if these fish are juveniles and get along now that doesn't mean it will keep going on. When they get to be adults, they won't get along as well I can tell you that from experience. The success of your mix also depends on your ratio of males to females. Per species it is recommended that you have a ratio of one male to 3-4 females. Or just males of the species. It is very common for the dominant male in the tank to kill off perfectly healthy tankmates over night when the mix of males to females isn't right.
Do you provide caves, rocks, plants, and other hiding places? It is very important that you do...especially with the tank stocked as it is. The hiding spots will at least allow for the subordinate fish to hide from the dominant one.
For now, provide weekly water changes (bi-weekly would probably be better) of at least 25-30%. And research the species of fish that you have and find out if they will work.
And last, but certainly not least:
Just because the fish are survivng, does not mean that they are happy or healthy. We recommend the size of tanks based on the research that we've done and the personal experiences that we've had. I have a 55 gallon with Africans that I've had up and running for almost 2 years now. Keep your fish the way that you want to, but this is what I recommend that you do based on my experiences with these fish.
They are meant to be living in some of largest lakes in the world... What are talking about there meant to be overstocked?dvsgp6 said:
my thoughts exacly. besides the great lakes, the rift lakes in Africa are among the largest in the world. they have plenty of space in the wild, and the only reason that aquarists over stock in their tanks a bit is to distribute agression.dorkfish said:
Ya, I actually managed to memorize that Lake Malawi is the 9th largest lake in the world. Just an odd fact.
They are not meant to be overstocked, per se. But overstocking is common practice in african tanks for the reason stated. It reduces agression. It gives the alpha of the group more targets to pick on instead of one or two. It doesnt really reduce the agression the domanant fish doles out, but it does reduce the ammount of agression each of the other fish recieves.dorkfish said:
I think there is a difference between overstocking a tank and spreading out aggression. If you have a 30 gallon tank with 10 fish in it or a 50 gallon tank with 10 fish in it the aggression will still be divied up the same but they will be much more comfortable in the 50.
I am just using this as an example to illustrate my point because I think it depends on the type of cichlids in this case.
I am just using this as an example to illustrate my point because I think it depends on the type of cichlids in this case.